Director of Bid Management

Arrive is seeking a strategic, high-impact Director of Bid Management to drive the transformation of our bid function and global commercial expansion of our Transport division. Reporting directly to the Chief Revenue Officer, this pivotal leader will orchestrate end-to-end tender capture and proposal execution for high-value public transit automated fare collection (AFC) opportunities. Operating at the intersection of unattended kiosk hardware, cloud back-office software (SaaS), and open payment (cEMV) technologies, you will lead cross-functional proposal teams and navigate complex commercial motions, ranging from direct agency and operator bidding to strategic sub-contracting and co-bidding alongside Tier-1 prime system integrators and pure-play mobile software partners.

Responsibilities

Define, implement, and enforce a unified global bid governance model ensuring consistent, high-quality standards across all regions (NAM, UK, EMEA, APAC); Establish and update a centralized library of pre-approved technical specifications, win themes, case studies, and compliance answers to accelerate response times and enhance proposal quality; Systematically identify repeat patterns across custom bids and partner with Engineering and Product teams to convert these patterns into standard product capabilities or reusable accelerators; Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing global team of Bid Managers, fostering a culture of accountability, continuous improvement, and cross-functional collaboration; Oversee the commercial and financial integrity as well as technical risk assessments for all high-value global bids; Lead the drafting and alignment of bid responses when Arrive acts as an OEM sub-contractor or hardware supplier to Tier-1 Prime System Integrators, and oversee the proposal responsibility matrix, technical interface control documents, and joint submission workflows when co-bidding alongside pure-play software partners; Ensure all tender submissions strictly satisfy regional payment acquiring, security, and hardware compliance mandates, including cEMV Level 1/2/3, PCI-DSS, ADA/accessibility guidelines, and local-content/Buy America regulations; Analyze competitor bid behaviors, pricing strategies, and win-loss intelligence across incumbent AFC providers to refine Arrive's win themes and Value-Based Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) pitch narratives; Conduct formal post-tender debriefs with agency procurement teams and SI prime partners to capture actionable feedback and feed lessons learned back into the GTM and Product organizations

Requirements

15+ years of experience leading complex, high-stakes Bid Management teams in public transit, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), tolling, or payment technology sectors; Proven track record in strategic and commercial acumen, with demonstrated ability to build and articulate complete commercial models within public sector proposal submissions; Deep expertise in strategic partnerships and co-bidding mechanics, including structuring complex sub-contracts, consortium agreements, and joint-venture responses; Extensive experience navigating international public procurement frameworks, regulatory compliance, and regional payment/hardware mandates across diverse geographies; Exceptional communication and C-level stakeholder management skills in English, with a track record of leading cross-functional teams under tight submission timelines; Proven track record of winning multi-million-dollar public sector or smart infrastructure tenders; Familiarity with multi-party teaming mechanics; Ability to translate complex technical architectures into compelling, winning commercial proposals