Proposal Specialist

Heatherwick Studio is a global team of 200 problem solvers dedicated to making the physical world around us better for everyone. We are practical inventors with no signature style. Our motivation is to design soulful and interesting places, led by human experience rather than any fixed dogma

We enjoy pushing the boundaries of what is considered possible. We achieve this by placing collaboration, trust, and teamwork at the heart of everything we do. We look for studio members who have the entrepreneurial spirit to make things happen, and who also take delight in sharing their knowledge and experience. We want self-reflective people who are committed to their own growth and who are unafraid to support the growth of others.

We expect all studio members to work together with honesty and integrity, and to have a genuine care for each other. The studio is a creative community and it’s fundamental to us that everyone feels they belong, regardless of their culture or background.

Job Purpose

The Proposals Specialist is a critical member of the New Business team, which exists to help grow the studio’s portfolio of extraordinary projects internationally. The person in this position will lead the production of engaging documents and presentations that will be used to pitch to new clients in an effort to secure new, meaningful projects for the studio.

The ideal person for the role will be a confident storyteller. They will be passionate about design and have an exceptional eye for detail. They will need to source a diverse mix of written and visual content in order to craft clear, approachable, and engaging narratives through striking layouts and words that inspire a global audience.

They will enjoy working collaboratively, actively participating in discussions about the future of the studio within the New Business team and more broadly, with an openness to sharing ideas and possibilities. They will be a strategic thinker with the ability to proactively make things happen.

Key Responsibilities

The Proposals Specialist will spend much of their time supporting the studio’s new business efforts, helping them to convey our ideas and our work to a variety of different audiences - influential institutions, visionary individuals, and forward-thinking organizations - through book documents and screen presentations.

This person will work with the New Business and studio leadership teams on multiple bids each month. Each one is unique, and the role requires someone to inform bid strategies that focus-in on what we want to communicate and why, and how this can be represented in a dynamic way. They will then be responsible for bringing together content in InDesign and PowerPoint formats, in-line with the bid requirements and the studio’s in-house style.

As well as using the studio’s existing material, under specific circumstances they will need to take the initiative to push the boundaries - amending graphic styles and diagrams so to best represent the studio’s vision, intent and experience. Time management will be essential, with this person needing to bring an ability to manage their own time and deliver the highest priorities when time is short.

Alongside specific submissions, the Proposals Specialist will be responsible for maintaining New Business’ content databases: regularly updating and inputting into studio texts, CVs, and visual material (images, diagrams, movies).

Finally, this person will have an ability to interact with all types of communicators and develop good working relationships with many individuals quickly. They will liaise directly with the Communications team and other key studio members to capture material on projects, values and people; ensuring that the content is relevant, up-to-date and of the highest quality. They will also co-ordinate and manage external copyeditors, graphic designers and printers as required.

Key Relationships

Head of New Business

New Business Managers

Communications team

Group Leaders

Studio Founder