Bid Manager - Speculative Talent Pipeline

Rowden; West of England; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

Rowden in Bristol, UK, is seeking a Bid Manager to own end-to-end bidding—from qualification to contract signature—across Defence, Emergency Response and National Security. The role requires thriving in fast-paced environments and contributing beyond traditional bid management.

You'll work with cross-functional teams, manage the bid content library, and help refine win themes while ensuring compliance and timely submissions. The position offers permanent, full-time with a hybrid work model.

Qualifications

• Proven experience managing bids from opportunity assessment to submission, ideally in public sector tenders.
• Excellent project management skills, handling multiple bids, priorities, and tight deadlines.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills for internal and external stakeholders.
• Strong copywriting and editing with meticulous attention to detail.
• Familiarity with UK government procurement processes and frameworks.

Responsibilities

• Lead bid submissions from qualification to final submission with timelines and owners.
• Develop bid strategies with capture teams to define win themes.
• Monitor responses to UK government frameworks ensuring high-quality submissions.
• Own and update bid/content library with case studies, CVs, rate cards, and value statements.
• Facilitate go/no-go decisions based on data and opportunity merit.
• Drive continuous improvement by analyzing win/loss data and lessons learned.
• Stay current with industry trends and incorporate new technologies where needed.
• Maintain audit trails and archive outdated materials.

Skills

Bid management

Project management

Stakeholder collaboration

Copywriting & editing

UK government procurement

Job description

Bid Manager - Speculative Talent Pipeline

Department: Revenue Operations

Employment Type: Permanent - Full Time

Location: Bristol, UK

Reporting To: Hamish Rosser

Compensation: £40,000 - £60,000 / year

We’re building the UK's next generation engineering powerhouse, providing critical technology that strengthens national security and resilience.

We specialise in turning advances in sensing, AI, and communications into operational capability for the edge, where connectivity may be degraded or denied. Our work focuses on accelerating the deployment of technology, improving decision-making for frontline teams, and protecting people and critical assets in demanding environments.

Headquartered in Bristol, Rowden employs around 200 people and operates over 20,000 square feet of engineering and manufacturing facilities. We have a growing international footprint and are one of Europe’s fastest-growing engineering businesses.

About the opportunity

Due to increased demand, we’re building a pipeline for proactive and driven Bid Managers who are interested in joining our growing Bid team.

As Bid Manager, you'll take ownership of our end-to-end bidding process. From pre-qualification through to contract signature, you’ll play a pivotal role in securing the opportunities that matter, ensuring every submission reflects our strengths, differentiators, and commitment to end-users. As part of our continued growth, you’ll get exposure to various customer groups across Defence, Emergency Response and National Security.

The role is not a traditional Bid Manager role. It requires someone who thrives in fast-paced, high-stakes environments, willing to contribute in areas beyond just bid management. You’ll need to navigate complex procurement landscapes, drive internal collaboration, and apply relentless focus to improving how we bid, ensuring we continue to grow, learn, and deliver impact.

Candidates must be eligible for SC clearance.

More information about security clearance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/united-kingdom-security-vetting-clearance-levels

Key areas of responsibility

• Lead bid submissions from opportunity qualification to final submission, managing timelines, responsibilities, and outcomes.
• Develop and refine bid strategies, aligning closely with capture teams to define compelling win themes and customer messaging.
• Monitor and manage responses to UK government frameworks ensuring consistent and high quality submissions.
• Own and update our bid/content library, ensuring reusable material (e.g. case studies, CVs, rate cards, social value statements) is current and easily accessible.
• Facilitate go/no-go decisions, helping the business qualify opportunities quickly and with the right data.
• Drive continuous improvement, analysing win/loss data, gathering lessons learned, and evolving our bid approach.
• Keep up-to-date with industry trends and standards, incorporating new technologies into our bidding systems where needed
• Champion process and knowledge management, from maintaining a clear audit trail to archiving outdated materials.

Key skills, experience and behaviours

We are looking for someone who is passionate about bid or project management. You’ll gain loads of experience in this role but before you do, you should have:

• Proven experience managing bids from opportunity assessment to submission, ideally in public sector tenders.
• Excellent project management skills, with the ability to handle multiple bids, balance priorities, and meet tight deadlines without compromising quality.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate and organise stakeholders both internally and externally.
• Strong copywriting and editing skills with a rigorous eye for detail.
• Familiarity with UK government procurement processes and frameworks is beneficial.

About you

The ideal candidate will show a strong balance of the following behavioural competencies that we believe are key to success in the role:

• Ownership & Accountability - Take full responsibility for the end-to-end bid process. Driving progress, anticipating challenges, and ensuring that deadlines and standards are met without needing constant oversight.
• Structured Communication - Conveys complex information clearly and persuasively, tailoring written and verbal communication to suit both technical and non-technical audiences. Brings clarity to ambiguity.
• Attention to Detail - Demonstrates a meticulous approach to reviewing and compiling bid documentation, ensuring accuracy, compliance, and consistency while working at pace.
• Adaptability & Resilience - Remains calm and focused in dynamic and time-sensitive environments, able to reprioritise quickly and respond positively to changing requirements, feedback, or constraints.

Working at Rowden

We are committed to building a flexible, inclusive, and enabling company. Our aim is to create a diverse team of talented people with unique skills, experience, and backgrounds, so please apply and come as you are!

We also recognise the importance of flexible working and support this wherever we can. We typically operate a flexible, hybrid-working model, with an average 3 days in the office each week (dependent on the role). We welcome the opportunity to discuss flexibility, part-time working requirements and/or workplace adjustments with all our applicants.

Rowden is a Disability Confident Committed company, and we actively encourage people with disabilities and health conditions to apply for our roles. Please let us know your requirements early on so that we can make sure you have everything you need up front to help make the recruitment process and experience as easy as possible.

Finally, if you feel that you don’t meet all the criteria included above but have transferable skills and relevant experience, we’d still love to hear from you!