Bid Manager, Business

About the Role

As a Bid Manager at GB Rail freight (GBRf) you will play a central and highly visible role in securing new business opportunities and retaining strategic contracts through the delivery of high-quality, competitive bid submissions. You will be responsible for shaping and driving winning strategies, ensuring that GBRf’s value proposition is clearly articulated, evidence-based, and aligned to client priorities across a range of sectors including infrastructure, bulk, and intermodal.

A key aspect of the role will be stakeholder management, acting as the central point of coordination across internal teams and external partners. You will proactively challenge inputs where required, drive consistency across submissions, and ensure that all contributors are aligned to the overall bid strategy. You will also play a role in engaging with customers during pre‑tender and clarification stages, supporting the positioning of GBRf as a credible and differentiated delivery partner.

This role requires a highly organised and detail‑oriented individual with strong commercial awareness, excellent written communication skills, and the ability to operate effectively in a fast‑paced, deadline‑driven environment. You will be expected to demonstrate initiative, ownership, and a proactive approach to problem‑solving, contributing directly to GBRf’s growth strategy and long‑term success.

Closing date: 30th June – please apply as soon as possible as we may close the vacancy early.

• Lead the end‑to‑end bid process from initial opportunity assessment through to final submission and post‑submission clarifications including managing governance processes, coordinating inputs, and ensuring that all submissions are delivered to a consistently high standard.
• Take ownership of bid programmes, prioritising effectively across multiple concurrent opportunities to meet challenging deadlines, with clear ownership, defined milestones, and timely delivery.
• Work cross‑functionally with Operations, Finance, Assets and Safety departments, and senior leadership to ensure that bid responses are high‑quality, compliant, technically robust, commercially competitive, and operationally deliverable.
• Define and implement bid strategies, including clear win themes and value propositions that differentiate GBRf in competitive tenders.
• Translate complex operational, commercial and technical solutions into clear, concise and compelling written responses that address client requirements and evaluation criteria.
• Support the development of pricing strategies and cost models, ensuring proposals are commercially robust and aligned with business objectives.
• Maintain high standards of bid governance and stakeholder alignment, ensuring robust and consistent submission practices.
• Drive continuous improvement by implementing lessons learned, developing bid libraries and best practice content, and refining processes to support the ongoing evolution of GBRf’s bid capability and win rate.

• Proven experience managing end‑to‑end bid processes, delivering high‑quality submissions within demanding time frames.
• Strong commercial acumen, with the ability to develop competitive, value‑driven proposals aligned to client and business requirements.
• Excellent written communication skills, with a track record of producing clear, concise, and compelling bid responses.
• Strong stakeholder management capability, with the ability to influence and coordinate cross‑functional teams at all levels.
• Highly organised and detail‑oriented, with the ability to manage multiple bids and priorities in a fast‑paced environment.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office, particularly Word, Excel and PowerPoint, for developing high‑quality client documentation.
• Experience with in rail, logistics or infrastructure sectors desirable, with knowledge of UK procurement processes advantageous.

• Leadership: experience handling difficult management situations and leading initiatives.
• Railway Knowledge: basic understanding of the Rule Book and Personal Track Safety Certificate.
• Analytical
  
  Skills:
  
  ability to analyse data and provide…