This is a U.S. based position. All of the programs we support require U.S. citizenship to be eligible for employment. All work must be conducted within the continental U.S.
Who we are:
Raft (https://teamraft.com) is a customer-obsessed non-traditional small business with a purposeful focus on Distributed Data Systems, Platforms at Scale, and Complex Application Development, with headquarters in McLean, VA. Our range of clients include innovative federal and public agencies leveraging design thinking, cutting edge tech stack, and cloud native ecosystem. We build digital solutions that impact the lives of millions of Americans.
We're looking for an experienced Director of Proposal Operations to support our customers and join our passionate team of high-impact problem solvers. This is a unique opportunity to help build and shape a game-changing organization where we put our customers and people first.
About the role:
The Director of Proposal Operations will oversee and manage the proposal development lifecycle for federal contracts with the Department of Defense (DoD) and other federal agencies. The Director will lead a team of three Proposal Managers, ensuring efficient workload distribution and implementing industry best practices to ensure high-quality, compliant proposals. This role will report to the Senior Vice President (SVP) of Growth and work closely with Growth Directors and capture teams to ensure proposals align to Raft's growth and specific pursuit win strategies, contributing directly to the company's success in winning federal contracts.
- Proposal Process Implementation: Define and implement a standardized proposal process that incorporates industry best practices. This includes:
- Storyboarding and Proposal Outlining: Facilitate clear proposal structures and storytelling frameworks.
- Anchor Graphic Development: Guide the creation of compelling visuals and key graphics that anchor technical and management volumes.
- Team Reviews: Oversee the execution of Pink Team (early draft review), Red Team (final content review), Gold Team (executive review), and White Glove (final compliance review) processes.
- Mock Evaluations and Self-Scoring: Organize internal mock evaluations and self-scoring exercises to identify potential weaknesses and ensure compliance with solicitation requirements.
- Proposal Development Leadership: Lead and manage the end-to-end proposal process from pre-solicitation preparation to post-submission review for Requests for Proposals (RFPs), Requests for Information (RFIs), Requests for Quotations (RFQs), and Statements of Work (SOWs).
- Compliance and Quality Oversight: Ensure all proposal submissions meet federal procurement regulations and internal standards of compliance, brand consistency, and technical accuracy. Review technical and pricing volumes for consistency with capture strategies and win themes.
- Team Management: Directly oversee three Proposal Managers, providing guidance, workload balance, and professional development. Foster a collaborative environment that emphasizes continuous process improvement and efficiency in proposal operations.
- Schedule Management: Develop and maintain proposal schedules, ensuring timely delivery of all internal and external proposal components. Adjust timelines as needed in response to RFP amendments, and coordinate with internal and external stakeholders to keep the process on track.
- Strategic Contribution: Work closely with the Growth Directors to incorporate win strategies, technical solutions, and key win themes into proposal content. Ensure that these strategies are consistently reflected throughout the entire proposal.
- Proposal Reviews and Quality Control: Lead regular proposal reviews, ensuring high quality, compliance with solicitation requirements, and adherence to internal best practices. Oversee final submission to ensure error-free, polished proposals.
- Post-Submission Debriefing: Lead post-submission activities, including win/loss analysis and team debriefs, to identify areas of improvement for future responses. Maintain databases of past performances, resumes, references, and testimonials for future proposals.
- Process Improvement: Continuously refine and document proposal management processes to improve efficiency, quality, and success rates. Implement best practices for federal proposal development and introduce new tools and methodologies as appropriate.
What we are looking for:
- Minimum of eight years of experience in federal proposal management supporting complex bids with $100m+ contract values
- Proven leadership experience in managing proposal teams and working cross-functionally with capture and growth teams
- Deep knowledge of the federal proposal development process, compliance requirements, and federal procurement regulations
- Strong project management, communication, and time management skills
- Bachelor's degree or equivalent work experience
Highly preferred:
- Formal Shipley or equivalent training directly related to proposal development
- Experience working in fast-growing federal IT companies
- Familiarity with federal acquisition processes, FAR/DFAR regulations, OTA solicitations, and unsolicited proposals
Clearance Requirements:
- Ability to obtain and maintain a Top Secret clearance
Work Type:
- Hybrid - McLean, VA
- Ability to travel up to 10%
What we will offer you:
- Highly competitive salary
- Fully covered healthcare, dental, and vision coverage
- 401(k) and company match
- Unlimited PTO + 11 paid holidays
- Education & training benefits
- Annual budget for your tech/gadgets needs
- Monthly box of yummy snacks to eat while doing meaningful work
- Team off-site in fun places!
- Generous Referral Bonuses
- And More!
Our Vision Statement:
We bridge the gap between humans and data through radical transparency and our obsession with the mission.
Our Customer Obsession:
We will approach every deliverable like it's a product. We will adopt a customer-obsessed mentality. As we grow, and our footprint becomes larger, teams and employees will treat each other not only as teammates but customers. We must live the customer-obsessed mindset, always. This will help us scale and it will translate to the interactions that our Rafters have with their clients and other product teams that they integrate with. Our culture will enable our success and set us apart from other companies.
How do we get there?
Public-sector modernization is critical for us to live in a better world. We, at Raft, want to innovate and solve complex problems. And, if we are successful, our generation and the ones that follow us will live in a delightful, efficient, and accessible world where out-of-box thinking, and collaboration is a norm.
Raft's core philosophy is Ubuntu: I Am, Because We are. We support our "nadi" by elevating the other Rafters. We work as a hyper collaborative team where each team member brings a unique perspective, adding value that did not exist before. People make Raft special. We celebrate each other and our cognitive and cultural diversity. We are devoted to our practice of innovation and collaboration.
We're an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.
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