Proposal Director

SMS Data Products Group, Inc. (SMS) has an opening for a Proposal Director to lead the company's federal Government proposal response process. This individual will work closely with Executive Management, Business Development, Solutions Architects, and Service Delivery Teams to develop and deliver winning, high-quality Federal Government proposals.

SMS offers proven solutions in engineering, operations, cybersecurity, and digital transformation. With expertise in modernizing and optimizing legacy infrastructure and systems, ensuring operational efficiency, and designing, implementing, and managing secure environments, SMS supports business and mission goals with proficiency, quality, and integrity. SMS is headquartered in McLean, Virginia, with offices and on-site operations at customer locations throughout the United States. For additional information on SMS, visit www.sms.com.

Submit your resume today!

The successful candidate will:

Manage all aspects of the proposal development process to include pre-proposal planning activities.
• Create and maintain precise proposal management artifacts with careful attention to accuracy, including detailed kickoff materials, comprehensive master outline, thorough compliance matrix, precise schedule tracking, clear writing instructions, and structured daily stand-up documentation.
• Work directly with Capture Executives, Solution Architects, and Technical and Management Volume Leads to develop work products to meet solicitation requirements.
• Develop and maintain proposal management-related artifacts, including kickoff materials, master outline, compliance matrix, schedule, writing instructions and guidance, daily stand-up agenda, proposal team contact list, action items, and color team review briefings.
• Collaborate with business development, functional, and operational leadership to identify and obtain adequate resources to respond to RFP requirements.
• Establish and enforce the proposal schedule. Clarify, communicate, and enforce roles and responsibilities of internal and external resources including teammates.
• Write clear, compliant, compelling, persuasive, and articulate proposal sections; translate complex ideas into easily understandable text..
• Work as part of a collaborative team to clearly articulate solution and strategy, approach to performing the work, experience, win themes, and discriminators.
• Apply communication and interviewing skills to gather needed information from internal and external personnel to support writing activities.
• Remain current on all solicitation modifications and communicate them to the team. Revise the schedule, outline, and compliance matrix as necessary throughout the proposal lifecycle.
• Provide and solicit daily updates on proposal progress via daily stand-ups. Identify risks and develop mitigation plans.
• Participate in solution and strategy sessions with the business development capture lead, lead solution architect, writers, and subject matter experts.
• Collaborate with business development to capture, document, and communicate customer hot buttons, win themes, our solution, and features and benefits at the level required for a compelling proposal response.
• Review and analyze proposal sections for consistency and clarity, compliance with solicitation requirements, and alignment with proposed solutions and themes.
• Provide writers with feedback as necessary to ensure accuracy, compliance, consistency, and reflection of win strategies.
• Collaborate across proposal stakeholders, including the capture manager, engineering subject matter experts, writers, production team members, and leadership. Remove barriers for proposal team members; escalate needs and issues for timely resolution.
• Organize color teams and prepare the color team packages. Lead color review recovery from post-review assessment to guiding implementation of approved content changes and modifications.
• Ensure proposal compliance, checking all sections for compliance regularly throughout the proposal cycle and before delivery.
• Develop and implement process improvements to help improve proposal quality

• Bachelor's Degree (in Journalism, English or related communications field preferred) and 10+ years of experience
• Must be a US citizen with the ability to obtain a Secret clearance.
• Minimum of 5 years of demonstrated experience managing winning competitive Federal Government proposals in a defined proposal role.
• Evidence of a successful track record of high quality, high scoring proposals.
• Knowledge of the proposal development life cycle and understanding of Shipley or other proposal development processes.
• Experience managing responses to federal solicitations.
• Demonstrated ability to work efficiently and successfully under conditions of multiple deadlines and changing priorities.
• Ability to effectively manage on site/in-person and off site/remote proposals.
• Excellent work ethic, and organizational and leadership skills.
• Ability to successfully execute multiple tasks simultaneously.
• Effective written and verbal communication skills to interact with all levels of management.
• Demonstrated success writing and leading technical, management, transition, staffing, and/or corporate experience & past performance volumes for complex efforts.

Desired Qualifications:

• Strong editing and reading comprehension skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Proficiency with proposal collaboration tools such as Microsoft SharePoint and Teams

SMS is a dynamic systems integrator established in 1976, delivering talented teams and innovative, cost-effective solutions and services to support our customers' missions for more than 48 years. Our ability to hire and retain quality people in a rapidly evolving IT market is proven through our employee retention rate averaging over 3 years. At SMS, we place a high value on quality of service, customer satisfaction, and best-of-breed policies and practices, resulting in CMMI Level 3 certification and ISO registrations including 9001:2015, 20000-1:2018, and ISO/IEC 27001:2013. SMS is headquartered in McLean, Virginia, with offices and on-site operations at customer locations throughout the United States.

SMS is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.