Tender Manager at Valcon in Utrecht, Netherlands

Do you want to take ownership of how tenders are won, rather than simply contributing to them?

Valcon is looking for an experienced Bid Manager to take the lead across the entire bid and tender process. From identifying and qualifying opportunities to defining the strategy, coordinating decision-making, managing stakeholders, safeguarding quality and evaluating results. The primary focus will be on European public tenders.

This is explicitly not a traditional bid writing role. Rather than spending your days writing proposals yourself, you ensure that the right people deliver the strongest possible content at the right time. You create structure, challenge subject-matter experts, safeguard the strategy and quality, and keep stakeholders aligned throughout the process. But in case of emergency it is important for you to also be able to write a tender yourself, which occasionally will happen.

The principle is simple: don’t write it yourself – enable the team to write it better.

What will you do?

As Bid Manager, you will be responsible for the end-to-end management of bids and tenders. You will oversee the full tender pipeline and take the lead on complex bid processes involving multiple disciplines, seniority levels and stakeholder interests.

Your responsibilities include:

• Centrally identifying, qualifying and prioritising relevant tenders and commercial opportunities;
• Organising and facilitating Go/No-Go decisions and according to the required approval process;
• Developing and safeguarding the bid strategy;
• Translating it into a clear plan and structured tender process;
• Independently leading multidisciplinary bid teams consisting of partners, managers, consultants, subject matter experts and in some cases external stakeholders;
• Managing timelines, progress, compliance and quality throughout the entire bid process;
• Organising reviews and critically assessing contributions before submission;
• Safeguarding legal and procedural requirements, particularly for European public tenders;
• Reporting on the tender pipeline, results and performance to the CRO;
• Evaluating completed bids and systematically translating lessons learned into improvements;
• Further developing governance, processes, tooling, knowledge management and reporting within the Tender Desk;
• Using data, technology and AI to make the bid process smarter, more efficient and more effective;
• Training and coaching colleagues who contribute to bids and helping to increase bid management maturity across the organisation;
• In case of emergency, it is important to also be able to write tenders yourself.

As Bid Manager, you ensure that the overall process works: that the right people contribute, deadlines are met, decisions are made and strategy, quality and content come together.

You are a Bid Manager, not a Bid Writer

That distinction is important.

At Valcon, consultants, partners and subject-matter experts provide the content and contribute to the actual writing of bids. Some colleagues will be specifically trained to participate regularly in tender processes, while others may have limited experience with public tenders.

Your role is not to take over their writing. Instead, you ensure the team understands what is required, why it matters and when it needs to be delivered.

You are therefore a project manager, strategist, quality gatekeeper and challenger at the same time.

You are comfortable challenging an experienced consultant or partner when their contribution is not yet strong enough. You ask the right questions, keep the team focused on the agreed strategy and know how to create momentum without relying on formal authority.

Strong stakeholder management is therefore essential. You need to be able to lead complex projects and influence senior stakeholders, partners and consultants across the organisation.

Building the Tender Desk

In addition to managing individual bids, you will have another important responsibility: further professionalising Tender Management within Valcon.

A foundation is being created, but the way of working is still developing. This means you are not stepping into a fully established function where everything has already been defined.

Instead, you will have the opportunity to further shape the processes, standards, governance, tooling and knowledge-sharing structure behind successful tender management.

A modern approach to Bid Management is essential. Valcon aims to integrate data and AI into the bid process and is looking for someone who actively embraces these developments. You understand how technology can support opportunity identification, knowledge management, collaboration, quality and efficiency, and you are keen to explore how AI can become an integral part of the bid management process.

What do we offer you?

• Personal development: a tailor-made growth path with training, courses, certification and mentoring by experienced colleagues.
• An innovative work environment: collaborate with a team of experts pushing boundaries in data, technology, and consulting.
• Inspiring work culture: a supportive, flexible, and no-nonsense environment that fosters your growth and fully allows you to be yourself.

Additionally, we offer:

• Competitive employment benefits, including bonuses and expense allowance.
• A company car or mobility budget.
• A workplace that prioritizes and respects your work-life balance (for example by offering you the option of taking a sabbatical or expand the amount of holidays per year).
• An affordable sports membership that allows you to participate in 50 different sports offered by over 10,000 partners.
• The opportunity to work remotely from abroad for 10 days per year.
• A vibrant community that organizes both professional and social events.

What do you bring to the table?

You are an experienced bid or tender management professional who is ready for a role in which strategy, leadership and coordination carry more weight than writing proposals yourself.

Ideally, you bring:

• A demonstrable track record of contributing to successful bids and winning significant opportunities.
• Significant experience in Bid Management and/or Tender Management within a complex professional environment;
• Strong project management skills, with the ability to create structure, organise decision-making and manage multiple workstreams and deadlines;
• Strong senior stakeholder management skills and the ability to influence without formal authority;
• The ability to assess tenders and commercial opportunities from a strategic and commercial perspective;
• Experience within consulting, professional services or another knowledge-intensive environment is a strong advantage;
• Affinity with data, AI and modern bid management tooling;
• Experience coaching colleagues and helping teams adopt new ways of working;

Who are you?

You have the seniority and confidence to take the lead while still knowing how to bring people with you.

You can move comfortably between strategic discussions and operational delivery and thrive in an environment with senior professionals who each bring their own expertise, priorities and perspectives to a bid.

You are analytical and commercially minded, but also pragmatic. You ask challenging questions, make decisions when needed and are comfortable questioning whether the quality of a tender is genuinely good enough.

At the same time, you enjoy building and developing: teams, processes and a Bid Management capability that is still evolving.

Ready to apply?

Has the above sparked your interest and are you ready to join our innovative and impactful environment? And do our core values - Together, Joy, Curious, Can do, and Integrity - resonate with you?

Our recruitment team would be happy to hear from you! Please apply directly or get in touch with our recruitment team (recruitment.nl@valcon.com) to schedule a coffee meeting at our office first.