It is almost impossible to speak to a Bid Professional discussing AI. With the Procurement Act 2023 in full swing, the pressure to deliver more is real. But is AI a genuine advantage, or can it be a shortcut to a rejection letter?

Here is a look at both sides of the argument.

The “Yes” Side: Efficiency

The pro-AI camp argues that teams can use these tools as a “Busy Work Killer”.

• What is the Busy Work Killer? This refers to the high-volume, repetitive administrative tasks that eat up a bid writer’s time. This includes “shredding” a 200-page ITT to find mandatory requirements, building a compliance matrix, or formatting CVs. AI can handle these chores in seconds, freeing up the human lead for high-level strategy.

• Data Retrieval: It can scan years of old bids to find specific stats or technical descriptions so you aren’t starting from scratch on a Friday afternoon.

Link: How AI is helping teams manage the bid lifecycle (AutogenAI)

The “No” Side: The Risks

The “anti-AI” camp warns that evaluators are now trained to spot “bot-speech,” and the stakes are high:

• The Hallucination Problem: AI does not know facts; it predicts words. It can confidently invent project experience or misinterpret a legal clause.

• Hollow Content: If every company uses the same tools, every bid can sound the same. You may lose the unique “voice” and personality that actually wins contracts.

Link: Why AI isn’t a silver bullet for tenders (Strategic Proposals)

Our Thoughts: Why the Human Lead is Now Vital

The Procurement Act 2023 has actually made a seasoned human lead more important, not less. The shift from “MEAT” (lowest price) to “MAT” (Most Advantageous Tender) means buyers are looking for complex, qualitative value that a machine cannot invent.

1. Navigating the MAT Nuance

Evaluators want to see how your company supports the local economy and supply chain resilience. A human lead understands how to connect your strengths to a buyer’s specific mission. AI cannot “think” strategically in this way.

2. Radical Transparency

Every promise you make is now tracked via public Contract Performance Notices. If you use AI to “fluff” a bid with claims you cannot actually deliver, your failure can be tracked on a central platform. You need a human expert to act as a reality check.

Link: The Procurement Act 2023: A Short Guide for Suppliers (GOV.UK)

3. Authenticity in Social Value

Social Value is now often 30% of your score. AI produces dry, recycled stats. An experienced human can produce authentic stories and genuine local commitments that feel like a partnership rather than a transaction.

The Solution: The Human-Led Advantage

The future isn’t about choosing between humans or AI; it’s about human-led orchestration. AI can handle the groundwork, but a human strategist ensures the bid maintains The Golden Thread.

What is The Golden Thread? The Golden Thread is the consistent narrative and strategic message that ties the entire bid together. It ensures that a win theme mentioned in the Executive Summary is evidenced in the Social Value section and supported by the Pricing Schedule. While AI may produce fragmented, siloed answers, a human writer ensures this thread remains unbroken and persuasive across the whole document.

The benefits of a Human-Led approach:

• Strategic Intuition: A human can subtly highlight a competitor’s weaknesses while amplifying your strengths.

• Narrative Control: A human ensures the “tone of voice” is consistent, making the bid easy for the evaluator to read and score.

• Accountability: A human lead provides the final “sign-off,” ensuring every technical solution and social commitment is both high-scoring and achievable.

The Bottom Line

A process left entirely to a machine may be efficient, but it can also be sterile. A process left entirely to a human can become unmanageable. By putting a human in the lead, you can combine the speed of technology with the wisdom of experience.

What do you think?