Full job descriptionAssociate Director - Proposal ManagerLead the strategic pursuits that will shape the growth of AECOM’s Transportation business across the UK and Ireland.
As Associate Director – Proposal Manager, you will lead AECOM’s most strategic and complex transportation pursuits. You will advise senior leaders and bring together technical, capture and proposal specialists to develop differentiated, client-focused bids that support our growth strategy.
Reporting to the Pursuits Team Director, you will influence investment and pursuit decisions, shape winning strategies and lead teams through the full business development lifecycle—from qualification and capture to proposal, interview, debrief and continuous improvement. You will also strengthen work-winning capability across the business by embedding best practice, coaching teams and turning client feedback into practical improvements.
Here’s what you’ll do:
*Lead large and complex pursuits involving multiple disciplines, regions and external partners, from early capture through proposal, interview and debrief.
*Develop and execute differentiated win strategies that translate client insight, competitor analysis, and technical expertise into compelling, client-focused proposals.
*Direct positioning and capture activity, facilitate win-strategy workshops, and advise senior stakeholders on pursuit priorities, investment and decision-making.
*Mobilise multidisciplinary teams, establish clear governance, and maintain momentum, accountability and quality throughout each pursuit.
*Lead proposal planning and delivery, including kick-off, answer planning, content development, reviews, document production, and interview preparation.
*Ensure submissions are compliant, persuasive and consistent with AECOM processes, templates, branding, and quality standards.
*Analyse internal debriefs and client feedback to identify trends, share lessons learned, and embed continuous improvement across clients and markets.
*Act as a visible role model for collaborative, client-focused work winning, constructively challenging teams to achieve the strongest possible outcome.
*Coach and mentor capture and proposal teams in capture planning, strategy development, answer planning, proposal management and bid writing.
*APMP Practitioner or Professional certification, or an equivalent recognised proposal-management qualification.
Qualifications*Substantial experience in a senior proposals or pursuits role, with the confidence to advise, influence and constructively challenge senior stakeholders.
*A strong track record of leading high-value, complex pursuits – typically with a total contract value above £20M – across the construction, engineering, or infrastructure sectors.
*Demonstrable success across the pursuit lifecycle, from qualification and capture through proposal, interview, debrief, and lessons learned.
*Proven ability to create differentiated win strategies and convert them into compelling, compliant pursuit responses.
*Excellent facilitation, presentation and communication skills in both virtual and in-person settings.
*Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Teams.
*The judgement, resilience and organisational skills to lead multiple contributors, work effectively under pressure and deliver high-quality outputs to demanding deadlines.
*Strong personal accountability, rigorous attention to detail and consistently high-quality standards.
Additional InformationAt AECOM, we are committed to maintaining a secure and trustworthy recruitment process and take any fraudulent hiring activity seriously. To support this commitment, all newly hired employees are required to attend an in-person Day 1 onboarding at an AECOM office location as a condition of employment.