Proposal Coordinator (m/f/d)

Your mission

At planqc, we build scalable quantum computers based on neutral atoms and actively shape the ecosystem that enables their development.

As Proposal Coordinator, you coordinate and drive the development of high-quality proposals that support planqc's growth, from public funding applications and research consortia to commercial offers and strategic opportunities. You bring together technical, financial, and commercial input from across the company, coordinate internal and external stakeholders, and ensure proposals are compelling, compliant, and submitted on time. Beyond individual proposals, you continuously improve our processes, knowledge base, and proposal pipeline.

Your responsibilities

• Proposal Management and Development: You write,develop and consolidat ecompetitive grant proposals based on technical and financial input, gathering the necessary contributions from the specialist teams, forming and coordinating the required consortia, and supporting negotiations during grant preparation – all the way to timely submission
• Monitoring & Funding Search: You run continuous monitoring to identify new funding programmes and attractive opportunities–initially in Germany, later across further European countries (UK, Austria, and others) as well as international programmes open to applicants from any country–and keep track of relevant policy developments
• Networking, Policy & Lobbying: You represent planqc in relevant business networks (e.g. Bitkom, SPECTARIS, Optica, QuIC), observe relevant developments there, build relationships with universities, research institutes, and funding agencies, and prepare lobbying proposals that you submit to management for approval
• Reporting & Continuous Improvement: You build and maintain our internal reporting – a central overview of all ongoing and planned applications that gives employees, C-level, and investors transparency on our funding pipeline. You conduct post-mortems on submitted proposals (successful and rejected), derive lessons learned, and continuously improve templates, knowledge repositories, and processes

What you bring

• Background & Experience: A background in either a technical field (e.g. physics, engineering, natural sciences) or business/management (e.g. public policy, business, project management). At least a degree plus 2 years of relevant professional experience (or more experience without a degree).
• Funding Programmes: Familiarity with German and European funding programmes (e.g. Horizon Europe, BMFTR, DLR, IPCEI, NATO DIANA)
• Writing & Organisation: Excellent written communication skills, the ability to translate complex technical content into clear, compelling proposals, and a structured, independent, and detail-oriented way of working.
• Languages: German at a minimum of C1 level and English at a minimum of C1 level

Nice to have

• Track Record: A track record of successful public funding applications
• Quantum & Deep Tech: A background in quantum technologies, AMO physics, or another deep-tech environment (e.g. semiconductors, photonics)
• Consortia & Institutes: Experience building international research consortia or working with universities and research institutes
• Tools & Efficiency: An affinity for IT tools and automation to make application and monitoring processes more efficient, including experience with application platforms
• Networking: Interest in attending networking events

What characterizes you

• Structure & Delivery: You work in a structured, reliable, and independent way, produce compelling texts, and keep an overview even under deadline pressure
• Continuous Improvement: You think beyond the individual application and continuously improve processes
• Interest: You are interested in the interface of technology, strategy, and funding

About Us planqc builds neutral-atom quantum computers based on arrays of optically trapped atoms controlled with high-precision laser systems. Our platform combines technologies from optical lattice clocks, quantum gas microscopes and fast Rydberg gates into a scalable computing architecture.

Founded in 2022 as a spin-off from MPQ and LMU Munich, we translate more than a decade of AMO research into deployable quantum systems. Our work spans vacuum and laser hardware, control electronics, firmware, system software and algorithm integration. We focus on turning complex experimental setups into stable, reproducible systems that operate in real computing environments.

Behind this technology is a team that pushes technical boundaries, values open exchange and shared ownership. Physicists, engineers, software developers and business specialists work closely together, often across disciplinary limits. We believe progress comes from combining deep expertise with practical engineering and from giving people the responsibility and trust to shape their domain.

As we grow across our locations in Garching, Ulm, and Innsbruck, we continue to build a company where people take ownership, learn from each other, and directly shape the systems we bring into operation.