AECOM Manchester, England, United Kingdom

Bid Manager, Major Pursuits

Location: Flexible, United Kingdom (travel required for key pursuit phases)

Job description

We’re looking for an exceptional Bid Manager to join AECOM’s regional Major Pursuits Team, leading as a senior work-winner on high-stakes pursuits across our markets of operation. This is an enterprise-critical role for someone who thrives in complex, high energy environments and consistently delivers excellence. You will be at the forefront of early capture and positioning, driving pursuit strategy and leading multi-disciplinary teams to secure enterprise-critical contracts. These pursuits are central to AECOM’s strategic growth and delivery of transformational projects across the UK&I.

To excel in this role, you must be a natural leader with a project management mindset and a high level of emotional intelligence – able to navigate diverse stakeholder dynamics, build trust and inspire teams under pressure. You’ll bring at least five years of direct experience in pursuit capture and bid management of high-value contracts (£35M+), with a track record of success across multiple dimensions: winning work, improving business processes, growing personally and enabling the development of others.

You’ll use your experience and expertise to guide and collaborate with senior business leaders, technical teams, bid teams and capture managers – bringing clarity, strategic insight and a cooperative approach to every stage of the pursuit. You must be confident engaging with C-Suite executives and subject matter experts alike and show confidence in facilitation, risk management and JV coordination.

If you see challenges as opportunities to create positive change and find energy in developing winning strategies, while guiding pursuit teams through every stage – from capture and bid to interview and beyond – this could be the opportunity you’ve been looking for. Success in this role means shaping the future of major infrastructure delivery, gaining exposure to senior leadership and contributing to continuous improvement in how we win work. You’ll be part of a high-performing team with opportunities to grow, lead and innovate.

The role's location is flexible and can be based anywhere in the UK. Travel will be required to deliver workshops and co-located working during key pursuit phases.

Responsibilities

• Strategic capture & positioning
• Collaborate with client account teams to gather intelligence and develop capture plans
• Lead creation and execution of win strategies, from early positioning through to bid, interview and debrief
• Engage early with Marketing teams to support positioning campaigns
• Bid leadership & delivery
• Partner with capture managers and business leads to manage end-to-end bid delivery
• Mobilise and coordinate technical, commercial, legal, risk, quality and work winning resources
• Delegate effectively to bid coordinators, designers and other specialists, providing clear direction and ongoing support
• Team facilitation & coaching
• Plan and facilitate bid workshops and reviews
• Coach teams on win strategy development, answer planning and bid writing
• Lead interview preparation and presentation coaching, engaging specialist external partners where more complex coaching is beneficial
• Quality & commercial bid management
• Manage development of answer plans, responses, quality reviews and contributor guidance
• Facilitate commercial strategy and pricing workshops with specialist contributors
• Ensure full understanding and communication of bid scope and documentation, with a clear bid team comms plan developed and communicated effectively
• Bid infrastructure & communication
• Set up bid platforms, folder structures, RAG deliverables trackers and bid programs
• Maintain regular progress updates and ensure clear communication across the team
• Identify, communicate and address risks to winning, working closely with the capture manager to resolve challenges

Skills & qualifications

• Previous experience managing major bids (£35M+) through the full lifecycle within the built environment sector
• Self-motivated, collaborative and adaptable, with a positive attitude and a commitment to team success
• Exceptional planning, bid management and organisational skills
• Effective communication skills with emotional intelligence and the ability to engage confidently at all levels
• Proven ability to perform under pressure and consistently deliver high-quality work to tight deadlines
• Sharp attention-to-detail and a proactive approach to problem-solving
• Comfortable consulting with internal stakeholders, including senior leadership
• Proficient in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and familiar with relevant AI tools

Qualifications

Degree-level education, or equivalent experience & qualifications

Additional information

We celebrate diversity, including neurodiversity, and believe it enriches our team. We welcome applications from all backgrounds and abilities. If you are an applicant with a disability that requires reasonable accommodation to complete the application process, please contact us at ReasonableAccommodations@aecom.com

At AECOM, we value everyone's unique contributions and perspectives. If you meet some of the requirements above or have transferable skills you believe would benefit us, we would be delighted to hear from you.

About AECOM: AECOM is the world’s trusted infrastructure consulting firm, delivering professional services throughout the project lifecycle. See aecom.com for more information.

Freedom to Grow in a World of Opportunity: You will have the flexibility you need to do your best work with hybrid work options. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and a Disability Confident Employer.

Job identifiers

• ReqID: J10135528
• Business Line: Geography OH
• Business Group: DCS
• Strategic Business Unit: Europe & India
• Career Area: Marketing & Communications
• Work Location Model: On-Site
• Legal Entity: AECOM Limited