Nature abhors a vacuum, and so do bids

In science, a vacuum doesn’t last long. In bidding, it’s even worse. When there’s no clear leadership, communication, or decision-making in a live bid, people fill the silence with guesswork, crossed wires or rework.

I didn’t understand the assignment !

It shows up as back-channelling. Agreeing to one thing over email, then doing something else. Managing the bid through a series of unexpected one-on-one phone calls. Withholding the plan, or keeping it all in one person’s head.

That’s not a system. That’s a mess.

And in today’s multi-location, hybrid, async working reality, the vacuum effect only intensifies. The old-school bid ‘war room’ buzz might be gone, but that doesn't mean we can get away without structure or shared direction, especially in tight timeframes.

Here’s why strong, visible and proactive bid management matters more than ever, and how you can avoid the chaos of comms vacuums, content dumps and last-minute scrambling.

You still need a plan, just not a 40-page one

Even in flexible or flat teams, someone needs to drive. A bare-bones bid plan that lives in one person’s head (or gets filed where no one can see it) won’t cut it.

Set goals and deadlines that everyone can orient to, for example:

• “80% draft by Friday”

• “Partner review by COB Monday”

• “Final proofed and packaged PDFs ready by 4pm Wednesday”.

Share it widely, don’t hoard it. Visibility helps people understand what’s coming and what not to duplicate.

Call out dependencies, especially in hybrid teams where war room or tea room intel is missing. If Marketing needs partner approval before finalising the CVs, or finance is waiting on a further clarification before settling pricing, flag it early.

Async does not mean silent

Async communication (short for asynchronous communication) refers to messages that aren’t sent and responded to in real time, such as emails, shared documents or task management tools.

It’s the opposite of a phone call or meeting, and it gives people time to think and reply on their own schedule.

But being async doesn’t mean being absent.

Drawing from Peter Yang’s article on how to make great decisions async, here are a few takeaways that apply directly to live bids:

• Be explicit about what’s needed, by when, and why

• Summarise decisions or next steps in writing, don’t rely on memory or hallway conversations

• Don’t assume silence means alignment; often silence means confusion, disengagement or conflict delayed.

Async can work beautifully when there’s clarity and expectation-setting.

But when the bid lead goes quiet or reactive, gaps open up fast, leading to the grapevine effect, misaligned messages or duplicated work that wastes precious time.

The anti-patterns to avoid

If this sounds familiar, it might be time to intervene. Watch out for these signs:

• A bid plan exists, but isn’t shared

• Key contributors are guessing what others are doing

• The ‘dump and run’ happens, with huge piles of content for review landing late with no context

• Contributors are handed blank pieces of paper and told, “We need a draft in two days”, with no guidance or reference points

• Timelines are slipped without updates, causing a domino effect

• No one's steering, so everyone’s improvising.

A strong bid lead keeps things moving, sets the tone and helps everyone shine in their role.

Sort it out: clarity, accountability, momentum

If you can’t bring everyone into a room, bring them into the plan. Tools don’t have to be fancy, a shared checklist, simple timeline and agreed goals can do wonders.

Remember, no one ever said “I wish I’d had less direction during that bid.”

When leadership is missing, chaos creeps in. But with a goal-based, transparent approach, even async teams can deliver sharp, strategic and standout responses.

Check out Bidtique’s ideal law firm bid timetable for a sense of how your submissions should progress in an ideal world.