Senior Proposal Specialist; Federal Market

Senior Proposal Specialist (Federal Market)

CDM Smith is expanding the marketing team within our Federal Services Unit and is seeking a proven Senior Proposal Specialist with strong proposal experience supporting environmental remediation, civil works, and water resilience contracts.

Support business development efforts for multimillion‑dollar U.S. government opportunities across the United States and overseas. Collaborate with technical, management, and marketing professionals across the firm to advance federal pursuits.

• Conduct research on federal contract opportunities, competitors, and potential teaming partners; review and analyze Fed Biz Opps  synopses, requests for proposals, and related solicitation documents.
• Direct the federal pursuit strategy by handling pre‑positioning, capture planning, evaluating opportunities, and supporting Go/No‑Go decisions.
• Use AI‑powered tools and analytics platforms to analyze trends, automate opportunity tracking, streamline research, identify patterns, and gain actionable insights into competitor positioning and teaming strategies.
• Oversee comprehensive proposal development for federal projects of diverse scale and complexity, managing the process from initial capture to submission and presentation.
• Develop proposal strategies, key themes, and compelling win messages that align with solicitation requirements and highlight company differentiators.
• Organize and facilitate all proposal‑related activities and reviews, including kickoff sessions, strategic meetings, color evaluations, and final production.
• Maintain compliance and high quality in proposals through thorough solicitation analysis, creation of compliance matrices, detailed reviews, and oversight of final submissions.
• Collaborate across technical teams, proposal staff, and subconsultants to craft unified and consistent submissions.
• Assign proposal resources efficiently, anticipate workload demands, and guide proposal coordinators and contributors through mentorship.
• Engage in client debriefs and lessons‑learned exercises to drive ongoing improvements in pursuit and proposal efforts.

• Bachelor’s degree.
• 6 years of related experience, or equivalent directly related experience in lieu of a degree.
• Domestic and/or international travel may be required.

• Demonstrated experience developing proposals for U.S. federal government clients.
• Experience developing proposals for environmental remediation, civil works, and/or water resilience contracts strongly preferred.
• Location near a major CDM Smith office preferred.

• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Word and PowerPoint, including use of styles and templates.
• Familiarity with established business development methodologies (e.g., Miller‑Heiman, Shipley).
• Ability to coordinate work and communicate effectively with geographically dispersed teams.
• Strong editing and proofreading skills for narrative content authored by technical professionals.
• Proven ability to manage multiple, concurrent deadlines in a fast‑paced environment.
• Experience using Adobe Creative Suite.

CDM Smith is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression), national origin, age, marital status, disability, veteran status, citizenship status, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

United States - Nationwide

10%

Fully Remote or Hybrid Work Options may be considered for successful candidate.

• Pay Range Minimum: $78,478
• Pay Range Maximum: $129,459
• All bonuses at CDM Smith are discretionary and may or may not apply to this position.