It seems like everyday the surge of AI becomes the topic of conversation; how it will affect our lives, its worth, its harm or benefits — the conversation never ends.
Whichever direction the discussion starts, the topic always comes back to whether AI will eventually replace people, especially in the workforce.
Well, I’m not here to weigh in on that conversation and to be frank — it seems like there are enough voices on the matter anyway!
But in the space of Project Management, I feel comfortable saying that AI will have a very hard time replacing the professionals in our field for a number of reasons.
Reason #1: Stakeholder Management — Expectations galore!
A large part of the role of Project Management is managing people, their expectations, and their time — aka Internal and External Stakeholder Management.
The Project Management Institute (PMI) believes that all projects exist within a political environment. Meaning, each project is populated and influenced by stakeholders that have interest or “stake” in the outcome of a project. Because of this, the Project Manager must work to build and maintain positive relationships with stakeholders to achieve project success.
Additionally, the Project Manager has to find balance between client expectations and what is realistic to execute within the scope of a project. Stakeholders can become demanding throughout the course of the project and the PM is there to manage expectations, and ground everyone involved before the train runs off the tracks!
All of this requires interpersonal interactions that can vary per project, and I have a hard time seeing how AI can manage those interactions the way a typical PM could.
Reason #2: Cross-functionality
Another mastery skill for Project Managers is cross-functional collaboration. Cross-functional collaboration is the process of executing a project that includes various teams and functions within an organization. Much like Stakeholder Management, this requires interpersonal skills and communication to work together as one team with one common goal — project success. It relies on relationship building and maintaining those relationships for future projects and ease of work.
Reason #3: The Art of the Pivot
In the life of a Project Manager, not everything goes to plan. Projects can start to go over budget, scope can change, or a project can dissolve altogether. It takes a strong project manager to recognize risks involved with a project and when to pivot, or resolve the issues, before the project leads towards its own demise.
Pivoting a project takes a lot of communication and strategy. It Involves assessing the situation, coming up with a new strategy, getting approval from all stakeholders involved, leveraging new or existing resources, and then paving a new path forward.
This is a complex task that takes a ton of communication and reworking that AI would not be able to manage without a lot of human assistance.
What AI will probably look like in Project Management going forward…
AI will probably but a supplement to Project Management professionals rather than replacements altogether (which is what we all want, right?)
In the wake of AI, The Digital Project Manager (DPM) recommends that PMs should double down on their soft skills— stakeholder management, communication, and collaboration. But also be the expert on how to use AI to make you more effective in your role.
After all, AI is only as smart as we make it — so let’s make it work for us!