Bid Manager & Tender Specialist

Job Objective

The Bid Manager & Tender Specialist plays a critical strategic role within the WIOCC Group, supporting customer satisfaction and revenue growth through high-quality, commercially viable proposals. The role manages the full contract and tender lifecycle, from lead generation and qualification through to purchase order processing.

A key focus is the qualification of non-standard product requests. You will lead a rigorous productisation assessment to determine bid viability. Where the company proceeds, you will determine whether to productise the offering for wider market demand or operationalise it as a bespoke, one-off solution for a strategic client. This requires exceptional project management skills to align cross-functional teams, obtain essential technical and commercial input, and make timely bid qualification decisions.

This role requires adaptability. During periods of lower bidding activity, you will lead critical product initiatives and undertake responsibilities typically associated with a Product Manager, ensuring continued momentum and effective use of resources.

Reporting Line: Head of Product (South Africa)

Key Duties & Responsibilities:

• Manage the full lifecycle of commercial contracts and tender submissions, from initiation to termination or renewal
• Assume Product Manager responsibilities during quieter bidding cycles, leading critical product projects, market capability assessments and lifecycle management activities
• Manage the drafting, review, negotiation and finalisation of contracts, ensuring legal, organisational and regulatory compliance
• Lead the preparation, formatting and submission of high-quality tender documents, requests for proposals (RFPs) and requests for quotations (RFQs)
• Act as a pricing control point, working with stakeholders to make data-driven pricing decisions, protect margins and apply the Price Waterfall
• Maintain a central, accurate repository of contracts and standard tender packs, ensuring that compliance documents, company profiles and accreditation certificates remain current
• Establish and monitor KPIs and SLAs to ensure vendor and organisational compliance with contractual obligations
• Lead customer workshops, demonstrations and proof-of-concept engagements in support of business development
• Analyse market trends, customer needs and competitor activity to inform solution packaging, pricing and positioning
• Create and maintain sales tools, including presentations, proposals and competitive battle cards
• Maintain the company tender register, tracking briefing dates, clarification deadlines, submission deadlines and requirements to ensure that no opportunities are missed

How You Will Make an Impact:

• Lead the qualification of non-standard product requests, assessing each opportunity against WIOCC’s strategic and financial objectives
• Determine whether successful non-standard bids should be productised for wider market demand or operationalised as one-off strategic solutions
• During quieter tender periods, lead critical product initiatives and advance the department’s strategic roadmaps
• Coordinate Sales, Technical, Operations, Delivery and Finance teams to obtain essential input and make timely, well-informed bid decisions
• Ensure the effective end-to-end execution of tender processes across all WIOCC Group companies and subsidiaries
• Monitor and deliver against key performance indicators, including revenue, cash flow, margin protection, on-time delivery and customer satisfaction
• Identify commercial and technical risks, resolve escalated issues and negotiate terms that protect the company’s interests
• Conduct post-tender reviews of successful and unsuccessful bids to improve processes, content and commercial policy
• Work with Sales and Business Development teams to define value propositions for WIOCC offerings and develop compelling customer-facing messages

Minimum Qualifications :

• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, engineering, or a related discipline

Experience & Skills:

• At least five years’ experience in the telecommunications, IT or infrastructure sectors, with a focus on bid management and, ideally, experience in solution sales, product management or commercial presales
• Strong enterprise or telecommunications IT background, with exposure to data centre technologies, virtualisation and cloud platforms such as AWS, Azure, Huawei Cloud and Google Cloud Platform
• Familiarity with telecommunications infrastructure, data centres, big data platforms, AI and machine-learning use cases, and mapping or planning tools
• Proven experience of complex tender processes, product lifecycles, commercial contracts and pricing governance, ideally within African markets
• Experience of NetSuite or a similar ERP or business development platform is highly desirable
• Exceptional project management skills, with the ability to plan, monitor and control proposal and product activities across scope, time and cost
• Strong leadership skills, with the ability to influence stakeholders, lead cross-cultural teams and guide productisation or operationalisation decisions
• An analytical, problem-solving mindset and close attention to detail, ensuring accuracy in project deliverables and pricing structures
• Ability to adapt to changing priorities and switch between tender execution and product management tasks under tight deadlines without compromising quality

WIOCC Values

• Integrity - We uphold transparency and honesty in all our interactions.
• Collaboration - We believe in the power of teamwork and shared success.
• Customer Focus - Our clients’ needs drive every decision we make.
• Innovation - We continually seek new approaches and creative solutions.
• Excellence - We strive for the highest standards in everything we do.