Proposal Manager in Cheltenham

UK CITIZENSHIP REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION: Yes

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: No relocation assistance available

CLEARANCE TYPE: UK-Security Check (SC)

TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the Time

At Northrop Grumman UK, our mission is to solve the most complex challenges by shaping the technology and solutions of tomorrow. We call it Defining Possible.

Opportunity:

This is more than just a job; it’s a mission. As a Proposal Manager, you are a key part of the Northrop Grumman 'Bid Engine' supporting the BD and capture managers and bid teams in delivering successful tenders. You will be responsible for the timely delivery and quality of a proposal, with direct oversight and control of the proposal process, operating from the Pre-Proposal Preparation phase through to Post-Submittal of the Northrop Grumman Business Acquisition Process (BAP). You will work across all NGUKL customer accounts and be responsible for bids in the fields of next generation Air Force, cyber security, ISR, Communications, Radar and Command and Control, ranging from small study or research openings to significant size and scale multi-£m, multi-year deals.

Key Responsibilities:

• Drive the ultimate generation of a proposal, outlining the proposal structure as required by the Request For Proposal (RFP), setting the schedule and allocation of section/contribution responsibilities to the relevant subject matter expert.
• Manage the proposal team contributions/inputs as appropriate to establish a competitive and ultimately market differentiating proposal.
• Continuously monitor progress and content of inputs to ensure that the RFP requirements are being suitably answered, the content is of suitable quality and coherence across the submission.
• Coordinate the collection and accumulation of cost, scheduling, and performance elements from all relevant functional departments.
• Develop and own the internal stakeholder management process for each submission.
• Research and analyse historical data and project experience to support proposal efforts.
• Ensure compliance with the business acquisition process and internal company procedures.
• Establish and develop the tools and techniques to continuously enhance the quality of our bid submissions, assessing market best practice and its applicability in order to support the evolution of our competitive bid approaches.
• Manage the key in-process proposal submission reviews to ensure that our offer is suitably and independently reviewed and challenged to ensure it best represents our offer, our approach and our capabilities.
• Ensure each proposal team benefits from previous lessons learnt and as such ensures that each submission is better than the last.
• Provide clear and concise proposal status reports to all relevant internal stakeholders on a regular and suitable periodic basis.
• Develop effective collaborations with the proposed industrial partners to ensure their contributions are suitably framed and contextualised in a manner consistent with the main submission.

General Operational duties:

• Attend Business Development and other functional department meetings as required.
• Remain compliant with all applicable NGUKL / Command Media Processes and procedures.

Person Specification:

Essential Qualifications/Experience:

• Experience of operating within the constraints of formal tendering processes, using procurement portals such as Award and Bravo solution.
• Clear demonstrable experience in product, service and complex bid documentation.
• Experienced in the creation and delivery of clear and concise progress reporting at all levels within the business.
• Relevant experience of people management and leadership.

Desired Qualifications/Experience:

• Previous experience in commercial or government proposal work.
• Familiar with online tender submission tools.

Competency/Skill requirements:

• Able to review, challenge, highlight issues and recommend improvements to proposal contributions.
• Strong but collaborative individual with the confidence and integrity to earn internal stakeholders confidence.
• Competent in the interpretation of tendering instructions.
• Can recognise what is needed to create a complete and compliant submission.
• Exceptional attention to detail.
• Adept at problem-solving, able to develop solutions to a variety of very complex problems.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, able to engage effectively with all audiences/stakeholders.
• Proactive team worker, equally self-motivated and able to work autonomously.
• Highly-organised, adept at workload management, prioritising appropriately to meet deadlines under pressure.
• Able to handle multiple projects simultaneously.
• Thrives in a dynamic and challenging environment.
• Proficient MS Office and MS Project user.
• Highly competent in PowerPoint and face-to-face presentation delivery.
• Strong customer orientation.
• Fluent in written and spoken English.
• An engaging and 'can do' attitude, able to influence opinion and decisions.

Other requirements:

• Travel requirements: some national travel may be required to attend team and customer meetings and training activities. Occasional international travel may be required.
• Clearance requirements: Must be able to gain and maintain UK Government clearances.
• Must be able to work overtime and weekends as required.
• Valid UK driving licence and passport holder.

Benefits:

We can offer you a range of flexible and hybrid working options to suit you, including optional compressed working schedule with every other Friday off. Our benefits include private health care, career development opportunities and performance bonuses.

Why join us?

• Be part of our global team of 100,000 colleagues – The possibilities for your future career are only limited by your drive.
• A mission to believe in – Every day we contribute to building a more secure and connected world.
• A place to belong and thrive – Every voice matters at our table meaning you can bring your authentic self to work.
• Your career, your way - Shape your career journey with diverse roles, mentorship, and development opportunities.

Ready to apply? Yes – Submit your application online. Your application will be reviewed by our team and we will be in touch.