Bid Manager - Marine Autonomous Systems

Matchtech; Whiteley; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Matchtech is seeking an experienced Bid Manager to join a rapidly growing maritime security, defence and advanced technology business in the UK. You will own the bid lifecycle from qualification to submission, coordinating technical, commercial and finance inputs to produce compelling, compliant proposals.

The role focuses on developing win strategies, maintaining bid plans, and leading internal reviews to ensure timely, high-quality submissions.

Qualifications

• Significant experience as a Bid Manager, Proposal Manager, Capture Manager or similar.
• Strong proposal writing and editing capability.
• Experience managing bids from qualification through submission.
• Knowledge of public sector, government or defence procurement processes.
• Excellent written communication and document management skills.
• The ability to coordinate multiple stakeholders and competing deadlines.
• Strong commercial awareness and attention to detail.
• Experience producing customer-facing proposals, tenders, RFIs, PQQs and ITTs.

Responsibilities

• Managing the end-to-end bid process from qualification through to submission.
• Developing bid strategies, win themes and customer-focused value propositions.
• Creating and maintaining bid plans, compliance matrices and submission schedules.
• Coordinating inputs from technical, commercial, programme and finance teams.
• Writing, editing and refining proposal content to ensure clarity, compliance and competitiveness.
• Translating complex technical information into compelling customer benefits.
• Managing bid risks, assumptions, actions and clarifications.
• Leading internal reviews and approval processes.
• Ensuring all submissions are accurate, compliant and delivered on time.
• Supporting post-submission activities, customer clarifications and lessons learned reviews.

Skills

Bid management

Proposal writing

Stakeholder coordination

Public sector procurement

Attention to detail

Communication

Job description

Join a Growing Maritime Security & Defence Technology Business

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced Bid Manager to join a rapidly growing organisation operating within the Maritime Security, Defence and Advanced Technology sectors.

This is a highly visible role where you will take ownership of the entire bid lifecycle, working closely with technical, commercial and operational teams to develop high-quality, winning proposals for UK and international customers.

The successful candidate will combine strong bid management, proposal writing and stakeholder coordination skills, ensuring submissions are compelling, compliant and aligned with customer requirements.

The Role

You will lead and manage bids from initial opportunity identification through to submission and contract handover, taking responsibility for the planning, coordination and production of high-quality proposals.

Key responsibilities include:

• Managing the end-to-end bid process from qualification through to submission.
• Developing bid strategies, win themes and customer-focused value propositions.
• Creating and maintaining bid plans, compliance matrices and submission schedules.
• Coordinating inputs from technical, commercial, programme and finance teams.
• Writing, editing and refining proposal content to ensure clarity, compliance and competitiveness.
• Translating complex technical information into compelling customer benefits.
• Managing bid risks, assumptions, actions and clarifications.
• Leading internal reviews and approval processes.
• Ensuring all submissions are accurate, compliant and delivered on time.
• Supporting post-submission activities, customer clarifications and lessons learned reviews.

About You

We are looking for someone with a proven track record of delivering successful bids within a defence, engineering, technology or similarly regulated environment.

You will have:

• Significant experience as a Bid Manager, Proposal Manager, Capture Manager or similar.
• Strong proposal writing and editing capability.
• Experience managing bids from qualification through submission.
• Knowledge of public sector, government or defence procurement processes.
• Excellent written communication and document management skills.
• The ability to coordinate multiple stakeholders and competing deadlines.
• Strong commercial awareness and attention to detail.
• Experience producing customer-facing proposals, tenders, RFIs, PQQs and ITTs.

Desirable Experience

Applications are particularly welcome from candidates with experience in:

• Defence and security sectors.
• Maritime or naval programmes.
• Robotics, autonomy or unmanned systems.
• MOD or government procurement.
• APMP, Shipley or equivalent bid management methodologies.

Why Apply?

Join a growing business in a strategically important sector.

Work on innovative maritime security and defence programmes.

Take ownership of high-profile bids with real business impact.

Collaborate with experienced technical and commercial teams.

Excellent opportunity for long-term career progression as the business continues to expand.

If you enjoy transforming complex technical solutions into compelling, winning proposals and want to play a key role within a growing defence technology business, we'd love to hear from you