Bid Manager

About John Holland

At John Holland, our purpose is simple, we transform lives with everything we do. We've always known at its heart infrastructure is about people — our customers, our employees, and the communities in which we work.
That's our difference. Deep experience and capability with a genuine care about creating better lives for people along the way.
Be part of a team that thrives on rising to the challenge of transforming lives for good.

About the role:
As a member of the Rail & Transport Precontracts Team, the Bid Manager, Rail & Transport role is responsible for managing and leading the end-to-end bid process to secure rail & transport opportunities that align with John Holland’s broader strategic plan. You will establish effective tender planning, management strategies and leading tender teams to develop high quality, compelling and compliant bid submissions, leveraging exception leadership, commercial, collaborative and strategic acumen to drive successful outcomes. 

What you will do:
-Manage the overall delivery of the project tender submission so that there is the maximum likelihood of winning and successfully delivering the project.
-In collaboration with the Pre Contracts Manager Rail & Transport, identify future prospects and develop conversion strategies and that align with John Holland’s Rail & Transport objectives.
-Assess bid opportunities, evaluate risks, and ensure alignment with the company’s capabilities, available capacity and long-term goals.
-Lead the pre-tender and bid planning process, including pre-tender approvals, resource identification, identification of strategic partnership options.

Bid Management:
-In collaboration with the Tender and Precontracts Leadership Teams, develop prospect win strategies and ensure these are embedded in the team culture. 
-Oversee the coordination and management of bid submissions, ensuring all deliverables are timely, accurate, meet client requirements and consistently promote the bid win strategies.
-Develop bid plans, schedules, and resource allocation to ensure efficient and effective bid preparation processes.
-Lead kick-off meetings, progress reviews, and debriefs to ensure alignment and continuous improvement.
-Ensure compliance with governance processes, including obtaining necessary approvals at various bid stages.

Stakeholder Collaboration:
-Work closely with internal stakeholders, including project teams, estimators, designers, and subject matter experts, to develop high-quality bid submissions.
-Collaborate with external partners and ensure effective communication with delivery partners or subcontractors, where applicable.
-Foster strong relationships with clients, understanding their needs and expectations to tailor bid responses.
-Negotiate terms and conditions of the tender with the Client to achieve value adding outcomes. 

Leadership and Team Management:
-Lead and mentor the bid team, fostering a collaborative and high-performing culture.
-Provide guidance and support to team members to ensure professional growth and development.
-Manage workloads and resources to deliver successful outcomes within tight deadlines.

Commercial and Risk Management:
-Ensure bid submissions meet commercial objectives, including profitability and risk mitigation.
-Accurate forecasting and tracking of both costs and revenue. 
-Identify risks and opportunities associated with bids and develop strategies to address them effectively and in line with corporate governance.
-Support negotiations and contract finalisation post-award.

To be successful in this key role, you must have:

-Tertiary qualification in Engineering, Sciences, Project Management or Construction Management.
-10+ years of construction, project management, tendering or operations experience.
-Strategic thinking and problem-solving skills.
-Strong leadership and team management capabilities.
-Exceptional relationship-building, collaboration and influencing abilities. 
-Attention to detail and commitment to delivering excellence.
-Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
-Stakeholder engagement, collaboration and negotiation skills.
-Understanding of contractual, legal, commercial and legislative compliance and regulatory. principles, and identification and mitigation of key risks.
-Strong writing, editing and presentation skills — clear, persuasive, and structured.

What's in it for you when you join John Holland:
-Competitive remuneration with salary continuance, and salary sacrifice packaging options available.
-Great leave benefits including 18 weeks’ paid parental leave with superannuation and up to an extra 18 weeks of superannuation paid on further periods of unpaid parental leave, multicultural leave exchange and two additional John Holland Days to prioritise health and wellbeing.
-Career progression underpinned by our exciting pipeline of work means you'll have the opportunity to work on iconic projects that are shaping cities and communities.
-Learning and development opportunities where you'll have access to emerging talent programs, building your career through clear career pathways, and technical and leadership training and development opportunities.
Inclusion and diversity is part of how we work and do what we do at John Holland. Our active commitment to being an employer of choice is evident in the delivery of our Gender Equality Strategic Plan supported by our Pride, Celebrate Women, RAP and Grow networks.

Flexible working that works for you as we know flexibility means different things to different people. Whether it's flexi-hours, flexi-parenting, flexi-leave, flexi-shifts, flexi-work, we're committed to helping our people work flexibly.