About the Role
We are partnering with a leading investment management business to appoint a Senior Manager to lead a high-performing Client Support and RFP function. This is an excellent opportunity for someone who has built their career within RFP writing or proposal management and is now looking to further develop their leadership experience in a strategic, people-focused role.
You will be responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of the team, ensuring the successful delivery of high-quality responses to new business opportunities, client retention activity and a range of strategic client support initiatives. Alongside managing workloads and developing your team, you will play a key role in driving operational improvements, enhancing processes and contributing to the wider business strategy.
This role would suit someone who enjoys leading people, improving ways of working and partnering with senior stakeholders to deliver an exceptional client experience.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead, mentor and develop a team responsible for the delivery of RFPs, due diligence questionnaires, client support requests and business retention activity.
- Oversee resource planning and workload allocation to ensure deadlines and service standards are consistently achieved.
- Create an environment that enables the team to perform at their best by removing barriers, providing coaching and supporting professional development.
- Conduct performance reviews, set meaningful development objectives and foster a culture of continuous improvement.
- Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders to agree priorities, manage expectations and ensure the timely delivery of client-facing documentation.
- Support the team with complex, high-profile or escalated requests, balancing quality with challenging deadlines.
- Identify opportunities to improve workflows, introduce greater efficiencies and implement best practice across the function.
- Develop and utilise management information to monitor team performance, capacity, productivity and service levels, enabling informed decision-making.
- Drive process improvements and contribute to strategic initiatives that enhance the client experience and reduce operational risk.
- Champion collaboration across the business, promoting knowledge sharing and encouraging innovative approaches to proposal management and client support.
- Lead by example, fostering a positive, accountable and high-performing team culture.
About You
This opportunity is ideal for someone who has progressed from an RFP writing or proposal management background into a leadership role and is passionate about developing people and improving operational excellence.
You'll bring:
- Proven experience within RFP, proposal management or client support in financial services or asset management.
- Previous experience managing or leading an RFP or proposal team.
- Strong stakeholder management skills with the ability to influence and build relationships across multiple business areas.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a strong attention to detail.
- Experience managing competing priorities in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
- A continuous improvement mindset, with experience implementing new processes and driving operational efficiencies.
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret data and produce meaningful management information.
- Confidence coaching, mentoring and developing team members to maximise performance.
- Strong organisational and planning skills with the ability to balance both strategic initiatives and day-to-day operational responsibilities.
Desirable Experience
- Knowledge of investment management, pensions or wider financial services.
- Experience of project delivery, workflow optimisation or process improvement initiatives.
- Professional qualifications within financial services or project management would be advantageous but are not essential.
This is an excellent opportunity for an experienced RFP professional who is ready to step into a broader leadership position where they can shape the direction of a team, influence business strategy and continue to build a best-in-class proposal and client support function.
