Specialist, Request for Proposals

EAB; Richmond (VA); On-site; USD 38,000 - 57,500; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, dental, and vision insurance

20+ days of PTO annually

401(k) with company matching

Wellness programs and gym discounts

Job summary

EAB is looking for a Specialist, Request for Proposals in Richmond, VA. This pivotal role supports high-impact RFP responses and involves translating customer needs into clear, persuasive narratives.

The ideal candidate will have a bachelor's degree, strong writing skills, and 2-3 years of experience in a relevant field. Competencies such as project management and familiarity with MS Office are essential for success in this dynamic environment.

The position offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits from day one.

Qualifications

• 2-3+ years in a writing, marketing, or sales enablement role.
• Strong communicator with excellent interpersonal skills.
• Curiosity: strong desire to learn and deepen knowledge related to the role.

Responsibilities

• Analyze RFPs and customer insights to define proposal strategy.
• Develop clear, persuasive RFP responses that differentiate EAB's offerings.
• Manage a portfolio of RFPs while maintaining high quality standards.

Skills

Strong writing skills

Project management skills

Excellent interpersonal skills

Expertise in MS Office products

Familiarity with content management platforms

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Job description

About EAB

At EAB, our mission is to make education smarter and our communities stronger. We work with more than 2,800 institutions to drive transformative change through data‑driven insights and best‑in‑class capabilities across enrollment, student success, institutional strategy, data analytics, and advancement.

Position

Specialist, Request for Proposals

The Specialist, Request for Proposals plays a key role in driving EAB's commercial success by supporting high‑impact RFP responses. As part of a multi‑million‑dollar sales enablement function, this role carries significant ownership over proposal strategy and messaging for high‑value opportunities.

Working closely with sales, product, marketing, and subject matter experts, the Specialist translates complex customer needs and RFP requirements into clear, persuasive narratives that demonstrate EAB's value as a long‑term partner. The role requires strong judgment, comfort with ambiguity, and the ability to influence outcomes without direct authority.

This is a highly visible role for a self‑starter who is motivated by impact, accountability, and continuous growth. The position offers exposure to firm‑wide strategy, a defined career path, and the opportunity to build trusted relationships across EAB's commercial, product, and delivery teams.

Location

Washington, DC or Richmond, VA.

Employment Level

This position is posted at the Senior Specialist level; candidates are considered at both levels for the current opening.

Primary Responsibilities

• Analyze RFPs, customer insights, and strategic inputs to identify customer priorities and define proposal strategy.
• Use creativity and problem solving to develop clear, persuasive RFP responses that meet requirements, differentiate EAB's offerings, position EAB as a long‑term partner, and uphold EAB's RFP standards of excellence.
• Own and manage a portfolio of RFPs simultaneously, balancing competing deadlines and ad hoc requests while maintaining high quality standards.
• Create, refine, and standardize RFP content to reflect product updates, market trends, and competitive positioning.
• Maintain EAB's RFP content library, ensuring accuracy, consistency, and alignment with current product and competitive messaging.
• Identify and lead process improvements that increase RFP quality, efficiency, or team productivity, including experimentation with AI‑enabled tools and data‑driven workflows.
• Partner with sales, product, and marketing teams to address RFP requirements and product‑specific questions.
• Build and maintain deep knowledge of EAB's products, customers, markets, and competitors through ongoing learning and research.
• Capture insights from RFP activity and share competitive and market intelligence with relevant internal teams.
• Advise commercial and account management teams on RFP best practices and proposal strategy.
• Provide other support to the RFP team and the broader strategy and operations team as necessary.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent required.
• 2-3+ years in a writing, marketing, or sales enablement role.
• Strong writing skills and comfort in a writing‑intensive role.
• Strong communicator with excellent interpersonal skills.
• Strong project management skills.
• Expertise in MS Office products (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Familiarity with cloud‑based content management platforms (Box, Dropbox, etc.).

Ideal Qualifications

• Curiosity: strong desire to learn and deepen knowledge related to the role.
• Initiative: identifies problems, develops solutions, and delivers improvements without external prompting.
• Independence: operates effectively with little oversight while seeking support when needed.
• Growth mindset: aware of limits and unafraid to ask for help or feedback for continuous improvement.
• Organization: deftly manages large volumes of information, deadlines, and resources.
• Speed: delivers results without sacrificing quality.
• Resourceful: finds and creates solutions to overcome obstacles.
• Adaptability: solves complex problems and manages ambiguity and unexpected change.
• Collaboration: supports team members and overall team success.
• Commitment to a learning environment and a culture of fairness, authenticity, and belonging.

Compensation

The anticipated starting salary range for this role is $38,000 - $57,500 per year. Actual salary may vary based on experience, skills, and location. This hire will additionally be eligible for discretionary bonus or incentive compensation. Variable compensation may depend on individual and organizational performance.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance plans; dependents and domestic partners eligible.
• 20+ days of PTO annually, in addition to paid firm and floating holidays.
• Daytime leave policy for community service and flextime for fitness activities (up to 10 hours per month each).
• 401(k) retirement savings plan with annual discretionary company matching contribution.
• Health savings account, healthcare and dependent care flexible spending account, and pre‑tax commuter plans.
• Employee assistance program with counseling services and resources available to all employees and immediate family.
• Wellness programs including gym discounts, incentives to promote healthy living, and family access to leading sleep, meditation, and relaxation apps.
• Fertility treatment coverage and adoption or surrogacy assistance.
• Paid parental leave with phase back to work program for birthing and non‑birthing parents.
• Access to milk shipping service to support nursing employees during business travel.
• Discounted pet health insurance coverage for dog and cat family members.
• Company‑provided life, AD&D, and disability insurance.
• Financial wellness resources and membership in a robust employee discount program.
• Access to employee resource groups, merit‑based advancement, and dynamic professional growth opportunities.

Benefits kick in day one; learn more at eab.com/careers/benefits.

EEO Statement

At EAB, we believe that to fulfill our mission to make education smarter and our communities stronger we need team members who bring a diversity of perspectives to the table and are committed to fostering a workplace where each team member is valued, respected, and heard.

To that end, EAB is an Equal Opportunity Employer and we make employment decisions on the basis of qualifications, merit and business need. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, national origin, veteran status, or any other basis covered by appropriate law.

Note: This opening is not eligible for visa sponsorship at this time; we consider candidates with U.S. work authorization that does not require employment‑based visa sponsorship now or in the future.