Like many in our community, Mike Reader wound up in the bid and proposal profession by accident. Having completed a bachelor’s and master’s degree in civil engineering, he worked in contract management, before making the move to bidding and work winning.
“I’ve worked in construction for nearly 20 years,” Mike says. “In my last role before being elected, I headed up the global work winning team at Mace, where I led a team of around 60 people from Melbourne to Texas and everywhere in between.”
Among many accomplishments throughout his career, he’s led bid teams in two organizations, worked his way up to being a Work Winning Director, achieved his APMP Foundation and Practitioner certifications, and served as a mentor and advisory panel member in various organizations.
But now, Mike’s career has headed in a bit of a different direction: politics.
On 4 July this year, the UK held a general election, resulting in a new government, run by the Labour Party and new Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
To give a quick crash course in the UK’s political system for our international audience: the country is split into 650 constituencies, with each constituency representing a ‘seat’ in the House of Commons, the UK’s law-making body. Each seat is occupied by a Member of Parliament (MP) and, on election day, the public votes for the MP who will represent their constituency on a national level. The political party winning the most seats typically forms the government, with its leader becoming Prime Minister.
One of those seats is now occupied by our profession’s own Mike Reader, the new MP for Northampton South.
But how exactly does one go from heading up a bidding department to making laws in Parliament? Well, according to Mike, his transition has happened pretty naturally since initially joining the Labour Party in 2015. In fact, it was his bidding work that gave him the inspiration to dip his toes in the political waters in the first place.
“I was working in public procurement through a couple of government frameworks, and I could directly see the impact of austerity”—a policy under the Conservative government that reduced public spending in an attempt to reduce budget deficits—“and how funding for public services was being cut,” says Mike. “I joined the Labour party out of frustration at the lack of investment in those areas. Originally, I was just a normal member who got involved in doing a bit of campaigning around elections.”
But, after the Labour party suffered a devastating loss in 2019, Mike decided he needed to do more than just “be a part-time member”.
“The Labour Party put out a programme called the Future Candidates programme,” he explains. “It was about bringing people from outside of traditional roots into politics. It was a chance for me to understand the root of being an MP and how the process works.”
Mike began preparing for his candidacy in 2023; but when the general election was announced in May this year, Mike had just over a month to actively campaign for election.
And campaign he did. Going door to door in his constituency to canvas voters, visiting local businesses, organizing events, and introducing the future Prime Minister to his hometown.
On the surface, it may seem like quite a shift from his then day job, but Mike tells me that there’s more overlap between bidding and political campaigns than we might assume.
“Most of the skills that I needed to run and to be elected as an MP are the skills are the skills that good bid managers have,” he says. “Planning, coordination, building teams, influencing and persuading, being super creative, and working way harder than anyone else you know – those bidding skills are completely transferable to running for political office.
“In a way, bid managers are campaigners. We are trying to persuade people through compelling stories to come to our line of thinking, and that’s exactly what you have to do as a political candidate.”
Mike thought of his campaign very similarly to how he would think of pursuing an opportunity in the work-winning world.
“I had something akin to a capture plan, where I outlined who I needed to influence and convince, how I was going to build a team, what the messaging was, and what the pitch was,” he says. “And I had a ‘bid plan’, where I outlined what the milestones are, what we need to produce in terms of content, what the drum beat of communication is, how we bring the team on board, and how we ghost the opposition.”
Mike tells me that the influence of bidding on his MP journey will not end with his election. Among many skills he’s developed in his professional career, he will take with him “[the ability to] understand different stakeholder groups, experience of talking to people and finding out what makes them tick, and the drive to go above and beyond to make something a success”.
Now, over a month after his election, Mike is getting into the swing of his new role.
“I’m still in startup mode,” he says. “I’m getting used to the nuances of UK Parliament and starting to get stuck in to representing my community in Westminster.
“I’ve learned that I still really enjoy working with people – whether it’s leading large bid teams at Mace, or representing the town where I live. I know that the difference we can make over the next decade will directly influence my hometown, which has been a huge part of what’s driven me.”
His journey has taught him that “being able to persuade people very quickly and concisely is so important”.
Reflecting on his time in bidding, he says “sometimes, as bid managers, we can over-complicate things and think that we have to be highly technical, but a very strong, simple message is what lands most with people.”
When I ask what Mike is most looking forward to in his new role, he answers: “I’m genuinely looking forward to being part of change”.
He continues: “I think Labour has a really progressive and ambitious programme of government. I think there are some really strong things coming through and that’s what most excites me.”
If Mike’s journey has inspired you to try your hand in politics, his number one piece of advice for you is to “volunteer and get involved”.
“I think anyone who wants to play their part should do it,” Mike says. “I’m very happy to offer to support and give advice to anyone in the world who wants to volunteer in their country.”
The key message I’ve come away with from my conversation with Mike is that, whether you’re bidding on a small opportunity or playing a role in running a country, bidding skills have a power that far transcends any individual pursuit.
“The skills we bring to the table as bid people can make other people’s lives better,” Mike concludes.
We couldn’t agree more.
APMP extends a huge ‘congratulations’ to Mike on his election, and wishes him the best of luck in representing his constituents in Parliament.
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