Presales Service Design Architect in Reading

Location: Remote with occasional travel to customer or company sites as required.

Role Summary

The Presales Service Architect is responsible for the production of Managed Service propositions, supporting the Senior Service Design and Presales Architect. This role contributes to service design activities across bids and proposals, helping to translate customer requirements into clear and operationally viable service models. They will collaborate with Sales, Bid Management, Delivery Practices, Operations, and Solution Architecture teams to ensure proposed services are deliverable and effectively transitioned into operations. This position suits a detail-oriented team player who is eager to develop expertise in service design and presales within a technology services environment.

Accountability and Key Responsibilities:

• Assist in the formal qualification of potential Managed Service opportunities against our existing matrix of products, solutions and services (Service Catalogue).
• Support the wider service design, presales and bid functions when it comes to completing RFIs, RFPs, ITTs, CQs and tender responses, ensuring Managed Service-related propositions are accurate, reflect customer need and demonstrate value.
• Leverage our existing Service Catalogue to design and develop Managed Service propositions, producing supporting materials such as Statements of Managed Services and Service Descriptions.
• Using existing commercial frameworks, develop Managed Services costs, including labour, tooling, licensing, capacity planning, onboarding effort, and ongoing operational effort.
• Work with SMEs across Finance, Commercial, Delivery Practice, Operations, Legal, and Solution Architecture teams to ensure assumptions, risks, dependencies, and delivery requirements are understood and reflected in cost models and pricing structures.
• Adhere to existing presales processes, ensuring that all activities are commensurate with our commercial, strategic and operational guidelines, while meeting the deadlines and conditions laid out by the Customer or Account Manager.
• As a Presales SME for Managed Services, contribute to the development of new services, compliance, governance and regulatory information to accompany bids and expressions of interest.
• In conjunction with the wider virtual teams, help develop an understanding of the client’s business goals, outcomes and drivers, identifying ‘win themes’ and ensuring they are articulated within our responses.
• Attend customer meetings, workshops when required and deal review boards, to qualify, scope, progress and confidently present our propositions, articulating the service model, delivery approach, commercial structure and expected outcomes.
• Follow established processes to ensure that all collateral and documentation relating to a presales opportunity is filed, so that it can be accessed or referenced by the wider team.
• Maintain ownership of the Presales lifecycle for each engagement until the opportunity has formally closed and had been successfully transitioned into BAU support.

Operational Service Design

• Under the direction of the Senior Service Design and Presales Architect or Service Owner, design and document high-quality, repeatable and scalable Managed Services, defining scope, service levels, roles and responsibilities, processes, expected outcomes, commercial models and value delivered.
• Working with internal Stakeholders create clear supporting materials and service operational documentation that explain how each service works and is delivered, ensuring content is accessible to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Contribute to the on-going development of ITIL-aligned Operational Service Designs, covering workflows, supporting processes, reporting, escalation models, tooling requirements and service governance, ensuring services can be delivered consistently, efficiently and in line with operational capability.
• Assist in the development and maintenance of standardised service templates, frameworks, and artefacts to ensure consistency and reusability across multiple Managed Services.
• Support continuous improvement initiatives by capturing operational feedback from delivery teams and contributing ideas for enhancements to services, templates, and processes.
• Participate in reviews of operational processes and workflows, suggesting improvements to enhance efficiency, clarity, and consistency.

Stakeholder Collaboration

• Work with the Transition Team to facilitate the on-boarding of successful Managed Services awards into operational support.
• From the perspective of Presales and Service Design, participate in continuous improvement activities, supporting enhancements to existing service offerings and documentation quality.
• Apply innovative thinking to service design and customer requirements, suggesting improvements and new approaches under guidance.
• Contribute ideas to improve services, processes, and customer experience.
• Support the refinement of service standards, templates, and documentation for efficiency and clarity.
• Collate and communicate Sales and Customer presales feedback, to help inform service development and improvement.

Knowledge and Experience

• Experience (typically 2+ years) in Service Design, Presales Architecture, or Managed Services design within a technology services, MSP, or consultancy environment.
• Familiarity with ITIL4 Managing Services or Foundation.
• Experience contributing to bid, tender, and service response documentation.
• Understanding of operational service delivery, ITIL-based service models, SLAs/OLAs, and managed service lifecycle principles.
• Awareness of customer requirements including service availability, transparency, security, governance, and support.
• Commercial awareness with exposure to cost models and proposal development.
• Stakeholder management skills, able to collaborate across teams.
• Team player with the drive to support service-design elements of bids or tenders, delivering results to deadlines.
• Clear and confident communicator, able to engage with customers and stakeholders and produce concise documentation.
• Detail-oriented thinker, able to propose improvements and describe service value effectively.
• Collaborative and professional, capable of building trust and commitment from colleagues.
• Problem solver with the ability to ensure services are operationally viable.