Sourcing Contract Coordinator

Overview Arka is an eco-friendly custom packaging company actively pursuing federal and government contracts across packaging, warehousing, logistics, and fulfillment. We use AI to scan SAM.gov, identify relevant solicitations, source local vendors, and send initial outreach emails at scale. Your job starts after those emails go out. You are the closer. You follow up by phone, make sure vendors understand the opportunity, negotiate pricing, and submit winning proposals. What You'll Do 1. Follow-Up Calls & Vendor Management - Call vendors after our AI system sends initial outreach emails - Confirm they received and understand the solicitation - Vet vendor capabilities — make sure they can actually deliver on the contract requirements - Identify any vendors we may have missed and bring them into the pipeline 2. Understand the Solicitation - Read each solicitation thoroughly — scope of work, delivery requirements, performance location, evaluation criteria, deadlines - Flag anything unusual or high-risk before we pursue - Know what questions to ask vendors based on the SOW 3. Get Quotes & Negotiate - Obtain pricing/quotes from qualified vendors - Negotiate vendor pricing to maximize our margin - Target a 2.5% – 7% markup on vendor pricing before submission - Understand enough about the category (packaging, warehousing, containers, logistics) to negotiate credibly 4. Prepare & Submit Proposals - Use AI tools (ChatGPT, Claude, etc.) to draft proposal responses in the format required by each solicitation (SF 1449, RFQ response templates, past performance write-ups, capability statements, etc.) - Ensure submissions are compliant — all required docs, reps & certs, proper formatting - Submit before deadline via SAM.gov, email, or whatever the solicitation specifies - Track all submissions and deadlines 5. Pipeline Management - Update our tracking sheet with call outcomes, quotes received, submission status - Flag hot opportunities vs. long shots - Report weekly: proposals submitted, win/loss, revenue pipeline What a Typical Week Looks Like - Receive a populated sheet from our AI system with ~50-100 solicitations and matched vendors (emails already sent) - Prioritize by deadline, contract value, and fit - Make 30-50+ follow-up calls to vendors - Negotiate quotes on the strongest opportunities - Draft and submit 5-15 proposals per week using AI-assisted templates - Update tracker, flag wins and next steps Requirements - Experience with federal contracting or government procurement (SAM.gov, RFQs, RFPs, BPAs, IDIQs, OTAs) - Comfortable on the phone — this is a calling-heavy role - Negotiation skills — you're squeezing vendor pricing to protect our margin - Can read and interpret government solicitations (SOWs, CLINs, evaluation criteria) - Familiar with proposal formatting — SF 1449, capability statements, past performance - Comfortable using AI tools to draft templated submissions and speed up proposal writing - Google Sheets proficiency - Self-directed — you own the pipeline from outreach follow-up through submission