Bids & Commercial Development Lead in Watford

At YMCA Chiltern Group, we’re looking for a fabulous and talented Bids & Commercial Development Lead to strengthen the quality and competitiveness of our funding, tender and commercial submissions. If you are a persuasive writer and commercially aware leader who can bring creativity, people, evidence, pricing and ideas together to write winning propositions, then we’d love to hear from you.

This is a pivotal role within our Strategic Income & Growth team. You’ll act as our centre of excellence for bid development, commercial proposition design and tender governance, helping us pursue the right opportunities with confidence and discipline. Working closely with operational leaders, Finance and the Head of Strategic Income & Growth, you’ll ensure opportunities are assessed, prioritised and progressed through robust processes that maximise income, impact and long-term sustainability. This is an opportunity to strengthen our organisational readiness, shape fundable service models and turn our expertise and evidence into compelling submissions that create lasting value.

What you’ll be doing:

• You will lead the coordination, development and submission of tenders, contracts, grant applications and commercial proposals aligned with our organisational priorities.
• You’ll identify and assess commercial and funding opportunities, coordinate clear go/no-go decisions and focus resources on activity with the strongest strategic, financial and social return.
• You’ll own bid governance, approvals, resource planning and quality assurance, maintaining effective templates, evidence libraries and submission tools while embedding learning from every outcome.
• Working with operational colleagues, you’ll shape service models, outcomes frameworks, delivery approaches, pricing and mobilisation plans, translating complex evidence and insight into persuasive cases for support.
• You’ll also oversee the funding and tender pipeline, provide accurate forecasts and performance reporting, line manage the Trusts and Foundations Officer and build productive relationships with commissioners, funders, partners and colleagues.

What we are looking for:

• Significant experience of leading successful tenders, grants or commercial submissions, ideally within charity, public, health, housing or community services.
• A track record of managing complex projects, coordinating multiple stakeholders and delivering high-quality submissions to tight deadlines.
• Exceptional proposal-writing skills, strong commercial awareness, analytical ability and financial understanding, with the ability to demonstrate quality, value for money and social impact.
• Genuine creativity to make our proposals stand out and write in a way that truly reflects our values, purpose and voice.
• Excellent planning, project-management and influencing skills, with the confidence to engage senior stakeholders, commissioners, funders and partners while managing competing priorities.
• A highly organised, proactive and collaborative approach, with close attention to detail and a commitment to quality, innovation, continuous improvement and YMCA Chiltern Group’s mission.

Why this role?

This is a rare opportunity to shape how one of Europe’s largest YMCA organisations develops winning propositions and secures sustainable income for future growth. You’ll work across the organisation, influence important investment decisions and build the systems, evidence and capability that make our submissions stronger and more competitive. Most importantly, you’ll help turn opportunity into sustainable services and impact, enabling YMCA Chiltern Group to continue helping people belong, contribute and thrive in body, mind and spirit.

Sound like you? We’d love to hear from you.

We offer flexible hybrid working, with colleagues typically spending around two days each week in the office to collaborate, connect and contribute to team life.

This is a Full time Permanent role. Hours per week: 37.5 Working Pattern: Monday-Friday.

Important information:

• We do not provide visa sponsorship; you must be eligible to work in the UK. You must reside in the UK for the duration of your employment and provide Right to Work evidence.
• As some of our roles involve working with vulnerable members of society, this position may require a Basic or Enhanced Criminal Disclosure, which will be conducted once a conditional offer is made.
• Previous Applications: We welcome applications from all qualified candidates. However, if you have applied for a similar role within the last 6 months and were not successful, please consider whether your experience has developed further before reapplying.
• Accessibility & Adjustments: We are committed to making reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process and will strive to be as accommodating as possible. Please inform us in advance of any arrangements you may need to fully participate in the process.
• We are an inclusive organisation and actively promote equality of opportunity for all with the right mix of talent, skills, and potential. We do not discriminate on the basis of Age, Disability, Gender Reassignment, Marriage/Civil Partnership, Pregnancy/Maternity, Race, Religion/Belief, Sex and/or Sexual Orientation. We encourage applications from all backgrounds, communities, and industries, and are committed to having a team that is made up of diverse skills, experiences, and abilities.