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L3Harris Technologies is the Trusted Disruptor in the defense industry. With customers’ mission-critical needs always in mind, our employees deliver end-to-end technology solutions connecting the space, air, land, sea and cyber domains in the interest of national security.

Proposal Specialist

Reference #29792

Waterdown, Ontario

About the Role

WESCAM is seeking an experienced Proposal Specialist who is accomplished in all aspects of Proposal Coordination from the chairing of Kickoff meetings, costing and pricing in complex spreadsheets through to the acquiring of bid approvals and bid issuance.  This role will be working within a mature Bids and Proposals organization of approx. 15 people to coordinate custom bids and proposal efforts in response to a variety of domestic and international RFP’s from Governments, OEM’s and end users.   As a Proposal Specialist, you will coordinate the collection and accumulation of cost, scheduling, and performance elements from functional departments and be responsible for issuing high quality bids and proposals for the sale of our MX Series Electro-Optic / Infra-Red sensors, Services and System Solutions for installation on Aircraft, Maritime vessels and Land vehicles. 

Applicants with prior experience in the Aerospace industry and / or with the bidding of complex System Solutions will be highly valued. 

Primary Responsibilities 

• Manage projects or processes with general supervision
• Learn and understand WESCAM’s complete product offering (price book) and the Common Capture Process (CCP)
• Analyze and interpret customer requirements (Request For Bid (RFB) / Request For Proposal (RFP) / Request for Information (RFI) / Request for Quotation (RFQ) etc.)
• Evaluate the Proposal Request and prepare for Pursuit or Bid Decision meeting
• Prepare for and facilitate the Proposal Kickoff meeting
• Develop proposal schedule and assign team responsibilities
• Develop proposal response strategy with assistance from Capture Lead and Proposal Managers as required
• Chair various meetings
• Develop, plan and schedule proposals, delegate and expedite assignments to/from the proposal team
• Coordinate the collection and accumulation of cost, scheduling and performance elements from functional departments.
• Use complex Excel spreadsheets to capture costing / pricing and Basis of Estimates (BOE)
• Coordinate the handling of custom proposal requirements (SOW, SPEC, T&C compliance matrices etc)
• Coordinate the proposal narrative responses including administrating the Red Team review process
• Generate concise proposal text / compliance text to fill-in gaps with proposal team text / sales language as required. 
• Follow-up and expedite timely responses from the proposal team
• Obtain approvals following WESCAM’s approval process Complete the proposal and prepare the response for on-time submission
• Provide post-proposal support during subsequent Q&A and Negotiations
• Closeout the proposal process by completing as awarded information
• Work to achieve department strategic goals

Required Capabilities 

• Strong proficiency (advanced users) with MS Excel (complex spreadsheets), MS Word (proposal documents) and moderate proficiency with MS PowerPoint
• Experience with Microsoft Dynamics or a similar CRM application an asset
• Strong organizational skills.  Technical aptitude considered beneficial
• Excellent writing skills with the ability to write persuasive proposal text
• Excellent verbal communication skills with the ability to chair bid management meetings
• Excellent attention to detail is essential
• Ability to prioritize workload
• Team player attitude with ability to guide, coach and train other employees
• Ability to multi-task and work under pressure
• Ability to work extended hours during major proposal submissions
• Excellent communication & leadership skills to facilitate meetings with key stakeholders from a multi-functional team (Sales, Procurement, Program Management, Service, Engineering etc.), to execute bid strategy

Desired Education and Experiences 

• Minimum 4 years bids and proposals or relevant experience in a technical, fast paced environment
• Experience in aerospace product sales or sales support an asset
• University Degree
• Participation in Association for Proposal Management Professionals (APMP) Practitioner level an asset.

At L3Harris, we foster an inclusive and equitable workplace. L3Harris is committed to treating all employees and applicants for employment with respect and dignity and maintaining a workplace that is free from unlawful discrimination. For applicants with disabilities, we will provide you with accommodation so that you have what you need in order to be at your best.

L3Harris performs background checks prior to employment as all applicants must be eligible for registration with the Controlled Goods Program and obtain and maintain a positive security assessment. Some positions may require a government of Canada “Reliability” status and/or Level 2 (Secret) security clearance. In addition, L3Harris performs pre-employment substance abuse testing where required.