Senior Proposal Specialist

Cognizant’s Workday practice seeks an experienced Senior Proposal Specialist to support the sales organization and manage the full life-cycle of the proposal development process including planning, scheduling, and managing the request for proposals (RFPs) and other bidding opportunities and documents in the state & local and federal government space. This individual should be detail-oriented, flexible, a self-starter, and should enjoy working in a fast-paced team environment. 

Responsibilities:

• Oversee all major proposal efforts for federal response which includes but is not limited to, develops the strategy, writes, reviews and edits content. 

• Analyze RFIs/RFPs and outline and organize proposal/submittal to be responsive to customer requirements, including content, format, forms, and other information. 

• Manage multiple RFIs/RFPs simultaneously, while under deadline-driven environment. 

• Establish the desired proposal themes, key issues, messages in conjunction with other members of the pursuit team along with an aligned sales manager. 

• Create assignment plans, develops schedules, and deliverables for proposal efforts. 

• Build proposal draft according to the set outline in each RFI/RFP and in alignment with company established style guidelines and messaging. 

• Coordinate with various functional groups including sales, delivery, marketing, legal, finance and resource management to develop the main components of the proposal. 

• Craft core proposal content by leveraging reusable content. 

• Edit proposals for clarity, grammar, accuracy, and consistent voice. 

• Drive proposal reviews including determining participants, review timeliness, and integrating appropriate comments/modifications. 

• Manage and coordinate publishing efforts with print vendors for hard copy requirements as needed. 
• Capture reusable content utilized for proposals and maintain in SharePoint. 

• Assist with the development of PowerPoint in preparation for presentations. 

Skills & Requirements:

• 10+ years of proposal management experience in the federal space with support of a variety of departments and agencies (federal/civilian and DoD/IC). 

• Experience reading and analyzing federal requests for proposal (RFPs), request for information (RFI), requests for quotation (RFQs), sources sought, and task orders. 

• Working knowledge of government and military contracts, GSA, and FAR. 

• Understanding of federal business development cycle, RFPs, and proposal requirements 

• Very organized individual with the ability to work in a highly deadline-driven environment with strong time management and multi-tasking skills. 

• Excellent project-management skills and strong attention to detail. 

• Ability to work with minimal supervision, demonstrating flexibility, accountability, initiative, and self-motivation to identify and execute tasks. 

Ability to work closely with project teams with varying work styles and work schedules. 

Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoi