Proposal Lead

About Poseidon Aerospace:

Poseidon Aerospace is reimagining how the world moves goods. We build and operate full-size autonomous cargo aircraft - capable of carrying two tons of payload over a thousand nautical miles. From remote communities to contested logistics operations, our platforms unlock a new cost curve for air freight, making it faster, cheaper, and accessible anywhere it's needed. Headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area with locations in Washington DC, Oregon, and Maine; we're building something consequential.

About the role:

Proposals are how Poseidon wins contracts, and contracts are how Poseidon builds aircraft. We're looking for a Proposal Lead to own that function from first response to submission and build the infrastructure that scales with us. You'll work directly with our engineering and flight operations teams and be the person who turns what we're building into narrative that wins.

What you’ll do:

Execute and lead well-coordinated winning proposals from initiation through

award including solicitation decomposition, proposal schedules, compliance

matrices, proposal team roles, proposal formats and templates, writing

assignments, single-voice edits, color team reviews, and timely submissions

Establish and direct proposal processes, methods, enterprise solution

implementation and use, and operational metrics for repeatable high quality

winning proposals that can be tailored as Poseidon Aerospace scales

Develop and lead proposal strategies working closely with leadership, capture,

and engineering in preparation for solicitation release and effective proposal

kickoff, execution, and timely submission

Work with capture and engineering to prepare compelling white papers, graphics,

concept briefs and other content in response to major RFPs, OTAs, CSOs, and

other solicitation types from various federal agencies

Build and own the proposal enterprise including content libraries, writing

schedules, reusable prose and graphics, and documentation standards that

enable high-quality and rapid responses to customer solicitations

Working with leadership and growth teams to update pipelines, track future

solicitations for proposal resource and talent management, and coordinate with

customers for submission and award status

Required:

Experience with non-standard solicitations such as OTAs, CSOs, SBIRs, etc.

Experience with various contract types including IDIQs, cost plus, T&M, FFP, etc.

Strong business and technical writing skills: you can translate complex business,

financial, and engineering concepts into clear and compelling narratives and

graphical presentations

Deep knowledge of FAR/DFARS and proposal compliance requirements to

ensure that cost and technical proposals are informed, persuasive and compliant,

and which balances risks between Poseidon Aero and the U.S. Government

Experience developing compliance matrices, managing submission schedules,

and owning document configuration

Technical literacy in federal contracting, pricing schemes, contract types, and

technical domains (aerospace, mission systems, autonomy, aviation, or adjacent

engineering domains)

US citizenship and eligibility for a secret security clearance or higher

Ideally you have:

4–8 years in contracting or proposals, ideally at a fast-moving defense company

or government contractor

Written proposals where the contracting structure itself was part of the problem to

solve, not just the narrative

Worked in or alongside a fast-moving team under time pressure

Active security clearance

What you get from us

Competitive salary and meaningful early-stage equity

Relocation support if applicable

Employee Health Benefit Plans

6% Retirement matching

Flexible PTO

Free lunches, snacks, and a stocked fridge at our offices

AI tools and subscriptions