Director Proposals

You’re a multitasker, capable of moving a mile a minute and keeping everyone else on track. There’s an art and a science to a well-organized calendar—and nothing makes you happier than an empty inbox.

Remote, IL

CONNECTION

<p><strong>At Connection, our purpose is simple: we connect people with technology. From hardware&mdash;PCs, printers, servers, and more&mdash;to cutting-edge cloud, cybersecurity, and professional IT services, we design, build, and support the IT solutions that thousands of companies, schools, and government agencies rely on every day. Back in 1982, we started out with two employees and a phone line. Today, Connection is a Fortune 1000 IT solutions partner operating in 174 countries around the world&mdash;still driven by that startup mentality and guided by our original purpose. We&rsquo;d love for you to join us and make your mark on the future of technology.&nbsp;</strong></p> https://www.connection.com/

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Full Time

$138,000.00/Yr. - $179,670.00/Yr.

Overview: <strong>What We Do:</strong><br /><br />We calm the confusion of IT by guiding the connection between people and technology. If a customer is looking for a better way to manage their warehouse inventory, equip their workforce, or secure their data, we make it happen. All it takes is finding the right combination of tech hardware, software, cloud solutions, and support services. That&rsquo;s what we do. We&rsquo;re the IT Department&rsquo;s IT Department.<br /> <br /><strong>Who We Are:</strong><br /><br />Our team is made stronger by a multitude of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. It&rsquo;s what makes Connection unique&mdash;what drives us to innovate and create technology solutions that stand apart from the crowd. We&rsquo;d love for you to be a part of that fabric, to share your ideas and experiences with a team that thrives on fresh thinking, creativity, and helping others.<br /> <br /><strong>Why You Should Join Us:</strong><br /><br />You&rsquo;ll find supportive teammates and a rewarding career at Connection&mdash;plus great benefits. We take pride in supporting employees with a total rewards package that provides financial, emotional, and physical resources for you and your family. Our compensation, 401k plans, medical insurance, and other benefits are progressive and competitive. We value the importance of our employees&rsquo; emotional well-being. To support employees, we provide free therapy visits, mental health coaching and tools, and meditation resources. You&rsquo;ll also enjoy a generous paid time off package that includes not only vacation and sick time, but also Wellness and Volunteer Time Off days. <br /> <br /><strong>Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the U.S. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time.</strong><br /> <br /> <p>We are seeking a strategic and results-driven&nbsp;<strong>Director of Proposals</strong>&nbsp;to lead and elevate our enterprise-wide proposal function. In this high-impact leadership role, you will oversee the development of compelling, compliant, and competitive responses to RFPs, bids, and other strategic pursuits across our Sales organization.</p> <p>You will serve as the central leader guiding proposal strategy, driving cross-functional collaboration, and standardizing processes that improve efficiency, quality, and win rates. This role offers the opportunity to shape how we position our solutions, tell our story, and win business.</p>
Responsibilities: <ul> <li>Lead enterprise-wide responses to RFPs, RFIs, and large, complex bid opportunities.</li> <li>Drive a consistent, scalable proposal development process across business units.</li> <li>Own high-priority pursuits, ensuring submissions are accurate, compelling, and on time.</li> <li>Partner with Sales, Solution Architects, and subject matter experts to develop winning strategies and narratives.</li> <li>Establish and lead a Deal Desk to evaluate and shape high-value opportunities.</li> <li>Build and maintain a centralized proposal knowledge base to improve efficiency and consistency.</li> <li>Implement governance, compliance standards, and post-deal review processes to drive continuous improvement.</li> <li>Lead proposal kickoff meetings, coordinate deliverables, and manage timelines and resources.</li> <li>Track win/loss metrics, analyze performance, and identify areas for improvement.</li> <li>Develop and mentor a high-performing proposal team, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, and excellence.</li> </ul>
Requirements: <ul> <li>Must have experience managing direct reports with full authority and responsibility for all aspects of people leadership, including hiring, firing, performance management, coaching, compensation decisions, employee relations, workforce planning, succession planning, and budget ownership.</li> <li>Experience leading teams of staff writers and subcontractors in a complex, deadline-driven environment.</li> <li>Proven experience managing private business and state and federal contract proposals with the demonstrated capability to take ownership and initiative over the entire proposal development life cycle, including managing proposal resources, teams of internal personnel from across the company, and subcontractors to deliver compliant, winning-quality, professionally designed proposal documents.</li> <li>Experience leading full lifecycle proposal development processes, including but not limited to: pre-RFP solution development; proposal outlines; schedule; writing assignments; past performance; deal reviews; and proposal submission.</li> <li>Experience working closely with growth leads and technical staff, including division sales leaders, subject matter experts, external consultants, and other writing support, to develop an understanding of, create, and persuasively articulate a winning solution.</li> <li>Negotiation skills with ability to secure favorable contracts.</li> <li>Process improvement inclinations and/or experience.</li> <li>Experience working with Solution Architects to assist in development of technical solutions for proposals.</li> <li>Experience managing oral presentations, technical demonstrations, and/or video proposals.</li> <li>Experience working with and developing standardized sets of proposal development tools, templates, and processes.</li> <li>Excellent written and verbal communication skills with people at all levels of the company, internal personnel, and subcontractors.</li> <li>Excellent Interpersonal skills with the ability to build collaborative relationships.</li> <li>Detail-oriented with meticulous attention to detail, with the ability to proofread for accuracy.</li> <li>Strong problem-solving and decision-making capabilities.</li> <li>Flexible with the ability to handle and prioritize multiple proposals.</li> </ul>