Proposal Writer - Defense

Applied Intuition•Arlington, VA

6d•$100,000 - $150,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Proposal Writer is responsible for translating capture strategy, technical inputs, and customer requirements into compliant, compelling written products. This role involves drafting direct-to-customer proposals, responses to RFPs, Statements of Work (SOWs), Basis of Estimates (BoEs), technical documentation, and other customer-facing materials to support the win and execution of defense contracts. The writer will work cross-functionally with Business Development, engineering, delivery, and product teams to gather information, ensure compliance, and deliver high-quality proposals on time. The ideal candidate is a strong writer with startup energy, capable of operating both independently and within a team, and possesses the technical fluency to translate complex concepts into clear, customer-focused narratives.

Requirements

BA/BS in English, Communications, Technical Writing, Engineering, or a related field.
3–8 years of proposal writing, technical writing, grant writing, or related experience.
Demonstrated ability to write Statements of Work, technical specifications, or similar structured technical documents and compelling, customer-focused proposals under tight deadlines and while managing multiple efforts simultaneously.
Comfortable working directly with BD, and the technical fluency to translate complex technical concepts from delivery, engineering, and product teams.
Bias toward action and self-starting mentality and a rigorous attention to detail and compliance.

Nice To Haves

Government contracting fluency. Familiarity with RFP structures, evaluation criteria, FAR/DFARS, and DoD procurement processes.
Experience writing proposals or technical documentation for defense, aerospace, or similarly regulated industries.
Hybrid background spanning both traditional defense primes and startup/scale-up environments.
U.S. citizenship and eligibility to obtain a Secret or Top Secret security clearance.

Responsibilities

Draft and edit proposals from first draft through final submission, including executive summaries, technical volumes, management volumes, past performance narratives, staffing plans, resumes, and other required sections.
Collaborate with Engineering, Product, Delivery, and Solutions teams to translate technical capabilities and engineering inputs into clear, customer-facing language that addresses evaluation criteria and speaks to government customer pain points.
Ensure proposals are compliant with solicitation instructions, evaluation factors, page limits, formatting requirements, required attachments, and submission rules.
Draft Statements of Work with clear deliverables, milestones, and acceptance criteria that align with technical approaches and pricing structures.
Develop Rough Order of Magnitudes (ROMs) and pricing proposals, milestone-based pricing structures, and Basis of Estimates narratives in collaboration with contracts and engineering teams.