Marketing Director Jobs in Irvine, CA

The Director of Capture & Proposals & Marketing owns everything that happens between the release of a solicitation and the announcement of an award.

The individual leads the capture and proposal process across all regions and service lines: reading and interpreting RFPs and RFQs, driving Go/No-Go discipline, developing win strategy and win themes, directing proposal production, preparing teams for client interviews, and conducting the debriefs that make the next pursuit better. They lead an internal team as well as outside consultants and are accountable for that team’s output, development, and performance.

The Director also owns the company's brand standards and market voice and provide leadership and mentorship to pre-RFP marketing activity — ensuring a single, consistent message regardless of where a pursuit originates.

This role is the strategic counterpart to the Director of Business Development. Business Development opens the door; Capture & Proposals & Marketing wins the work. The two operate as peers against one shared pipeline and one shared number, both reporting to the CEO until the Director of Sales seat is established.

Primary Responsibilities

Capture Strategy and Pursuit Leadership

• Read, interpret, and dissect RFPs, RFQs, and solicitation documents — including identifying unstated client priorities, evaluation weightings, scoring implications, and incumbent advantages that are implied rather than written.
• Lead the weekly Capture Meeting: pipeline review, pursuit assignments, deadlines, resource allocation, and decisions.
• Own the Go/No-Go process. Enforce documented criteria, drive disciplined disqualification of low-probability pursuits, and be willing to defend a decision to walk away.
• Develop win strategy, win themes, discriminators, and competitive positioning for each pursuit.
• Translate the Business Development capture brief into a written pursuit strategy at solicitation release.
• Work with Executives and Operations Managers to review solicitations and provide strategic insight.
• Determine proposed team composition and coordinate with Operations for talent sourcing.

Proposal Management

• Direct the full proposal lifecycle: kickoff, schedule, compliance matrix, writing assignments, color reviews, production, and submission.
• Guarantee 100% compliance and responsiveness — zero disqualifications on technical or administrative grounds.
• Assign and balance pursuit workload across the proposal coordinators, accounting for concurrent deadlines and individual capability.
• Lead and staff proposal review teams; personally provide substantive editorial review, not proofreading.
• Write and edit narrative content directly where the pursuit warrants senior authorship.
• Direct the Graphics & Communication Specialist on layout, graphics, and production quality.
• Maintain a governed reuse library: project profiles, resumes, boilerplate, past performance, and graphics.
• Coordinate pricing inputs with Operations and Finance so the technical narrative and the price tell the same story.

Interview and Presentation Preparation

• Own interview preparation for all shortlisted pursuits — message development, presentation design, and rehearsal.
• Coach Operations Managers and principals on delivery, question handling, and client-facing presence.
• Schedule and run mock interviews with structured, documented critique.

Team Leadership and Accountability

• Set clear, written expectations for each direct report, including individual scorecards with measurable standards.
• Conduct documented one-on-ones on a consistent, published cadence.
• Address performance gaps directly, promptly, and in writing — not by avoiding the conversation or absorbing the work personally.
• Develop each team member’s capability through deliberate coaching, feedback, and stretch assignments.
• Mentor all positions within the operational area to sustain a high level of engagement and success.
• Complete performance reviews on schedule; recommend performance-based increases and bonuses for direct reports.
• Administer timesheet and expense approval for direct reports.

Brand and Marketing Leadership

• Own the company's brand standards, messaging architecture, and market voice across all channels.
• Provide final approval on all external marketing materials, Social Media content, and website updates.
• Direct the Graphics & Communication Specialist on collateral, project profiles, case studies, and campaign production.
• Provide mentorship and technical direction to pre-RFP marketing activity on content quality, brand consistency, and messaging — in coordination with the Director of Business Development, who sets that activity’s targets and priorities.
• Assist Dir of BD to identify conferences that meet firm objectives; oversee booth strategy, presentation materials, and collateral.

Win/Loss Analysis and Continuous Improvement

• Pursue and conduct client debriefs on every pursuit, won or lost.
• Document findings and translate them into specific, actionable changes to future pursuits.
• Report win-rate trends, loss patterns, and competitive intelligence to the Director of BD quarterly.
• Maintain a lessons-learned repository that is genuinely referenced at the start of each pursuit.

Pipeline and Data Integrity

• Maintain accurate pursuit records, stages, and probabilities in Deltek Vantagepoint.
• Produce pipeline, win-rate, and pursuit-cost reporting for the Director of BD.
• Serve as guardian of CRM data integrity for all post-solicitation activity.

Qualifications

Required

• 8–12 years of marketing, capture, or proposal experience within the AEC industry.
• 3+ years managing people, with direct accountability for their performance and development.
• Demonstrated ability to read a complex RFP or RFQ and identify what the client is actually asking for, including unstated priorities.
• Documented history of leading winning pursuits; candidates should be prepared to discuss specific wins, their personal role, and the win strategy employed.
• Exceptional written communication — the ability to organize complex technical content into a clear, persuasive, client-focused narrative.
• Exceptional organizational skills; proven capacity to run multiple concurrent pursuits against fixed, non-negotiable deadlines.
• Ability to communicate clearly and concisely under pressure, in writing and in person.
• Proficiency with Adobe Creative Suite, including InDesign, and Microsoft Office Suite.
• Experience with federal, state, and local public procurement and qualifications-based selection.

Preferred

• Deltek VantagePoint or comparable CRM and proposal management platform.
• APMP certification or equivalent capture/proposal credential.
• Familiarity with the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS).

Core Competencies

• Analytical reading — sees what is between the lines of a solicitation
• Clear, structured written and verbal communication
• Leadership and accountability — sets expectations and holds people to them
• Coaching and talent development
• Organization, prioritization, and deadline management under pressure
• Strategic thinking — operates above the task level
• Editorial judgment and persuasive writing
• Cross-functional influence with Operations and Executive Leadership
• Composure and decisiveness in high-pressure pursuit cycles

Pay: $145,000.00 - $155,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• 401(k) matching
• Dental insurance
• Employee assistance program
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Professional development assistance
• Referral program
• Vision insurance

Work Location: In person