Proposal Specialist

CDW; United States; Remote; USD 71,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual bonus 5%

Job summary

CDW is seeking a Proposal Leader to drive end‑to‑end bid management for complex opportunities in the United States. The role blends strategy, writing, and project leadership to shape compliant, win‑oriented proposals.

You will coordinate with opportunity teams, manage schedules, mentor contributors, and leverage AI tools to accelerate content while ensuring accuracy and alignment with evaluation criteria.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent relevant work experience.
• Two or more years of proposal writing, proposal management, project management, technical/business writing or editorial experience.
• Excellent writing, editing and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to manage multiple deadline-driven projects at the same time.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office and Adobe Acrobat; AI tools familiarity.
• Strong attention to detail and compliance with instructions.

Responsibilities

• Analyze solicitations, requirements and risks; map to owners and build compliance matrices.
• Lead proposal management, define roles and track actions, risks and dependencies.
• Plan and adjudicate color team reviews and coordinate pricing reviews.
• Develop win strategies, discriminators and value propositions; write in a unified voice.
• Use AI tools to analyze solicitations, refine content and grow the content library.
• Ensure compliance, production and on-time submission via portals.
• Support clarifications, BAFOs and post-submission activities as needed.
• Participate in department initiatives and share best practices.

Skills

Proposal writing

Proposal management

Project management

Technical writing

Editing

Verbal communication

Attention to detail

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

PowerPoint

Teams

SharePoint

Adobe Acrobat

Job description

What You Will Do:

• Opportunity Assessment & Planning Analyze solicitations for requirements, evaluation criteria, instructions and risks; build compliance matrices and outlines mapping each requirement to an owner. Research the customer's priorities, constraints and hot buttons, the incumbent and the competitive landscape. Provide relevant context and input for sales‑led bid/no‑bid decisions.
• Proposal Leadership & Project Management Build a schedule backward from the due date, define roles and track actions, risks and dependencies. Manage concurrent proposals, hold contributors accountable without direct authority, elevate issues early.
• Color Team Review Process Plan, facilitate and adjudicate Kickoff, Pink (first draft), Red (final draft), Gold (page‑by‑page compliance); coordinate Green (pricing) reviews owned by sales or technical leads.
• Strategy, Win Themes & Writing Work with the opportunity team to develop the win strategy, win themes, discriminators and value propositions. Write, edit and tailor persuasive, accurate, compliant content in one voice, aligned to evaluation criteria.
• AI & Content Library Use company‑approved generative AI tools to analyze and deepen understanding of solicitations, draft and refine content, summarize requirements and speed up reviews. Verify AI output, protect confidential data, and grow the content library, templates and boilerplate.
• Compliance, Production & Submission Ensure compliance with instructions, forms, certifications, formatting and page limits; manage final assembly, quality control and on‑time submission, including via portals.
• Post‑Submission Support Support clarifications, Q&A, orals, BAFOs and protests as needed, in a supporting rather than leading role. Request and conduct debriefs, capture lessons learned, support award transition and close out opportunities.
• Department Contribution Join training, department and process‑improvement initiatives, industry days and pre‑proposal conferences; share best practices with peers.

What We Expect of You:

Minimum Basic requirements Bachelor's degree or equivalent relevant work experience. Two or more years of proposal writing, proposal management, project management, technical/business writing or editorial experience. Excellent writing, editing and verbal communication skills. Ability to manage multiple deadline‑driven projects at the same time. Strong attention to detail and a focus on compliance. Working proficiency with generative AI tools and a willingness to adopt new technology. Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, SharePoint) and Adobe Acrobat. Sound judgment, composure under pressure and constructive communication with all levels of the organization, including executives.

Preferred Skills, Experience, and Qualities Needed

Public sector or government procurement knowledge, including contracts, T&Cs and purchasing requirements. General knowledge of IT products, services and solutions. Experience with proposal content/RFP response platforms and structured color team reviews (e.g., Shipley). APMP certification (Foundation or Practitioner) or PMI certification (CAPM or PMP).

Pay Range

Pay range: $71,000 - $100,000 depending on experience and skill set Annual bonus target of 5% subject to terms and conditions of plan.

Benefits overview: https://cdw.benefit-info.com/ Salary ranges may be subject to geographic differentials CDW is committed to being an AI‑fluent organization.

Company Culture

We’re looking for people who bring curiosity, a learner’s mindset, and a willingness to engage with ever‑evolving technology and tools. We value adopting AI as a partner, openness to experimentation, and a shared interest in learning together on AI. Our goal is to create a culture where AI enhances—not replaces—human creativity and decision‑making. You don’t need to be an expert today; what matters is your readiness to explore, adapt, and grow with us as we integrate AI responsibly and effectively into our work. Additionally, CDW is committed to fostering an equitable, transparent, and respectful hiring process for all applicants. During our application process, our goal is to understand your experience, strengths, skills, and qualifications. As an AI forward company, we see AI not just as a tool, but as a catalyst for new ways of thinking, creating, and communicating. We encourage candidates to embrace an AI mindset, one that’s curious, adaptive, and ready to explore what’s possible. We welcome thoughtful use of AI to expand your perspective and elevate how you share your story, while ensuring your application remains rooted in your own background, judgment, and voice.

About Us

CDW is a Fortune 500 technology solutions provider that helps businesses, government, education, and healthcare organizations achieve what’s possible through technology. What makes CDW different isn’t just what we do—it’s how we do it. At CDW we act as one—building trust, speaking candidly, and working together to achieve more. We play to win—focusing on what matters most and delivering for our customers. And we think forward—staying curious, moving fast, and continuously learning. We believe meaningful work happens when people feel supported, heard, and empowered to contribute. That’s why we think of ourselves as coworkers, not just employees—working together to solve complex challenges and deliver real impact for our customers and communities. As a full‑stack, full‑lifecycle technology partner, CDW brings deep expertise, strong relationships, and broad industry knowledge to help turn ideas into outcomes. When you join CDW, you become part of a collaborative environment where your work matters, your growth is supported, and your contributions help shape what’s next. Together, we deliver the full promise of what technology can do. Together, we Make Amazing Happen. CDW is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regards to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status or any other basis prohibited by state and local law.

At CDW, we make technology work so people can do great things. We are a leading multi‑brand technology solutions provider to business, government, education and healthcare customers in the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. Our coworkers across the globe are working together to bring technology to life for our customers by solving complicated IT business challenges, providing outstanding service, and orchestrating the technology landscape to optimize our customers’ performance.