Proposal Manager and Writer (Independent Contractor)

About Us
CommunicateHealth is a growing health communication firm with a passion for health literacy and human-centered design. Our mission is simple: to improve lives by designing health information that’s easy to understand and use. By making health communications that are clear, accessible, and inclusive, we give people what they need to make informed decisions about their health — and ultimately help advance health equity. Together, our mission-driven team designs inspiring solutions that transform the way people think about health

Overview

CommunicateHealth is seeking an experienced Proposal Manager and Writer to partner with our team on a short-term, part-time basis (minimum 20 hours/week) as an independent contractor. The selected contractor will lead and coordinate the development of high-quality proposals for government and private contracts, ensuring that all submissions are competitive, compliant, and delivered on time. This contract role will be essential in helping us secure contracts that advance our mission to improve public health communication.

We’re looking for individual contractors with demonstrated experience in managing the proposal process for government contracts, particularly in the fields of health communication and public health. Agencies or firms will not be considered.

What you’ll do

• Support the full development lifecycle of proposals in response to requests for proposals (RFPs), requests for information (RFIs), and sources sought notices.
• Analyze solicitation requirements and evaluation criteria, and support the development of proposal win themes, strategy, and compliance matrices.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams — including leadership, project managers, writers, editors, and designers — to gather required information and incorporate feedback to refine proposal drafts.
• Develop and maintain proposal schedules and ensure adherence to deadlines.
• Conduct research on prospective clients, competitors, and best practices to inform proposal content.
• Oversee proposal production, including formatting, assembling documents, and submission.
• Support proposal process improvement efforts, including development of templates.

Requirements

• At least 5 years of experience managing and writing winning government contract proposals in the health communication or public health sectors.
• Demonstrated experience developing proposals for contracts funded by CDC, NIH, CMS, and VA.
• Strong project management skills and the ability to handle multiple proposals simultaneously.
• Familiarity with federal procurement processes for RFPs, RFIs, and sources sought responses, including compliance reviews, formatting, and submission.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a focus on persuasive and concise writing.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel) and project management tools (Asana, Slack).

Application requirements

Please provide the following in your application:

1. Your resume and cover letter: Your cover letter should provide a brief description of your expertise and how it aligns with managing proposal development for government contracts in health communication or public health.
2. Portfolio: Please provide 2–3 relevant examples or data points supporting your application, which could include win percentage, list of successful contract wins, or excerpts of previous proposals.
3. Rate or fee proposal: Please include your hourly rate.
4. Availability: Indicate your availability over the next 3 months and the approximate number of hours you can commit weekly.

Contract terms

• This is a short-term, independent contractor role (1099) for approximately 3 months, with the potential for future long-term partnership based on business needs
• This position is intended for independent contractors, not agencies or firms.
• We are open to processing this as a W2 hourly employee role if the candidate prefers to receive benefits, but the hourly rate may be adjusted accordingly. (Minimum 20 hours per week required for benefits.)