Bid Support Manager - Defence Sales

Matchtech; South Cambridgeshire; On-site; GBP 55,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Matchtech in South Cambridgeshire is seeking a highly organised Sales & Bid Operations Manager to coordinate bids, support sales campaigns and drive CRM excellence across engineering and defence initiatives.

You will lead bid lifecycle from qualification to submission, manage inputs from technical, commercial, and project teams, and help shape commercial processes as the business scales.

Qualifications

• Experience in bid management, proposal coordination or sales operations.
• Strong CRM experience (HubSpot or similar).
• Excellent project coordination and stakeholder management.
• Ability to manage multiple deadlines and priorities.
• Strong communication skills with senior stakeholders.
• Proactive, process-driven mindset.
• Experience in engineering/defence advantageous but not required.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate the full bid lifecycle from qualification through to submission and contract award.
• Develop bid plans, schedules and review processes to ensure timely submissions.
• Coordinate contributions from technical, commercial, project management and leadership teams.
• Maintain proposal quality, compliance, document control and submission readiness.
• Support proposal development, customer responses, project planning and pricing activities.
• Own and maintain CRM data integrity, ensuring pipeline management and forecasting.
• Drive sales process discipline and governance across the opportunity lifecycle.
• Produce meaningful sales reports, dashboards and management information.
• Support adoption of new commercial tools and AI-enabled systems.
• Monitor procurement portals and tender platforms for new opportunities.
• Coordinate opportunity reviews and qualification activities with key stakeholders.
• Manage supplier registrations, onboarding requirements and portal submissions.
• Ensure deadlines and compliance requirements are tracked and met.
• Work with finance and commercial teams on pricing, approvals and contracts.
• Coordinate legal reviews of customer terms and contractual requirements.
• Support collaborations with partners and subcontractors.
• Maintain records of commercial assumptions, negotiations and communications.
• Coordinate smooth transition from bid to project delivery.
• Ensure project teams receive complete information on expectations, milestones and commitments.
• Support resource planning discussions for future opportunities.
• Capture lessons learned to improve processes.

Skills

Bid management

CRM experience

Stakeholder management

Project coordination

Communication skills

Process-driven

Multi-deadline management

Tools

HubSpot

Job description

Join a High-Growth Technology & Engineering Business Are you a highly organised commercial professional who thrives on winning complex business opportunities? Do you enjoy bringing structure to fast-paced sales environments, coordinating diverse stakeholders, and ensuring high-value bids are delivered to the highest standard? This is a fantastic opportunity to join an innovative engineering and technology company entering an exciting phase of growth. With ambitious expansion plans and a forecast to more than double turnover over the coming years, the business is investing heavily in its commercial capability and looking for a commercially minded Sales & Bid Operations Manager to play a pivotal role in that journey. Working at the heart of the business, you will be responsible for coordinating bids, supporting sales campaigns, driving CRM excellence, and ensuring opportunities are progressed efficiently from initial qualification through to contract award and project handover. Benefit from a supportive, collaborative culture that values initiative, development and teamwork. Participate in regular social events and company activities that create a genuinely enjoyable working environment. Location South Cambridgeshire (with excellent transport links to Cambridge and the surrounding region). team.

The Opportunity

This is far more than a traditional bid administration role. You will become the central hub connecting sales, engineering, project delivery, finance, commercial and legal teams to help secure exciting technology programmes across defence and advanced technology markets. You'll have the opportunity to influence how opportunities are qualified, managed and won, while helping shape and improve the company's commercial processes as it continues its rapid growth trajectory.

Key Responsibilities

Bid & Proposal Management

• Lead and coordinate the full bid lifecycle from qualification through to proposal submission and contract award.
• Develop bid plans, schedules and review processes to ensure submissions are delivered on time and to a high standard.
• Coordinate contributions from technical, commercial, project management and leadership teams.
• Maintain proposal quality, compliance, document control and submission readiness.
• Support proposal development, customer responses, project planning and pricing activities.

Sales Operations & CRM Excellence

• Own and maintain CRM data integrity, ensuring accurate pipeline management and forecasting.
• Drive sales process discipline and governance across the opportunity lifecycle.
• Produce meaningful sales reports, dashboards and management information.
• Support adoption of new commercial tools, automation initiatives and AI-enabled business systems.
• Help improve pipeline visibility and forecasting accuracy across the business.

Opportunity & Framework Management

• Monitor customer procurement portals, defence frameworks and tender platforms for new opportunities.
• Coordinate opportunity reviews and qualification activities with key stakeholders.
• Manage supplier registrations, onboarding requirements and portal submissions.
• Ensure critical deadlines and compliance requirements are tracked and met.

Commercial & Stakeholder Coordination

• Work closely with finance and commercial teams to support pricing, approvals and contract acceptance.
• Coordinate legal reviews of customer terms and contractual requirements.
• Support collaborative bids involving partners and subcontractors.
• Maintain clear records of commercial assumptions, negotiations and customer communications.

Project Handover & Business Improvement

• Coordinate smooth transition from successful bid to project delivery.
• Ensure project teams receive complete information regarding customer expectations, milestones and commercial commitments.
• Support resource planning discussions linked to future opportunities.
• Capture lessons learned and help continuously improve sales and bid management processes.

What We're Looking For

• Experience in bid management, proposal coordination, sales operations or commercial support.
• Strong CRM experience, ideally using HubSpot or a similar platform.
• Excellent project coordination and stakeholder management skills.
• The ability to manage multiple deadlines and priorities simultaneously.
• Strong communication skills and the confidence to work with senior stakeholders.
• A proactive, process-driven mindset with a passion for continuous improvement.
• Experience within engineering, technology, defence, aerospace or highly regulated industries would be advantageous but is not essential.

Why Join?

Be part of a growing technology business with ambitious expansion plans. Play a visible and influential role in shaping commercial success. Work on innovative projects that have real-world impact. Collaborate with some of the brightest engineering and technology professionals in the industry. Enjoy excellent opportunities for career progression as the business continues to scale. Benefit from a supportive, collaborative culture that values initiative, development and teamwork. Participate in regular social events and company activities that create a genuinely enjoyable working environment.