Senior Bid Manager / Writer - Dubai, UAE

Company Description

Iqarus has a proud history, extending over 40 years, of delivering fully-integrated healthcare solutions in complex and demanding operating environments. We operate across the medical spectrum from primary care and occupational health, to advanced pre-hospital trauma care, through to full scale laboratory, radiological, diagnostic and surgical capabilities. Our approach projects the highest standards of clinical care into the environments in which we operate, through a combination of local knowledge, multinational medical staff, integrated global clinical governance, training and medical supply. Our highly-skilled operational teams deliver frontline and preventative services to mitigate health risk and help organisations keep their workforces safe, healthy, resilient and productive. By increasing the quality, simplicity and efficiency of health delivery we enhance our clients’ return on investment in health and in many instances, help elevate social and/or humanitarian objectives too. Our clients include multinationals and SMEs, governments, non-governmental organisations, supra-nationals, and non-governmental organisations.

Job Description

The Senior Bid Manager / Writer plays a pivotal managerial role within Iqarus and other business lines of International SOS including Government Services International and Global Health. The incumbent in this role will act as a strategic deputy to the Director of Capture, Government Services International (GSI) and will manage the bid management team, driving complex high-value and strategic opportunities through the structured bid lifecycle, and ensuring the delivery of compelling, client-focused proposals.

The role requires a proactive and commercially astute individual and an excellent writer with the ability to manage cross- functional teams, develop tailored value propositions, and influence key stakeholders at all levels. In addition, the Senior Bid Manager / Writer will support the Director of Capture, Government Services International in identifying, qualifying, and capturing strategic business opportunities aligned with the growth objectives of Iqarus and International SOS.

Duties and responsibilities

• Bid Management
• Lead, manage, and mentor the bid team, ensuring adherence to robust bid processes and governance.
• Oversee the full bid lifecycle, from qualification to contract award, for high-value and strategic opportunities.
• Develop and articulate bespoke solutions, value propositions, and win strategies that align with client requirements and organisational objectives.
• Ensure the timely delivery of high-quality, compliant, and commercially competitive bid submissions.
• Facilitate bid qualification (bid/no-bid) processes.
• Conduct bid reviews, provide mentorship to team members, and drive continuous improvement in proposal quality and effectiveness.
• Participate in contract negotiations, with the support of legal and commercial teams, ensuring alignment with the organisation’s risk profile and business objectives.
• Strategic Capture
• Support the Director of Capture, Government Services International in developing and executing capture strategies for opportunities, including conducting competitive analysis and implementing client engagement strategies.
• Collaborate with internal teams including operations, pricing, and subject matter experts, to create innovative and commercially viable solutions.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with clients, partners, and stakeholders to influence decision-making and align solutions with client needs.
• Bid Writing
• In close collaboration with the Sales Distribution, Commercial Teams, Subject Matter Experts and all other relevant internal stakeholders, draft bid narratives, concept notes and outreach products in alignment with customer guidelines.
• Ensure proposals are coherent, persuasive, technically sound, and responsive to evaluation criteria and client-specific requirements.
• Collate a high volume of information - often delivered from multiple business lines written in many different tones/voices - and incorporate them in proposals clearly articulating complex customer solutions.
• Incorporate reviewer feedback and make revisions before bid submission.
• Incorporate and clearly articulate in bids all agreed bespoke solutions, value propositions, and win strategies that align with client requirements and organisational objectives.
• Leadership and Stakeholder Engagement
• Act as a trusted deputy to the Director of Capture, Government Services International providing leadership across multiple capture teams and ensuring alignment with strategic priorities.
• Manage the development of partnerships with subcontractors and other key partners which includes forming strategically relevant consortia in the context of project design.
• Collaborate with internal business development, operational, and commercial teams to create and manage a robust pipeline of qualified opportunities.
• Represent the organisation in high-level client engagements and industry forums, promoting capabilities and fostering strong, trusted relationships.
• Ensure the effective utilisation of tools such as Salesforce for sales management, opportunity tracking, and business intelligence.
• Process and Continuous Improvement:
• Identify areas for improvement within the bid and capture processes, driving innovation and efficiency in systems, tools, and procedures.
• Maintain an up-to-date bid library, ensuring access to high-quality templates, supporting materials, and best practices.
• Champion a culture of excellence, ensuring the bids team operates at the highest professional standards.This list is non-exhaustive, and the role holder may be required to undertake additional duties that are not specifically listed above

Qualifications

• Bachelors degree in a relevant field is required masters degree preferred.
• A minimum of six years of demonstrated experience leading and coordinating complex bid and proposal activities for military, defence, government, NATO, or international security sector clients.
• Strong understanding of military procurement, defence acquisition processes, and the operational requirements associated with deployed, expeditionary, medical, logistics, aviation, or mission-support services.
• Experience serving in the capacity of a bid writer.
• Proven ability to manage both high-value strategic pursuits and lower-value, high-volume opportunities, maintaining quality, compliance, and competitiveness across multiple concurrent bids.
• Experience delivering rapid-turnaround responses to Requests for Proposal (RFPs), Invitations to Tender (ITTs), Requests for Information (RFIs), Expressions of Interest (EOIs), and other time-critical procurement activities.
• Ability to assess opportunities rapidly, support bid/no-bid decision making, identify risks, and develop pragmatic solutions within compressed procurement timelines.
• Exceptional organisational and project management skills, with the ability to prioritise multiple competing deadlines while maintaining meticulous attention to detail.
• Experience supporting opportunities ranging from short-notice operational requirements to large-scale, multi-year framework agreements and strategic defence and health programmes.
• Ability to quickly mobilise cross-functional teams, coordinate subject matter experts, and drive proposal development under demanding deadlines.
• Minimum of four years of experience providing comprehensive line management to bid teams.
• Knowledge of government contracting processes acquisition trends and client buying behaviours.
• Experience in leading and managing the development of partnerships with subcontractors and other key stakeholders which includes participation in commercial contract negotiations.
• Strong network and relationships within the government, military procurement, and defence acquisition contracting markets.
• Willingness to travel domestically and internationally if and as required.
• Training in bid and capture best practices with expertise in programme and project management is an advantage.
• Fluency in English. Knowledge of other languages including German, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic are an advantage but not required.