Proposal Development Manager

Accountabilities

• • Review and interpret requests for proposals (RFPs) and requests for information (RFIs), developing comprehensive responses that address sponsor requirements and clearly differentiate the organization’s capabilities.
  • Partner with Business Development leads and internal subject matter experts to develop operational strategies aligned with sponsor objectives and project requirements.
  • Coordinate responses to sponsor-specific questions, concerns, and technical requirements by gathering accurate information from relevant SMEs.
  • Collect project specifications, deliverables, resource requirements, timelines, and pricing inputs to develop clear and accurate proposal budgets.
  • Build budgets that effectively communicate proposed deliverables, pricing, resourcing, and timelines while ensuring alignment with client requirements.
  • Review, validate, and quality-control budgets prepared by others, identifying discrepancies, gaps, or inconsistencies before submission.
  • Support proposal and pricing defenses with sponsors and internal stakeholders, providing clear rationale for proposed approaches and commercial assumptions.
  • Manage assigned proposal deliverables throughout their lifecycle, ensuring priorities, deadlines, approvals, and quality standards are consistently maintained.
  • Continuously improve proposal development and budgeting processes by identifying opportunities to streamline workflows, strengthen quality controls, improve communication, and incorporate appropriate technology.
  • Maintain and enhance internal proposal, response, and knowledge libraries to improve efficiency and consistency across future submissions.
  • Maintain accurate proposal and contract-related records within CRM and SharePoint systems, following established documentation, naming, filing, and retention requirements.

  Requirements

  • 3–6 years of experience in the Contract Research Organization (CRO) industry, preferably in proposals, pricing, commercial operations, or a closely related function.
  • Bachelor’s degree in a scientific discipline, finance, or a related field; an advanced degree is preferred.
  • Advanced understanding of CRO operations, clinical and scientific data terminology, and the drug development process.
  • Extensive experience authoring, coordinating, and managing complex proposals in the CRO, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, medical device, or broader life sciences environment.
  • Demonstrated experience developing, reviewing, validating, and quality-controlling budgets and pricing information.
  • Ability to translate budgets into client-specific formats and work with customer procurement systems such as Ariba or Workday.
  • Strong experience organizing and maintaining proposal and contract records using CRM platforms, SharePoint, and similar document management systems.
  • Strong understanding of commercial operations record-retention practices, including file naming conventions, folder organization, documentation standards, and CRM status management.
  • Highly proficient in Microsoft Office applications, particularly Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook.
  • Strong project and deliverable management skills, with the ability to prioritize multiple assignments and consistently meet internal and external deadlines.
  • Exceptional attention to detail and a strong commitment to accuracy, quality, and compliance.
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with Business Development teams, subject matter experts, sponsors, and internal approvers.
  • Ability to work independently while maintaining effective collaboration across multidisciplinary teams.
  • Strong analytical and organizational skills, with the ability to manage complex information and turn it into clear, compelling, and commercially appropriate proposals.

  Benefits

  • Remote work opportunity within the United States.
  • Competitive compensation package.
  • Opportunity to work within a global, science-driven environment supporting pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device organizations.
  • Exposure to complex clinical research, regulatory, proposal, pricing, and commercial operations activities.
  • Collaborative environment with opportunities to work closely with Business Development and subject matter experts.
  • Opportunities for professional development and continued growth within the life sciences and clinical research sector.
  • Opportunity to contribute to process improvements and technology-enabled approaches to proposal development.