Proposal Writer (Defence)

Proposal Writer (Defence)

Position Description
At CGI, you'll help shape winning proposals for some of our largest and most strategically important opportunities across Space, Defence and Intelligence. As a Proposal Writer within our Intelligence Mission Systems sector, you'll turn complex ideas into clear, persuasive stories that demonstrate CGI's technical excellence and deliver meaningful outcomes for clients. You'll take ownership of proposals from early storyboarding through to submission, working creatively with bid leaders, technical experts and colleagues to give every response a competitive edge. As part of a supportive community of experts, you'll also help raise proposal standards, mentor colleagues and develop reusable content, giving you the opportunity to influence how CGI communicates its capabilities and secures future growth.

CGI was recognised in the Sunday Times Best Places to Work List 2025 and has been named a UK 'Best Employer' by the Financial Times. We offer a competitive salary, excellent pension, private healthcare, plus a share scheme (3.5% + 3.5% matching) which makes you a CGI Partner not just an employee. We are committed to inclusivity, building a genuinely diverse community of tech talent and inspiring everyone to pursue careers in our sector, including our Armed Forces, and are proud to hold a Gold Award in recognition of our support of the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant. Join us and you'll be part of an open, friendly community of experts. We'll train and support you in taking your career wherever you want it to go.

Due to the secure nature of the programme, you will need to hold UK Security Clearance or be eligible to go through this clearance. This is a hybrid position.

Your future duties and responsibilities
In this role, you will take ownership of producing high-quality, compelling proposals for strategically important opportunities within CGI's Space, Defence and Intelligence business. Working alongside Opportunity Pursuit Leads, Bid Managers, technical experts and other specialists, you will develop proposal content from initial ideas and storyboarding through review and final submission, ensuring every response clearly communicates CGI's value, technical excellence and understanding of client requirements.

You will bring creativity and constructive challenge to the proposal process, translating complex technical information into concise, engaging client-facing content and independently developing non-technical responses where appropriate. Supported by an experienced collaborative team, you will also contribute to proposal reviews, mentor colleagues and create reusable case studies and content that strengthen future bids and support CGI's continued growth.

Lead & Deliver - Own high-quality proposal documentation from storyboarding through Pink, Red and Gold Reviews to final client submission.
Write & Influence - Develop clear, persuasive technical and non-technical content aligned with client requirements and CGI's proposal strategy.
Collaborate & Challenge - Work with technical experts and solution owners to uncover differentiators and strengthen proposal content.
Review & Enhance - Contribute to Shipley reviews and improve consistency, quality and tone across multi-author proposals.
Mentor & Support - Help proposal writers and wider bid teams develop effective proposal-writing techniques aligned with the CGI voice.
Create & Reuse - Develop compelling case studies and reusable content that showcase CGI's capabilities across future opportunities.
Shape & Improve - Support the continual development of proposal processes, standards and competitive messaging.

Required qualifications to be successful in this role
You will be an accomplished proposal writer with experience developing persuasive bid content within IT, systems integration, defence or similarly complex environments. You will combine excellent UK English writing skills with the ability to understand technical concepts, question subject-matter experts constructively and transform detailed information into compelling client-focused narratives. You will be comfortable taking ownership while collaborating closely with and supporting colleagues throughout demanding proposal cycles.

Demonstrable experience writing high-quality proposals within IT, systems integration, defence or related sectors.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with fluency in UK English.
Proven ability to translate complex technical information into clear, concise and persuasive client-facing content.
Strong collaborative skills and the confidence to question and challenge solution owners constructively.
Experience contributing to structured proposal reviews and improving multi-author content.
Ability to develop effective non-technical proposal responses with limited subject-matter expert input.
UK citizenship and sole UK nationality, with existing SC clearance or eligibility to undergo the required CGI security-clearance process.
Ability to commute easily to a CGI office in Gloucester, Leatherhead or Manchester and attend the office up to five days per week when proposal security requirements dictate.
Experience of Shipley or comparable bid and sales methodologies would be advantageous.
Experience or potential to lead and mentor proposal writers on major opportunities would be advantageous.

Together, as owners, let's turn meaningful insights into action.

Life at CGI is rooted in ownership, teamwork, respect and belonging. Here, you'll reach your full potential because

You are invited to be an owner from day 1 as we work together to bring our Dream to life. That's why we call ourselves CGI Partners rather than employees. We benefit from our collective success and actively shape our company's strategy and direction.

Your work creates value. You'll develop innovative solutions and build relationships with teammates and clients while accessing global capabilities to scale your ideas, embrace new opportunities, and benefit from expansive industry and technology expertise.

You'll shape your career by joining a company built to grow and last. You'll be supported by leaders who care about your health and well-being and provide you with opportunities to deepen your skills and broaden your horizons.

That same commitment to fairness extends to how we use technology. To support our recruitment team, AI tools may be used to help assess applications though they never replace human judgement. All hiring decisions remain entirely in the hands of our recruitment professionals.

Come join our team-one of the largest IT and business consulting services firms in the world.