Bid Manager UK (all genders)

Your Mission About the Role We are looking for a proactive and commercially minded Bid Manager to lead and project manage the end-to-end tender and proposal process across our UK business. You will take ownership of each bid from early qualification and planning through to submission, clarification, handover and post-bid review. This includes setting the bid strategy, defining responsibilities, coordinating contributors, managing timelines and dependencies, and ensuring that decisions and deliverables are completed to the required quality and deadline. The role requires someone who can bring structure and momentum to complex tender processes, engage stakeholders across different functions and levels, and constructively challenge assumptions, contributions and proposed solutions. Working closely with Commercial, Operations, Delivery, Product, Legal, Finance and central teams, you will ensure that submissions are compliant, compelling, deliverable and commercially robust. Key Responsibilities • Own and manage the full bid lifecycle from opportunity qualification and bid planning through to submission, clarification, contract handover and post-bid review. • Develop and maintain clear bid plans covering deliverables, responsibilities, dependencies, review stages, approvals, resources and deadlines. • Lead bid kick-offs, progress reviews, solution workshops and final submission reviews, creating clarity and accountability across all contributors. • Coordinate and actively manage internal stakeholders, external consultants and specialist partners, challenging delays, unclear ownership or insufficient contributions. • Identify bid risks, dependencies, gaps and decision requirements early, escalating where necessary to protect quality, commercial viability and timelines. • Lead bid qualification and go/no-go assessments, ensuring that client requirements and commercial, technical, operational and delivery implications are fully understood. • Develop the bid strategy, win themes, key messages and overall proposal structure in collaboration with relevant stakeholders. • Ensure that submissions are compliant, persuasive, commercially competitive and operationally deliverable, constructively challenging assumptions and proposed commitments. • Own the overall quality and consistency of proposal content, turning cross-functional input into one clear, client-focused response. • Maintain an accurate tender pipeline and clear reporting on opportunity status, key dates, resource requirements, risks and decisions. • Improve bid-management tools, governance and reusable content, including Jira-based planning and appropriate use of AI-supported bidding solutions. • Ensure a structured handover of successful bids, including commitments, assumptions, risks, dependencies, SLAs and implementation obligations, to Delivery and Operations. Your profile What We're Looking For • Proven experience leading complex bids, proposals or tender processes from qualification through to submission and handover. • Strong project-management skills, including planning, stakeholder coordination, risk management, governance and action tracking. • Confidence coordinating and constructively challenging contributors across different functions and levels of seniority. • Ability to create accountability and maintain momentum without relying on formal authority. • Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to turn complex input into clear and persuasive proposals. • Strong commercial judgement and the ability to understand client priorities, operational constraints and business risks. • Ability to identify gaps, dependencies and unrealistic commitments early and drive timely decisions. • Highly organised and comfortable managing sev