Nicola Hawthorn
Sutton Coldfield,West Midlands
Summary
Results-driven professional with expertise in proposal management and bid strategy. Proven ability to develop winning proposals and collaborate effectively across teams to achieve project goals. Committed to enhancing competitive positioning through strategic input and market insight.
Overview
20
20
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work history
Senior Proposal Manager
IPS – Integrated Project Services
, West Midlands
2023.08 - 2026.05
- Facilitate development of sales proposals and documentation for new business opportunities.
- Assist in collaboration with business developers and project personnel to create compelling value propositions.
- Support identification of unique company capabilities through global network engagement.
- Coordinate with corporate marketing team to utilise materials locally and share regional insights.
- Ensure compliance of sales documents with corporate identity and confidentiality standards.
Proposals Manager
Burns & McDonnell
Birmingham
2019.12 - 2020.05
- Assisted in developing bids for clients within regulated and non-regulated infrastructure sectors.
- Supported UK bidding activities in collaboration with US and UK colleagues to showcase value delivered by Burns & McDonnell.
- Coordinated with in-house marketing team based in US to enhance bid presentations.
Proposals Manager
Atkins
Birmingham
2019.03 - 2019.11
- Co-ordinated proposal responses by assembling bid teams with necessary service and product knowledge.
- Facilitated implementation of proposal procedures and processes.
- Worked effectively under pressure and met challenging deadlines.
- Scheduled reviews with stakeholders, gathering feedback for continuous improvement in the process.
- Provided mentorship to junior staff, boosting overall team performance.
- Organised internal meetings to discuss and strategise on bid responses.
Bid Manager
Motivair Compressors Limited
Staffordshire
2018.05 - 2019.02
- Assist in managing bid and quote processes for tender opportunities.
- Facilitate completion of tenders while tracking sales opportunities from initial enquiry to order closure.
- Support continuous improvements in bid processes to identify refinements and enhancements.
- Coordinated with sales teams for improved bid strategies.
- Developed a successful library of standard response templates, speeding up proposal creation time.
- Collaborated with other departments to produce comprehensive bid proposals.
- Tracked all active bids on an internal system for easy access and status visibility amongst team members.
Bid Manager
Convergence Group
West Midlands
2016.10 - 2018.04
- Managed bid processes across business operations to ensure compliance.
- Established relationships with customers and partners to provide essential support to sales teams.
- Produced high-quality bids and documentation to assist sales teams and partners in meeting requirements.
- Collaborated with other departments to produce comprehensive bid proposals.
- Ensured compliance with all relevant regulations during the bidding process, avoiding any legal complications later down the line.
- Developed a successful library of standard response templates, speeding up proposal creation time.
- Monitored procurement portals, ensuring no potential opportunities were missed.
Bid Manager
Dimension Data
Lichfield
2014.10 - 2016.09
- Assisted with managing UK bids ranging from £100k to multi-million-pound frameworks.
- Supported the sales opportunity process by qualifying desirable deals for Dimension Data.
- Aided in liaising with clients and coordinating virtual bid teams of up to 15 people.
- Helped facilitate client briefing sessions and correspondence throughout the bid lifecycle.
- Contributed to resolving technical and business issues during the bidding process.
- Assisted in compiling and delivering client-facing bid deliverables as per requirements.
- Maintained an up-to-date bid collateral library and provided statistics on bid activity and win rates as needed.
Bid Manager
Intercity
Birmingham
2013.12 - 2014.09
- Assisted in developing bid management functions for large bid/RFP responses.
- Supported implementation of new bid management processes across the business.
- Contributed to the design of compelling bid document templates.
- Aided project leads on complex deals and RFP responses.
- Facilitated effective responses to client requests by managing proposal inputs.
- Coordinated with account teams to oversee the end-to-end bid process.
- Helped drive virtual team actions to deliver agreed content on schedule.
- Produced bid documents while ensuring delivery of commercial offers.
- Collaborated with account teams to articulate solutions for customer challenges.
- Supported development of bid tools such as library share files and reports.
- Gathered feedback to strengthen future proposals and offerings.
Strategic Bids Manager
Wragge & Co
Birmingham
2012.11 - 2013.10
- Facilitated cross-departmental and international pitches for firm including ITT and RFP responses.
- Supported project management and development of formal tenders, including cross-firm bids from any Wragg & Co UK office.
- Assisted in the supervision of pension trustee tenders, focusing on quality of written and presented materials; coached teams for pitch presentations.
Bid Manager
Contract Fire Security
Sutton Coldfield
2009.02 - 2012.10
- Assisted in creating bid proposals and formatting documents to support business development managers.
- Provided monthly updates to sales opportunities database to ensure accurate reporting.
- Sourced information for bid database and maintained its relevance by keeping it up to date.
- Liaised with clients during bid processes to offer support and guidance in document completion.
- Researched opportunities through OJEU notices and council websites to identify potential projects.
Sector Support Manager (Regulated Industries)
Mouchel
Sutton Coldfield
2008.08 - 2009.01
- Assisted in production and coordination of strategic bids and AMP5 cycle.
- Conducted research on clients and collaborated with account managers for bid documentation preparation.
- Reviewed and edited key bid submissions and contacted clients for additional information.
Team Leader (Utilities)
Mouchel
Sutton Coldfield
2007.11 - 2008.07
- Assisted in growth of utilities division through implementation of marketing initiatives.
- Promoted and supported development of sales and marketing team members.
- Reviewed marketing materials and bid documents produced by team.
Bid Advisor (Land, Environment & Waste)
Mouchel
Sutton Coldfield
2007.08 - 2007.10
- Assisted in creating high-quality bid proposals.
- Provided guidance and support to bid managers and junior team members.
- Updated sales pipeline database monthly for accurate reporting.
- Reviewed and edited proposal documents for clarity and professionalism.
- Formatted documents to align with corporate style guidelines.
- Sourced and maintained information for bid database to ensure it was current.
- Liaised with clients to offer support and direction during bid processes.
Bid Co-ordinator (Environment)
Mouchel
Sutton Coldfield
2006.02 - 2007.07
- Assisted in producing marketing materials.
Supported market intelligence initiatives across sectors and documented findings.
Created proposal documents using standard and custom content provided by team members.
Reviewed and edited content for proposals to ensure clarity and adherence to corporate style.
Performed administrative tasks for the bid support team and sourced information for the bid database.
Maintained the bid database to ensure up-to-date information.
Education
Bachelor of Arts - Business Studies, Marketing
Sheffield Hallam University
SheffieldSkills
- Computer literacy in Microsoft Office Suite
Proficient in email and communication tools
Familiarity with various in-house systems
Collaboration using Microsoft Teams - Effective communication
- Customer relationship management systems
- Sales strategy development
- Resilience under pressure
Affiliations
- Live music
- Learning the piano
Certification
APMP Member
Member of the CIM –The Professional Diploma in Marketing
Timeline
Senior Proposal Manager
IPS – Integrated Project Services
2023.08 - 2026.05
Proposals Manager
Burns & McDonnell
2019.12 - 2020.05
Proposals Manager
Atkins
2019.03 - 2019.11
Bid Manager
Motivair Compressors Limited
2018.05 - 2019.02
Bid Manager
Convergence Group
2016.10 - 2018.04
Bid Manager
Dimension Data
2014.10 - 2016.09
Bid Manager
Intercity
2013.12 - 2014.09
Strategic Bids Manager
Wragge & Co
2012.11 - 2013.10
Bid Manager
Contract Fire Security
2009.02 - 2012.10
Sector Support Manager (Regulated Industries)
Mouchel
2008.08 - 2009.01
Team Leader (Utilities)
Mouchel
2007.11 - 2008.07
Bid Advisor (Land, Environment & Waste)
Mouchel
2007.08 - 2007.10
Bid Co-ordinator (Environment)
Mouchel
2006.02 - 2007.07
Bachelor of Arts - Business Studies, Marketing
Sheffield Hallam University