Senior Bid Manager - Rail / CIS in Ashby de la Zouch

Contract Opportunity: Senior Bid Manager - Rail / CIS
Location: Ashby, Leicestershire
Contract: Contract
IR35 Status: Outside IR35
Day Rate: £500-£600 per day
Industry: Rail / Engineering / Infrastructure

The Opportunity
We are currently seeking an experienced Senior Bid Manager to join a leading organisation within the UK rail and infrastructure sector.

This is an exciting opportunity for an established Bid Manager to take ownership of high-value, strategic tenders within a Communications & Information Systems (CIS) portfolio.

You will play a key role in developing and delivering winning bid strategies, managing the full tender lifecycle and coordinating multidisciplinary teams across technical, commercial, financial and operational functions.

Working closely with internal and external stakeholders, you will ensure bids are commercially competitive, technically robust and aligned with business objectives, while overseeing the transition from successful tender through to project delivery.

You will thrive in a fast-paced environment, have a strong understanding of engineering project delivery and be able to bring together multiple disciplines to develop compelling, commercially competitive and successful bids.

Key Responsibilities
Lead the full bid lifecycle, from initial Bid/No-Bid decisions through to tender submission, customer negotiations and contract award.
Develop and implement winning bid strategies for complex engineering and rail infrastructure projects, ranging from £100k to £10m.
Coordinate all technical, commercial and financial aspects of bid preparation, including pricing structures, cost estimates and subcontractor partnerships.
Manage and lead multidisciplinary bid teams, ensuring all stakeholders deliver against agreed deadlines and requirements.
Prepare, review and coordinate high-quality tender documentation and customer presentations.
Manage internal governance and approval processes, ensuring all required bid deliverables, risk registers and compliance documentation are completed.
Lead customer engagement and negotiations, acting as the main point of contact throughout the bidding process.
Present bid strategies and progress updates to senior management and board-level stakeholders.
Ensure effective handover from the tendering team to project delivery, maintaining scope clarity and commercial accuracy.
Manage bid budgets and ensure compliance with company policies, procedures and quality standards.
Identify opportunities to improve bid management processes, standards and overall performance.
Essential Skills & Experience
Significant Bid Management experience within an engineering, rail, infrastructure or project-based business.
Proven experience leading complex bids, ideally with values exceeding £5m.
Experience managing substantial bid budgets, ideally in excess of £250k.
Strong understanding of railway technology projects and the engineering project delivery lifecycle.
Experience coordinating technical, commercial, financial and project management teams.
Strong commercial awareness, with the ability to develop competitive proposals while managing business risk.
Proven leadership experience, including matrix management of multidisciplinary teams of 10+ people.
Excellent stakeholder management and negotiation skills, including engagement with senior management and customer organisations.
Strong written and verbal communication skills, with experience producing and delivering senior-level presentations.
Ability to manage multiple bids simultaneously and work effectively under tight deadlines.
Degree qualified or equivalent in a business or technical discipline.
Desirable Experience
Previous experience within Customer Information Systems (CIS), Passenger Information Systems or wider rail technology.
Background working within a regulated engineering or railway environment.
Experience working as a Bid Manager, Senior Bid Manager, Project Manager or Commercial Manager.
APMP or IET membership/qualifications.
The Ideal Candidate
You will be a commercially astute and proactive Bid Manager with the confidence to lead complex, high-value tenders and influence stakeholders at all levels.

If you have a strong background in engineering or rail bid management and are interested in this Outside IR35 contract opportunity, please get in touch to discuss further.