All Things Urban

Gehl focuses on the relationship between the built environment and people’s quality of life. Gehl is based in Copenhagen, New York and San Francisco, we create ‘cities for people’.

Gehl is a global urban research and design consultancy. We address urban planning with a people-focused approach, and our services include Public Space Public Life Strategies, Public Space and Street Design and Masterplanning Frameworks.

We apply strategic planning and human-centered design to empower citizens, decision makers, company leaders, and organizations through Process Facilitation, Pilot Projects and Integrated Mobility Strategies.

As thought leaders, we contribute to the field by creating Frameworks for Learning and New Knowledge Creation through ongoing research.

Gehl’s New York office is looking for an enthusiastic, self-motivated, organized, and collaborative professional to coordinate Business Development proposals, and Business Development outreach activities focused on growing the firm’s business across the Americas. This role will also support some administrative tasks local to the New York office.

Our ideal candidate will have experience in Business Development or Marketing support role in the Architecture, Engineering, Planning and Design industries, or adjacent professional service industries such as economic development, innovation or creative strategy consulting.

S/he will be able to operate in a fast-paced and dynamic culture by being a great communicator and team player with a roll-up-the-sleeves work ethic and a commitment to delivering best-in-class materials and deliverables.

End-to-End Proposal Support:

Support Business Development project leads to facilitate the design, assembly, and production of qualifications packages, RFP and RFQ responses, and proposals from kickoff- through development, and final delivery.

The role will support design, development and production of short-form and long-form narrative proposals inclusive of all supporting content: project approach, work plans, resumes, firm and project qualifications, and budgets. The role will also support the development of visual pitch presentations and qualifications packages as well as the ongoing development of supporting firm materials (CV’s, one-pagers, case studies, etc). Strong persuasive writing, editorial curation, design, and visual communication skills are a must for success in this position.

The Business Development Coordinator will not only deliver creative excellence, but also manage the process to ensure on-deadline delivery of all proposal elements. An ability to drive and facilitate many moving parts is a necessity, as this role requires experience managing large-scale multi-stage public sector RFP and RFQ processes with multiple collaborators and external stakeholder teams.

Outreach Activities:

The Business Development Coordinator will bring an innate drive for growing Gehl’s business and driving awareness of the Gehl brand in the region combined with a genuine passion for identifying client challenges and potential opportunities for the firm.

The Coordinator will support the Business Development Lead in developing new proactive approaches for Gehl client prospects. Substantive experience in primary and secondary market research (online desk research plus interviews and initial prospect conversations) is the foundation of this aspect of the Business Development coordinator’s role as is an ability to quickly process and synthesize large volumes of information and make actionable recommendations for converting prospects into leads and opportunities.

Experience and/or familiarity with the realms of urban design and architecture and the key industry associations and networking organizations will be a plus for this role.

Administrative & Office Support:

This role will provide light clerical and office support to Gehl’s New York office including scheduling studio-wide activities, and coordinating logistical support for meetings and external guests. Time allocated for these tasks will not exceed 4 hours/week.

Key Skill Sets & Experience

Proposal Development, Design, and Production:

The Coordinator will have proven experience and a strong talent for compelling persuasive writing, and producing professional publication caliber proposals and presentations. This will include strong capabilities in graphic layout as well as the creative skills to produce original supporting assets. A high level of proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite with an emphasis on InDesign as well as Microsoft Office Package including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint and Mac Presentation software, KeyNote are all required. Ability to follow brand and verbal communications guidelines and produce copy for internal and external audiences are also required skills.

The Coordinator will have the experience, organizational capabilities, and versatility to coordinate multiple marketing efforts against rapid deadlines.

The Coordinator will support both East and West Coast teams and maintain connectivity to Gehl’s Copenhagen-based Communications team for ongoing company-wide initiatives related to branding, visual design, and production of project qualifications, and other firm-wide collateral.

Analytical Skills & Rigor:

The Coordinator will be focused on consistently producing high-caliber deliverables that are complete, accurate, and professional. A discipline of detail-orientation and proactively checking work to deliver a high-standard of excellence for Gehl’s materials.

Process-Oriented:

The Coordinator will bring a Project Management approach to Gehl’s proposal process implementing a systematic method of ensuring quality while controlling resource allocation.

Autonomous & Self-Starting:

Demonstrate ability to work proactively and take initiative to accomplish tasks.

Qualifications

• College degree in a relevant discipline (such as Marketing, Communications, or Graphic Design) required
• Post-graduate degree ideal, but not required
• Passion for people-first design as evidenced by work in urban design, architecture, social impact design, or related adjacent fields
• 3+ years of professional experience
• Proven track record of relevant experience in business development and/or marketing in a professional services context
• Enthusiasm for growing Gehl’s business and broadening the firm’s reach in the Americas
• Ability to read, and comprehend complex multi-faceted bid solicitations, instructions, and proposal requirements, extract the relevant contents and requirements, communicate efficiently to team leads and manage every facet of a proposal
• Ability to take ownership of projects from start to finish.
• Software and Technology Proficiency: Adobe Creative Suite including InDesign, Microsoft Office including Powerpoint, Keynote, as well as fluency in all standard workplace collaboration and productivity platforms: Google Cloud, Slack, etc)
• Some hands-on experience with CRM platforms (SalesForce, Sugar, Workbook, others)
• Organized, detail-oriented, and professional with a commitment for producing best-in-class materials and content
• Strong editorial, design, and production skills to support proposal development
• Strong writing and oral communication skills with the ability to craft articulate emails and introduction letters as well as initiate introductory phone and video conference calls and meeting solicitations.

• Full-Time
• Compensation: Salaried w/Benefits; specific salary details commensurate with experience
• Writing and visual proposal samples will be requested for review as will professional references
• If you are a non-US resident, you must be authorized to work in the US
• Please do not call us with inquiries about the position.

We’re not fully sure whether this role is open to international candidates. If you would need visa sponsorship or work authorisation, we recommend checking directly with the employer before applying.