Head of Proposals Industrial

Glanua; Navan; On-site; EUR 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Glanua is seeking an experienced Head of Industrial to lead its Group's industrial D&B, biogas and O&M tendering capability within the Central Tendering Function. This is a senior leadership role created to drive sector leadership across a diverse and technically demanding portfolio.

Reporting to the Head of Tenders, you will oversee a team including Bid Manager - Industrial D&B and Bid Manager - Biogas and Operations, guiding strategy, governance and high-value bid submissions

Qualifications

• Degree-qualified engineer with 15+ years in industrial D&B or process engineering.
• Strong knowledge of NEC/FIDIC contracts.
• Experience on bids over €10M.
• Leads multi-sector bid teams.
• Familiarity with biogas and O&M sectors is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Lead all industrial, D&B, biogas and O&M bid activity across Ireland and the UK.
• Line manage Bid Manager - Industrial D&B and Bid Manager - Biogas and Operations.
• Own sector win strategy, client positioning and key account priorities.
• Maintain a detailed pipeline view of live and prospective opportunities.
• Chair bid governance meetings and perform quality reviews.

Skills

Leadership

Bid management

Team management

Stakeholder management

APMP

Contract governance

Commercial awareness

Industrial D&B

Education

Civil/Mechanical/Process Eng.

Job description

About Glanua

Glanua is an industry leader in providing innovative and sustainable engineering solutions to design, build, operate and maintain critical water and wastewater infrastructure across Ireland and the UK. We are a trusted provider to the municipal and industrial sector where our clients include Ireland and the UK’s largest water utilities, Uisce Éireann (formally Irish Water), Thames Water, Yorkshire Water and Affinity Water.

Glanua is passionate about solving today’s environmental challenges and delivering a decarbonised and sustainable world. We know that to build successful creative teams we need a diverse workforce that can deliver new innovative ways of thinking. We provide an environment where you will have the freedom to develop and grow to your full potential. We champion our core values and uphold the highest standards of Safety and Well-being, Innovation, Integrity, Collaboration, Courage, Agility, Accountability, Diversity and Inclusion in everything we do.

We have a talented team of 500+ people across Ireland and the UK and are rapidly expanding our workforce across several disciplines to meet our ambitious growth plans.

The Role:

Glanua is seeking an experienced and technically credible Head of Industrial to lead the Group's industrial, Design and Build, biogas, and operations tendering capability as part of its Central Tendering Function. This is a senior leadership role created as part of Glanua's Phase 3 structural evolution, providing dedicated sector leadership across Glanua's most complex and highest-value bid activity.

Reporting to the Head of Tenders, the Head of Industrial holds ultimate accountability for the quality, competitiveness, and governance of all industrial D&B, biogas, and operations sector bid submissions. You will lead a team comprising the Bid Manager - Industrial D&B and the Bid Manager - Biogas and Operations, and their respective teams, covering industrial process, pharma, food and beverage, anaerobic digestion, bioresource, and Aqua Operations bid activity across Ireland and the UK.

You will bring deep technical knowledge of complex industrial D&B projects, an understanding of the biogas and O&M commercial landscape, and the leadership authority to drive quality, consistency, and competitive improvement across a diverse and technically demanding portfolio.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

• Sector Leadership
• Lead all industrial, Design and Build, biogas, and operations bid activity across Ireland and the UK from Go/No Go qualification through to contract award
• Line manage the Bid Manager - Industrial D&B and the Bid Manager - Biogas and Operations, providing clear strategic direction and operational oversight, along with future acquisitions within the group
• Own the sector's win strategy, client positioning, and key account priorities across the industrial, biogas, and O&M markets
• Maintain a detailed pipeline view across all live and prospective industrial, biogas, and O&M opportunities, reporting to the Head of Tenders on a regular basis
• Chair the industrial sector's internal bid governance meetings and quality reviews
• Represent the industrial sector at Group-level pipeline reviews, client presentations, and framework events as directed by the Head of Tenders
• Bid Quality and Governance
• Hold final accountability for the quality of all industrial, D&B, biogas, and O&M bid submissions before Head of Tenders sign-off
• Lead or chair red team reviews for all industrial sector bids above the defined internal value threshold
• Ensure consistent application of Go/No Go governance, estimating sign-off, and risk register review across all industrial sector bids
• Own the post-tender debrief process across the industrial sector; ensure findings are documented and fed into the Shared Services knowledge base
• Drive continuous improvement in bid methodology, technical narrative, and commercial submission standards across the team
• Commercial and Technical Oversight
• Apply direct industrial D&B delivery experience to challenge and validate technical methodologies, process design assumptions, programme logic, and cost inputs on all major bids
• Work closely with the Estimating Manager to ensure pricing is competitive, accurate, and appropriately risk-adjusted across the industrial portfolio
• Oversee commercial and contractual governance on high-value industrial and D&B bids, working with legal and commercial colleagues on contract terms and risk allocation
• Manage key client and framework relationships across the industrial, pharma, food and beverage, and biogas markets in Ireland and the UK
• Provide strategic input on market sector priorities, geographic expansion, and new framework opportunities within the industrial and biogas sectors
• Acquisitions Integration and Operations
• Provide senior oversight of the integration of Marches Biogas and Aqua Operations tendering activity into Glanua's Central Tendering Function
• Ensure the Bid Manager - Biogas and Operations has the resource, process support, and strategic clarity required to compete effectively across both acquisition pipelines
• Work with the Head of Tenders to define the long-term commercial strategy for the biogas and O&M sectors within Glanua's Group portfolio
• People and Capability
• Conduct regular performance reviews with the Bid Manager - Industrial D&B and Bid Manager - Biogas and Operations, agreeing personal development plans
• Identify capability gaps and support the Head of Tenders in recruitment, assessment, and onboarding for the industrial team
• Build a high-performance, collaborative culture across the industrial bid teams, ensuring consistent standards and strong interface with estimating, design, and delivery
• Champion continuous learning through structured debrief reviews, bid post-mortems, and professional development across the team
• Strategy and Integration
• Work alongside the Head of Municipal to ensure consistency of standards and shared resource efficiency across the Central Tendering Function
• Contribute to Glanua's tendering strategy, sector priorities, and capability development planning
• Deputise for the Head of Tenders at Group-level engagements and bid reviews as required

Knowledge, Skills and Experience:

• Leadership and Team Management
• Proven track record of leading and developing bid or pre-contracts teams in a complex construction, process engineering, or industrial environment
• Experience managing senior professionals, setting direction, and driving performance across multi-sector teams
• Ability to manage competing priorities across a diverse portfolio of concurrent bids
• Technical and Commercial Knowledge
• Degree-qualified Civil, Mechanical, Chemical, or Process Engineer or equivalent; minimum 15 years of industry experience with a significant portion in industrial D&B or process engineering
• Demonstrable expertise in pre-contracts, tendering, or pre-construction environments for complex industrial projects
• Strong understanding of NEC, FIDIC, or bespoke contract forms in an industrial or process engineering tendering context
• Familiarity with the biogas, anaerobic digestion, or O&M sectors is highly desirable
• Experience on bids with a value in excess of €10 million
• Bid Process and Quality
• Experience leading or overseeing end-to-end bid management across technically complex submissions
• Familiarity with APMP methodology or equivalent bid management standards
• Experience chairing red team reviews, applying Go/No Go governance, and leading post-tender debrief processes
• Sector Knowledge
• Background in industrial process, water and wastewater treatment, pharma, food and beverage, or bioresource sectors
• Understanding of the commercial dynamics of anaerobic digestion, biogas, and O&M contract models
• Awareness of relevant procurement frameworks across the industrial and biogas markets in Ireland and the UK
• Communication and Stakeholder Management
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; capable of representing Glanua at senior client and executive level
• Strong stakeholder management capability across estimating, design, operations, legal, and commercial functions
• Experience presenting at board or executive level and managing key client relationships in the industrial sector
• Professional Qualifications
• Chartered membership of Engineers Ireland (MIEI), IChemE, CIOB, or an equivalent professional body is highly desirable
• APMP Foundation or Practitioner qualification desirable
• Commitment to ongoing CPD and continuous professional development