Sr. Manager, Proposals

Job Purpose

Albany Engineered Composites (AEC) is seeking an experienced Sr. Manager, Proposals to lead all proposal activity for the business. This role can be located at our Salt Lake City, UT, Boerne, TX, or Rochester, NH locations and will report directly to the Sr. Director, Contracts & Proposals. This individual will be responsible for directly managing a Proposal Analyst initially, while indirectly managing the cross-functional pricing and proposal teams developed in conjunction with the functional business leaders.

This position requires a candidate who brings to the table the expertise to oversee the Proposal Management function for AEC’s diverse customer base across its Commercial, Defense, and Emerging Markets & Technology segments. It also requires strong Proposal Management experience from within a manufacturing environment, along with U.S. Defense industry experience and the ability to obtain a security clearance with the U.S. Government.

Job Responsibilities

• Accountable for AEC’s Estimating System and responsible for maintaining RFI, ROM and Proposal processes, to include roles, responsibilities, accountabilities and approvals for proposal stakeholders.
• Lead and manage large, multi-faceted responses to RFI, ROM and Proposal requests.
• Manage and mentor Proposal Analysts, ensuring the development of sound proposal management techniques and ensuring they adhere to AEC processes and procedures.
• Interface regularly with Business Development, Account Management, Program Management, Pricing, Contracts, Finance, Engineering, Operations, Supply Chain, and other stakeholders for proposal related activities .
• Collaborate with functional area leaders on the proposal execution approach and team staffing.
• Maintain virtual and physical workspace for proposal execution and ensuring configuration control of proposal documents and revisions.
• Review and define all RFI, ROM and Proposal requirements and deliverables, ensuring 100% compliance with solicitation documents.
• Work with the capture leads and proposal team to develop win themes, best value propositions, tailored messaging, discriminators and key features of our offering and ensure they are reflected thoroughly and consistently in our proposal deliverables.
• Develop and execute the comprehensive proposal plan, including the proposal deliverables, schedule, budget, work progress, and execution risk.
• Work with the proposal team to develop a proposal outline, required proposal volumes, Basis of Estimates, pricing model, schedules, and all other required inputs and deliverables.
• Provide support for the review of functional Basis of Estimates.
• Support the proposal peer review process to ensure quality and completeness of proposal submission documents.
• Review proposal sections developed by members of proposal teams providing guidance and recommendations and editing sections as appropriate.
• Develop, schedule and oversee proposal status meetings and approval reviews with the proposal teams and leadership.
• Finalize RFI, ROM and Proposal documents for delivery with the proposal team, ensuring compliance to solicitation requirements and completeness of established win themes, messaging, and best value proposition.
• Develop and implement a plan and schedule for post-submittal fact-finding, required proposal updates and negotiation preparation.
• Ensure all post-submittal actions are completed by each respective functional area supporting the proposal.
• Capture relevant lessons learned and areas for improvement, continuously refining the Estimating System policies and procedures to reflect best practices.

Qualifications

• Requires US Citizenship and the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Secret security clearance, as determined by the company to meet its business needs
• Requires a Bachelor's degree with 8+ years of related experience; Master’s degree and/or professional certification in Proposal Management preferred
• 5+ years direct experience working on competitive and sole source RFIs, ROMs, and Proposals, including cost type and fixed price contract types, for DoD and commercial aerospace customers
• 3+ years in a formal lead and/or management position working large dollar, complex proposals for DoD and commercial aerospace customers
• Experience with working all life-cycles of product development proposals, from early technology development and maturation, to new product introduction, to low-rate initial production, to full-rate production.
• Experience training, leading, and directing activities of team members through execution of a formal proposal process
• Thorough knowledge and understanding of the federal procurement regulations (FAR/DFAR) governing sourcing activity at both the prime and subcontract levels
• Microsoft Office advanced skills; Excel, Word, and Project specifically
• Excellent communication (verbal and written) and organizational skills
• Ability to work in fast-paced environment
• Ability and willingness to accommodate up to, but not to exceed, 25% travel based on business requirements