Artificial Intelligence (AI) – which emphasises the creation of intelligent machines that work and react like human beings – will have a significant impact on the project management (PM) world. Forward thinking organisations will jump at the opportunity to maximise project success by making use of the distinctly different, and unique, characteristics that man and machines bring to the table.
Tony McManus, CEO of McManus Consulting, says that, increasingly, AI will gather, interpret and extrapolate project data, freeing up the project manager to focus on tasks that require more emotional intelligence (something that AI cannot currently replicate). But McManus emphasises that, while logic reigns supreme with computers, one can never do away with the caring, subjective reasoning that human beings bring to the table. Thus, both man and machine have a role to play in the PM world of the future.
This is confirmed by research and advisory company, Gartner, who say that 80% of today’s project management tasks will be eliminated by 2030 as AI takes over. “AI will improve the outcomes of these tasks, including the ability to analyse data faster than humans and using those results to improve overall performance. As these standard tasks start to get replaced, Program and Portfolio Management (PPM) leaders will look to staff their teams with those who can manage the demands of AI and smart machines as new stakeholders.”
One of the areas in project management that AI can have a major impact on is risk management. The traditional risk register is compiled by human beings, with all the advantages and disadvantages of the inherent subjectivity. Imagine how much more effective a smart machine could be using the hard data of risk and issue logs to predict project success or failures; and how much time, money and resources could be saved by using machines for this.
Project estimation is another area where machines can make a significant impact. Again, by crunching a vast amount of hard data quickly and accurately, a machine could make a precise estimate of the project, which could enable the PM to better calculate the investment needed for the project.
In the key area of progress updates, McManus expects to see the use of inference engines and “chatbots” to glean progress updates from team members, obviating the need for timesheets, which are a key resistance point for most organisations. Inference “engines” that deduce task completion are already being encountered.
Gartner predicts that, “over time, AI will have a significant and very positive impact on PPM leaders and the PPM technologies they use, as both strive to remain effective and relevant in the digital age. Therefore, Program Management Office transformation must include an evolving strategy that incorporates and takes full advantage of the benefits of AI, as AI begins to take root in the PPM software market”.
Tomorrow’s project managers will manage teams comprising both human beings and smart machines, each contributing their unique talents to the project’s outcome. While machines will always fare better when it comes to repetitive tasks, human beings have an advantage when it comes to complex tasks that require emotional intelligence for effective execution.
Smart PMs will embrace the technology and harness AI to make their projects more successful, while celebrating the freedom it gives team members to become more creative and productive in areas that machines cannot tap into. Yet…
© Tony McManus, McManus Consulting. | Image created by Freepik.com.
