Pre Construction Director

Overview

In this role you lead the London Division’s pre-construction function, aligning strategy with growth objectives and guiding bid management, planning, design, and technical services. You will shape winning strategies, manage a sustainable pipeline, and ensure robust governance from enquiry to contract award. Your leadership supports a cross-functional team delivering market-leading, value-driven solutions for clients. This is a high-impact position within a premier regional contractor, focused on growth, collaboration, and excellence.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop the London Division’s pre-construction function with a culture of excellence and continuous improvement
• Set and implement divisional pre-construction strategies aligned to growth objectives
• Advise the Managing Director and divisional leadership on all pre-construction and work-winning aspects
• Provide leadership across bid management, estimating, planning, design management and technical services
• Oversee work-winning strategy, ensuring a healthy pipeline of opportunities
• Manage qualification and selection of target projects in line with objectives and risk appetite
• Build and maintain strategic client, consultant, developer, and framework relationships
• Support client engagement activities, presentations, interviews and key negotiations
• Drive winning methodologies and maintain high bid quality and client engagement
• Oversee pre-construction activities from enquiry to contract award
• Embed governance and risk management throughout the bid lifecycle
• Champion innovative, value-driven, sustainable and buildable solutions
• Develop winning technical, commercial and programme strategies
• Foster collaboration between operational, commercial and technical teams for seamless handover
• Inspire, coach and develop a multidisciplinary pre-construction team
• Build succession plans and identify future talent
• Promote a collaborative and inclusive culture reflecting Wates’ values
• Drive engagement, performance and accountability across the team

Key requirements

• Extensive experience leading pre-construction in a tier one or major regional contractor
• Proven track record securing complex public and private sector projects
• Successful leadership of major bids and work-winning strategies
• Exceptional leadership and stakeholder management skills
• Strong commercial awareness and risk management expertise
• Experience managing multidisciplinary teams across estimating, planning, design and bid management
• Deep understanding of modern construction techniques, procurement routes and market trends
• Excellent presentation, influencing and negotiation abilities
• Ability to build trusted executive-level client and partner relationships

• leadership
• stakeholder management
• communication
• bid management
• estimating
• planning

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