Bid manager cover: keeping tenders moving when your bid manager is away
Bid manager cover is a managed service for companies that already have a bid function and need it kept running through parental leave, sickness, a resignation or a volume spike. A named Glaxtons lead takes a structured handover, works inside your tools and with your subject matter experts, runs the submissions that land during the cover window, and hands back with a written record. Fixed fee, quoted on the volume you expect.
Key facts at a glance
- Who it is for
- Companies with a bid manager or small bid team, usually SaaS, technology, professional services or contractors, facing a gap of four weeks or more
- What is covered
- RFPs, RFIs, PQQs and framework responses that arrive during the window. Sales qualification and security questionnaires stay with you unless agreed
- How it starts
- A structured handover in the fortnight before the gap: live pipeline, content library, tools access, SME contacts, house style, approval chain
- Tools
- We work in yours: Loopio, RFPIO, Responsive, SharePoint, Teams, or a shared drive. No migration
- Who does it
- A named Glaxtons lead with a named backup, both introduced to your team before the gap starts
- How it ends
- A written hand-back: what was submitted, what is open, what was learned, and the content library updated
- Fee
- Fixed fee for the cover window, quoted on the expected volume and complexity. No day-rate creep
The problem this solves
A company with one bid manager has a single point of failure. When that person takes parental leave, is off sick or resigns, the RFPs do not stop. Sales keeps qualifying them, deadlines keep arriving, and the subject matter experts who used to be coordinated now get five uncoordinated requests. The usual outcomes are a no-bid on something winnable, or a submission assembled by whoever was free.
Cover is not the same as hiring a contractor for three months. A contractor needs your bid manager's job explained from scratch, then leaves with the knowledge. Managed cover starts with a handover designed by people who run bids for a living, and ends with a hand-back that leaves your process stronger than it found it.
What the cover window looks like
Week minus two: handover sessions with your bid manager. Live pipeline and dates, the content library and what in it is current, tools access and permissions, the approval chain, house style, the SMEs and how they prefer to be asked. Your bid manager signs off the handover note.
During the window: every RFP or RFI that arrives is triaged with your sales lead within a working day. Go decisions get a plan, owners and dates. Responses are drafted from your library and your SMEs, compliance-checked, reviewed, and submitted on the portal or to the buyer on time. You get a short weekly note: what came in, what went out, what is at risk.
Hand-back: a written record of everything submitted and outstanding, the library updated with new answers, and a one-hour session with your returning bid manager. Nothing lives only in our heads.
Fractional bid management, if the gap is permanent
Some companies do not have a bid manager at all and do not have the volume to justify one. Fractional bid management is the same service on a monthly basis: a named lead for an agreed number of days a month, running the pipeline, the library and the submissions, with the same weekly note. It is quoted on volume, reviewed quarterly, and can be stopped with a month's notice.
What we need from you to quote
Your expected dates, even approximate. A rough count of RFPs and RFIs in a typical quarter and one or two anonymised examples. The tools you use. Any security or supplier onboarding we would need to pass. With those, a written proposal follows within two working days, and we recommend the consultant by name.
Who should apply?
Cover fits if:
Frequently asked questions
Can you cover parental leave for our only bid manager?
Yes. That is the most common request. A named Glaxtons lead takes a structured handover in the fortnight before the leave starts, runs the RFPs and RFIs that arrive during the window inside your tools, and hands back with a written record when your bid manager returns.
Do you work in Loopio or our own response tools?
Yes. We work inside whatever you already use, including Loopio, RFPIO and Responsive, and in your SharePoint or shared drive. Nothing is migrated and the content library stays yours, updated.
How is bid manager cover priced?
A fixed fee for the cover window, quoted on the volume and complexity of submissions you expect, with the scope and working assumptions written into the proposal. There is no day-rate meter running.
What if an RFP needs a decision you would normally make?
Bid or no-bid decisions stay with your sales lead or director. We give you the qualification view within a working day and run whatever you decide to pursue.
How much notice do you need?
Two weeks is comfortable for the handover. Less is possible for a live emergency, and we will say honestly what can be covered in the time available.
Tell us the dates and the volume
Send your expected dates, a rough RFP count per quarter and the tools you use to info@glaxtons.co.uk, or call 020 3668 5488. A written proposal with the named consultant follows within two working days.