Proposal Development Specialist

Description:

We are looking for a skilled Proposal Development Specialist to lead the full proposal cycle, from finding opportunities to submission. This includes Expressions of Interest (EOIs), technical and financial proposals, grant applications, and government tenders for clients such as the World Bank, ADB, FCDO, the Gates Foundation, UN agencies, and Government of Pakistan departments. The candidate should know donor procurement rules well, write persuasively and in a compliant way, prepare accurate cost proposals, and work to tight deadlines.

Key Responsibilities

1. Business Development & Opportunity Tracking

Monitor procurement portals daily, including World Bank (STEP / UNDB), ADB (CSRN / CMS), FCDO (Find a Tender / Jaggaer), Gates Foundation, UNGM, EU, SAM.gov / Grants.gov, PPRA / EPADS, KPPRA, SPPRA, PPRA Punjab, and BPPRA.
Screen opportunities, prepare short go/no-go assessments, and keep the bid pipeline tracker updated.
Identify teaming partners, joint venture (JV) or sub-consultant arrangements, and key experts early in the bid cycle.

2. Expressions of Interest & Pre-qualification

Prepare EOIs and shortlisting submissions that follow World Bank and ADB consultant guidelines.
Maintain a current library of firm profiles, past performance records, completion certificates, and experience matrices.

3. Technical Proposals

Analyze RFPs, ToRs, and evaluation criteria; prepare compliance matrices and bid checklists.
Write core technical sections: understanding of the assignment, comments on the ToR, approach and methodology, work plan, Gantt charts, staffing schedules, risk management, M&E frameworks, logframes, theory of change, and gender and social inclusion strategies.
Prepare responses in donor formats such as World Bank SPD forms (TECH-1 to TECH-6), ADB STP/FTP formats, FCDO commercial and technical templates, and Gates Foundation concept notes and full proposals.
Recruit key experts, adapt CVs to donor templates, and obtain exclusivity and availability confirmations.

4. Financial Proposals

Prepare cost proposals and budgets (remuneration, reimbursables, overheads, contingencies) in World Bank FIN-1 to FIN-4, ADB, FCDO, and other required formats.
Structure budgets for lump-sum, time-based, and fixed-price contracts, as well as grant budgets with budget narratives.
Apply Pakistani tax rules correctly, including income tax withholding, federal and provincial sales tax on services (ICT, PRA, SRB, KPRA, BRA), and stamp duty.
Ensure the financial proposal is fully consistent with the technical proposal in staff inputs, timelines, and deliverables.

5. Government Tenders (Pakistan)

Prepare bids under PPRA Rules 2004 and provincial procurement rules, including single-stage one-envelope, single-stage two-envelope, and QCBS/QBS methods.
Manage EPADS and e-Pak Acquisition submissions, bid securities, affidavits, and registration documents (SECP, FBR/NTN, PEC, provincial tax authorities).
Draft pre-bid queries, clarification requests and, where needed, grievance submissions.

6. Quality Control & Submission

Edit, format, and produce professional, visually consistent proposals.
Run internal review cycles (pink, red, and gold team reviews) and final compliance checks.
Manage electronic and hard-copy submissions, including sealing, marking, courier, and notarization.

7. Knowledge Management

Maintain a proposal content library of boilerplate text, methodologies, CVs, project sheets, and pricing benchmarks.
Record debriefs and lessons learned from won and lost bids to improve win rates.

Required Qualifications

Master's degree in Development Studies, Public Policy, Economics, Business Administration, Project Management, Public Health, or a related field.
At least 5 years of hands-on experience writing technical and financial proposals for consulting firms, NGOs, or INGOs in Pakistan's development sector.
Proven record of submitted and won proposals funded by at least two of: World Bank, ADB, FCDO, Gates Foundation, UN agencies, EU, or USAID.
Working knowledge of World Bank Procurement Regulations, ADB Procurement Policy and Regulations, and PPRA Rules.
Excellent written English; working knowledge of Urdu is an advantage.
Strong skills in MS Word, Excel (budgeting and formulas), and PowerPoint; MS Project or similar tools are an advantage.