A.I. ... Two Takes, Both Good for People and Projects. Part 1

The project management community has displayed a kind of split personality when it comes to  Artificial Intelligence over the past few years. On the one hand, there's the doom-and-gloom faction, which insists that AI will replace project managers. Computers are better at keeping track of huge amounts of data, better at estimating, plus they don't have to take a month off to have a baby computer. Obviously, the day of the human PM is on the wane.

But there's another way to look at Artificial Intelligence in PM and, beginning four years ago in our blogs, we've been keeping track of it. Recently, PMI has also begun to publish research and opinion pieces touting the value -- rather than the threat -- of AI in project management. The jist of it is this:

We have long known that project management is comprised of two types of tasks/skills: art and science. AI is better at the science, which is crucial to success, but which is arguably less important than the "arts" -- the team building, leadership, strategic thinking, stakeholder engagement, communication and creativity that makes a great project manager stand out. Being relieved of the data-crunching minutia of project management -- which various studies have said consume between 50% and 80% of any given day -- frees up the project manager to give more time and thought to higher-order tasks.

Think about it: what if you didn't have to worry about ...

• Meeting planning
• Reminders
• Status updates
• Estimating cost and schedule
• Monitoring progress
• Managing documentation
• Resource planning/leveling

... except of course to subject the work of your “intelligent project management assistant” to assessment and scrutiny?

If there's any fear left of AI's role in performing these types of tasks, consider the degree to which AI is already assisting you throughout the day in every sphere of life. You car tells you when you are too close to a vehicle in the other lane. As I type this, my software suggests which word I might want to use next. The nice lady in your iPhone tells you where to turn right. This type of “narrow AI” is already in widespread use in much of our interactions with companies and each other on the Web and in computer and phone software. In the same way that we adapted and became used to these functions in our daily lives, most of the above project management functions will seamlessly integrate AI into project management by becoming standard in new and updated project management software, incrementally.  This type of AI is something most project managers will absorb/adopt seamlessly without having to study a new area of practice.

In Part 2, we'll look at how AI taking over the science of project management may have the potential to resolve some of the most persistent problems in the discipline, including resource management. Stay tuned!

Meanwhile, if you want a comprehensive short course on this topic, check out Adel Belharet et al. “A Study on the Impact of AI on Project Management,” Posted in Research Gate.