Bid Manager

Thales; Cheadle; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Performance-related bonus

Half day every Friday

28 days annual leave plus bank holidays

24 hours volunteering paid for

Life cover

Employee Assistance Program

Employee discount shopping schemes

Job summary

A global engineering firm is seeking a Bid Manager to lead the delivery of high-quality bids within the Underwater Systems domain. This role involves coordinating multi-disciplinary teams and ensuring compelling proposals are submitted. The successful applicant must have experience in complex engineering environments and possess strong leadership skills. Candidates should also be proficient in relationship management and communications. If you have the drive to contribute to transformational programmes and hold or can obtain Security Clearance, apply today.

Qualifications

• Experience in complex engineering or defence environments.
• Ability to work across multi-disciplinary and multi-site teams.
• Capacity to manage change effectively.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate multi-disciplinary bid teams for successful submissions.
• Create and control bid schedules and resource plans.
• Build relationships with stakeholders and customer representatives.
• Ensure cross-functional alignment across bid artefacts.
• Prepare PQQ responses and govern proposal development.

Skills

Proven experience supporting or leading successful bids

Strong leadership and coordination skills

Excellent stakeholder management capability

Strong commercial awareness and analytical skills

Highly effective communication skills

Job description

Location

- Cheadle (Greater Manchester), Templecombe (Somerset), Bristol, or Crawley (West Sussex) - hybrid working arrangement 3 days per week in the office vs. home

Working hours

Full time or part time hours available

We are looking for a Bid Manager. In this role you will be responsible for leading the delivery of high‑quality, strategically important bids within our Underwater Systems (UWS) domain. As part of a rapidly growing area of the business, you will coordinate multi‑disciplinary teams, shape robust bid strategies and ensure the creation of compelling, competitive proposals. This is an exciting opportunity to support transformational programmes and contribute directly to the long‑term success of Thales UK.

Core Benefits

On offer is a competitive salary and benefits package, which includes;

• Performance‑related bonus
• Half day every Friday, usually finishing around 13:00
• 28 days annual leave (plus bank holidays) plus opportunity to buy up to 40 hours/year (pro rata)
• 24 hours volunteering paid for
• Life cover
• 24/7 Employee Assistance Program and access to mental wellbeing app
• Employee discount shopping schemes on major brands and retailers
• You can read about some of our other benefits here: UK benefits | Thales Group

Under Water Systems (UWS)

Our purpose is to be the leading provider of underwater sensors and decision superiority, helping navies across the world keep our friends, families and all of us safe. We cover four sectors: Mine Counter Measures, Anti‑Submarine warfare, Services and Future Capabilities.

Main Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate multi‑disciplinary bid teams, ensuring a structured, well‑governed and timely bid process.
• Create and control bid schedules, requirements baselines and resource plans to support high‑quality deliverables.
• Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders, partners, suppliers and customer representatives.
• Ensure cross‑functional alignment across all bid artefacts, including estimates, compliance, commercial terms and the initial project baseline.
• Lead the preparation of PQQ responses, proposal development and governance reviews to produce winning submissions.

Ideal Experience & Skills

• Proven experience supporting or leading successful bids and/or projects in complex engineering or defence environments.
• Strong leadership and coordination skills, with the ability to work across multi‑disciplinary and multi‑site teams.
• Excellent stakeholder, customer and supplier relationship management capability.
• Strong commercial awareness, analytical skills and understanding of bid lifecycles, assumptions and risk management.
• Highly effective communication skills (written and verbal), with resilience and the ability to manage change.

Security Clearance Requirement

Due to the nature of the work that we do at Thales, many of our roles are subject to security restrictions. This role requires Security Clearance (SC). It would be advantageous if currently held, however, if not currently held, it is a requirement that the successful applicant undergo, achieve, and maintain SC Clearance prior to commencing employment.

To be eligible for full SC, you generally need to have resided in the UK for the last 5 years. In some circumstances, a minimum of 3 years’ residence in the UK over the last 5 years may be accepted, with additional overseas checks.

Please visit the UKSV website for further guidance: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels/national-security-vetting-clearance-levels.