Director of Proposal Strategy and Operations

Overview

Job Summary

The Director, Proposal Strategy & Operations is a  leadership role responsible for elevating HMA's proposals function into a high-performing, technology-forward engine for competitive growth. Reporting to the Chief Growth Officer, this leader sets the strategic direction for the proposals team, drives adoption of AI-enabled tools and modern workflows, evolves team capabilities around a newly streamlined proposal process, and identifies new opportunities to strengthen how HMA competes and wins. This role requires a collaborative and forward-thinking leader who brings both strategic vision and operational discipline, and who can build trust across a talented team while guiding the function through an exciting period of growth and evolution.

Responsibilities

Work Performed and Job Requirements

• Strategic Leadership & Vision
  • Define and execute a multi-year strategy for the proposals function aligned to HMA's growth objectives and go-to-market priorities.
  • Serve as the senior proposals voice to executive leadership, advising on bid qualification, win strategy, competitive positioning, and resource investment.
  • Champion a culture of continuous improvement, accountability, and innovation across the proposals team.
  • Identify opportunities that HMA is not yet capitalizing on, including new content strategies, pursuit models, proposal formats, and service offerings, that would materially improve win rates.
  • Represent the proposals function in cross-functional leadership forums, shaping how growth opportunities are identified, prioritized, and pursued.

• Team Leadership & Development
  • Lead, coach, and develop a skilled proposals team, setting clear expectations, providing ongoing feedback, and creating a high-trust environment where people do their best work.
  • Align team roles and responsibilities to the current and evolving scope of the proposals function, ensuring each team member has clarity on how their work contributes to HMA's growth goals.
  • Actively invest in the professional development of team members, building individual capabilities and identifying opportunities for growth and advancement.
  • Manage performance with consistency and care, recognizing strong contributors and providing clear direction and support where improvement is needed.
  • Foster a team culture oriented toward winning, continuous learning, and collaboration with the broader growth organization. 

• Technology Adoption & Process Innovation
  • Lead the adoption and scaling of AI-enabled proposal tools, automation platforms, and intelligent content management systems (e.g., Loopio, RFPIO/Responsive, or comparable platforms).
  • Identify and eliminate manual, low-value processes across the proposal lifecycle, replacing them with scalable, SLA-driven workflows that improve both throughput and quality.
  • Expand the formats and presentation approaches used in proposals, including development of PowerPoint-based and simplified proposal formats that complement traditional written submissions and better capture evaluator attention.
  • Build and maintain a robust repository of reusable, high-quality content that enables the team to respond faster and more consistently without sacrificing differentiation.
  • Establish and maintain a performance measurement framework tracking win rates, cycle time, content reuse, team productivity, and quality to drive data-informed decisions.
  • Partner with IT and other functions to evaluate, procure, and implement emerging technologies that advance the proposals function's capabilities.
  • Continuously benchmark HMA's proposal operations against industry best practices, introducing innovations that strengthen competitive positioning.

• Integration of Acquisitions & Expanded Scope
  • Lead the integration of recently acquired organizations into HMA's proposal workflows, ensuring consistency in process, quality standards, and content strategy across the combined enterprise.
  • Develop scalable onboarding and integration frameworks that can be applied to future acquisitions, enabling the proposals team to absorb new business lines efficiently and without disruption to ongoing work.
  • Partner with growth, operations, and consulting leadership at acquired organizations to understand their existing proposal practices and identify opportunities to align and elevate them within HMA's approach.

• Operational Excellence & Quality Governance
  • Oversee end-to-end proposal operations across all opportunity types, ensuring submissions are compliant, differentiated, and competitively positioned.
  • Design and govern a tiered proposal s