Sara Akhtar Email & Phone Number

Amersham, England, United Kingdom

A freelance bid writer with 11 years' experience writing successful tenders in the government-funded, not for profit, education, recruitment and health & social care sectors. I have expertise tendering with large funders such as DWP, European Social Fund and GLA as well as organisations such as National Citizens Service, South Thames College Group, BUPA and National Careers Service. A selection of recent tenders have included DWP ESF Access to Employment, ESF Skills Support for the Unemployed, GLA Sector Skills, GLA Targeted NEET, Adult Education Budget, Apprenticeship Levy and non-Levy.

A brand new role for the company who had never had a bid function before. As well as managing and writing the public sector tenders, I established best practice bid processes, built up a library of high quality bid content and scanned for bidding opportunities in line with company strategies.

London, United Kingdom

Working for a small and dynamic organisation specialising in government funded training and programmes to help the most disenfranchised groups based in London to get the training and support they need to gain sustainable employment. I worked my way up to lead the BD department, making the role my own and embracing the variety that comes from working in a small company. I created a Marketing department from scratch, trained up a marketing apprentice, searched for business development opportunities and managed high level bids, collaborated with grassroots organisations and liaised with external agencies and consultants. ​Key achievements:​- Created a BD & Marketing Strategy that was approved by the Board and implemented, revamping the entire department​- Wrote several successful large scale tenders for funders- Implemented both Mental Health Strategy and the Sustainability policy across the business​- Designed a suite of marketing videos to generate new business​- Took part in regular Managers Meetings to find solutions to the business’ problems and drive innovation​- Created new marketing material for the sales team​Highlights- Successfully expanded geographical presence of business outside of London​- Trained up marketing apprentice with no skills previously who completed with Distinction​- Reactivated 7 “dormant” social media channels gaining 2,294 followers in under a year with no budget​- Saved £10,000s in recruiter costs by implementing online recruitment​- Ran series of webinars to give us access to 200+ new customers​

London, United Kingdom

Contracted until August 2017 to manage bids for the specialist public sector team at Grant Thornton. Bids include NHS, Not-for-Profit and local government from initial bid stage through to team presentations.

London, United Kingdom

This varied and interesting role includes managing all bids, client presentations and content writing for the marketing team as well as collaborating on other aspects with the marketing team.Key achievements:• Created Sales Toolkit including company overview presentation, client presentation, USP document and proposal template• Managed external communications including content for blogs, internet, presentations, social media accounts and more• Writing winning award entries including Queen’s Award for international growth (won) and 4 Recruiter Award categories (shortlisted, winners announced in May)• 100% bid win rate• Devising a 6 month content plan targeting certain areas of the business and attract candidates with certain skill sets• Introducing more efficient bid processes and implemented bid tracking• Heading up the CSR function of the company including carbon offsetting, partnering with Oxfam and organising charity events for offices globally

London, United Kingdom

Managing all bids and communications as part of a small marketing team.> Communications- Managing global company PR including establishing press contacts, writing press releases and opinion pieces on a regular basis to raise awareness of company brand and set us apart as experts in our field- Devised 6 monthly communications schedule- Writing weekly blogs for the website (http://www.networkersplc.com/blog) - Writing copy for the website- Gathering content for quarterly internal newsletter- Managing internal communications- Managing company social media pages> Bids- Managing all bids and tenders for all verticals for the company globally including subsidiaries- 98% bid win rate- Project managing the entire process from start to completion- Liaising with stakeholders across the business for content

An integral part of the Group Sales & Marketing team in Volt, involved in all aspects of the organisation’s bids and communications for both its staffing and managed service divisions.Key responsibilities:• External content writing including social media and web copy• Manage the bid process from opportunity analysis to proposal submission• Engaging stakeholder contributors• Creating compelling content for both tender and pro-active proposals• Updating and maintaining the Qvidian pro-search tool • Administering Salesforce for the company

Holborn

Coordinating the pool of freelance training associates to ensure the most suitable trainer delivers the In-company courses that have been booked by the sales team.Providing support for the current associate pool as well as recruiting new and high quality associates in accordance with Reed Learning's criteria.

Taunton

Working in the Private Client Division as the first point of contact for customers wishing to set up claims, deal with ongoing claims or querying and making ammendents to their policy. The role involved:- Making decisions about whether or not to accept a medical claim whilst considering the profit/loss to the company - Assessing customer's needs and advising them about relevant products or policy renewals - Handling complaints professionally and solving problems wherever possible- Professional letter and email writing to both customers and medical staff such as consultants

Employed as part of a temporary staff pool to help with the government Regional Control Project. Working in both Avon Fire & Rescue Service and Devon & Somerset Fire & Rescue Service Control rooms taking emergency 999 fire calls, providing fire survival guidance and following Fire Service incidents through to completion.Key Achievements:o Completed 2 years of training and took assessments early leading to promotiono Worked under intense pressure dealing with panicky callers trapped in fireo Developed ability to work as part of a team in order to provide efficient fire response around the countyo Provided support and assistance to Firefighters at incident groundo Liaised with other agencies including Police and Ambulance

Working as part of the Temporary Staff Pool in Somerset Control employed by South West Fire Control as detailed below.

Working part-time during university holidays as a receptionist in a busy, private hospitalKey Achievements:o Developed organisational skills by keeping patient records up-to-date and keeping on top of paperwork and administration taskso Provided excellent customer service skills, reassuring patients, taking them to their rooms or wards, answering switchboard telephone calls and dealing with patient enquirieso Demonstrated patience and reassurance dealing with confused and nervous patients about to undergo major procedures

Doing bar work during evenings and weekends at the student union whilst at university.

Ba(Hons) 2.1, French With Psychology

Activities and Societies: Dance Society French Society Rock & Indie Society

Education record