Proposal Manager and Federal Civilian Proposal Team Lead

Company Description

Work with Us. Change the World.

At AECOM, we're delivering a better world. Whether improving your commute, keeping the lights on, providing access to clean water, or transforming skylines, our work helps people and communities thrive. We are the world's trusted infrastructure consulting firm, partnering with clients to solve the world’s most complex challenges and build legacies for future generations.

There has never been a better time to be at AECOM. With accelerating infrastructure investment worldwide, our services are in great demand. We invite you to bring your bold ideas and big dreams and become part of a global team of over 50,000 planners, designers, engineers, scientists, digital innovators, program and construction managers and other professionals delivering projects that create a positive and tangible impact around the world.

We're one global team driven by our common purpose to deliver a better world. Join us.

Job Description

This position offers the flexibility of a remote work schedule and can be based from a variety of locations in the US where AECOM has an office. 

The responsibilities of this position include, but are not limited to, those listed below:

General

• As a Proposal Manager and writer, collaborate with regional and BL teams on identified priority pursuits, including pre-positioning, responses to requests for qualifications (RFQ) and requests for proposals (RFP), as well as shortlist interviews.
• Foster a culture of communication and collaboration within the team, as well as with other marketing teams, client account managers, business lines, and regions; initiate appropriate mentoring and coaching for direct reports and others in the proposal team, in collaboration with other proposal team leads.
• Reports to the Director of Federal Marketing within our National Governments Marketing group.

Leadership and Development

• Collaborate closely with other Proposal team leads to allocate workload effectively across the Federal portfolio and drive cross-skilling and upskilling of junior and mid-level proposal staff, helping to identify opportunities to bring efficiency to processes in the pursuit environment
• Manage team’s performance to drive compliant, quality deliverables across the Federal portfolio. 
• Monitor and report on the progress of must-win pursuits to ensure adequate focus on win strategies, positioning and proposal progress, and leadership communication. This includes serving as a color team and/or compliance reviewer for must-win pursuits.
• Lead and/or support delivery of team initiatives and special projects, as assigned, including collaborative projects to streamline processes and integrate AI into prepositioning and proposal processes.
• Participate in strategic planning that includes evaluating marketing intelligence, identifying customer concerns and key issues, and developing win strategies, and developing this skill set in other team members through mentorship and job shadowing.

Proposal Management

• Lead large, complex, priority must-win pursuits from capture through to interview stage, as required, which may include multiple disciplines/geographies.
• Provide leadership and direction for proposals, and take ownership of tasks such as developing schedules, templates, content plans, annotated outlines, initial drafts, compliance matrices, and production. Also, lead writing and editing of tailored executive summaries, resumes, experience/past performance, management and other non-technical sections for proposals.
• Actively participate in Go/No-Go, capture strategies and greenlight analyses and drive compliance with delegation of authority guidelines, capture planning and positioning activities, providing leadership and direction, where required.
• Facilitate color team reviews, quality reviews, and apply lessons learned to add value to proposals. Manage the implementation of proposal and presentation revisions based on direction from review teams.
• Review and support capture and proposal activities for pursuits led by other proposal managers within the Federal Proposal Team, as needed, and serve as a reviewer on color reviews (pink and red teams) for these pursuits, leveraging in-depth institutional knowledge.
• Conduct and analyze debriefs and applies lessons learned to add value to strategy and reviews.
• Provide strategic direction and leadership on proposals assigned to others, as needed, demonstrating a solid understanding of the Federal proposal pipeline, internal business development strategies, capture planning, proposal efforts, and debriefs.

Qualifications

Minimum Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Journalism, English, Communications, Marketing, or a related field, plus 8+ years of relevant experience—or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• 3+ years of people-management experience, with a demonstrated record of recruiting, developing, mentoring, and retaining talent.

Knowledge and Experience

• Demonstrated interest in—and working knowledge of—the Architecture/Engineering (A/E) industry, with an emphasis on AECOM’s U.S. Federal clients, projects, teams, credentials, and competitors.
• Proven ability to estimate level of effort across a range of pursuit types; assign and balance workloads effectively; lead diverse teams; and collaborate with Business Lines, Client Account Managers, and marketing leadership to achieve business objectives.
• Demonstrated success leading complex, multi-discipline and/or multi-geography proposals with values greater than $20 million.
• Strong understanding of proposal and presentation best practices, including how to develop and communicate key messages, themes, discriminators, and clear responses aligned to evaluation criteria.
• Experience applying industry best practices and procedures to support positioning, client engagement, and business development processes.
• Excellent writing and editing capabilities, including strong command of grammar, tone, and style.
• Proficiency with desktop publishing and design tools, including Adobe Creative Suite (e.g., InDesign, Illustrator, Acrobat, Photoshop), and advanced capability with Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Working knowledge of collaboration platforms such as Microsoft Teams and SharePoint.
• Ability to independently manage multiple priorities with strong follow-through, attention to detail, and consistent delivery through completion.
• Professional presence with strong interpersonal skills; demonstrates discretion with confidential information; works effectively both independently and in teams; communicates with diplomacy in challenging situations; and applies strong problem-solving skills.

Preferred Requirements

• 10+ years of proposal-related experience, ideally supporting U.S. Federal clients.
• APMP and/or SMPS certification preferred.
• Familiarity with CRM systems; Salesforce experience preferred.

Additional Information

• This position does not include sponsorship for United States work authorization now or in the future
• Relocation assistance and/or per diem is not offered for this position
• Due to the nature of the work, US Citizenship is required.

At AECOM, we are committed to maintaining a secure and trustworthy recruitment process and take any fraudulent hiring activity seriously. To support this commitment, all newly hired employees are required to attend an in-person Day 1 onboarding at an AECOM office location as a condition of employment.

About AECOM 

AECOM is proud to offer comprehensive benefits to meet the diverse needs of our employees. Depending on your employment status, AECOM benefits may include medical, dental, vision, life, AD&D, disability benefits, paid time off, leaves of absences, voluntary benefits, perks, flexible work options, well-being resources, employee assistance program, business travel insurance, service recognition awards, retirement savings plan, and employee stock purchase plan. 

AECOM is the global infrastructure leader, committed to delivering a better world. As a trusted professional services firm powered by deep technical abilities, we solve our clients’ complex challenges in water, environment, energy, transportation and buildings. Our teams partner with public- and private-sector clients to create innovative, sustainable and resilient solutions throughout the project lifecycle – from advisory, planning, design and engineering to program and construction management. AECOM is a Fortune 500 firm that had revenue of $16.1 billion in fiscal year 2025. Learn more at aecom.com. 

What makes AECOM a great place to work 

You will be part of a global team that champions your growth and career ambitions. Work on groundbreaking projects - both in your local community and on a global scale - that are transforming our industry and shaping the future. With cutting-edge technology and a network of experts, you’ll have the resources to make a real impact. Our award-winning training and development programs are designed to expand your technical expertise and leadership skills, helping you build the career you’ve always envisioned. Here, you’ll find a welcoming workplace built on respect, collaboration and community—where you have the freedom to grow in a world of opportunity. 

As an Equal Opportunity Employer, we believe in your potential and are here to help you achieve it. All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.