AI in Project Management

The trend of introducing AI into all manner of business processes is gaining speed.  This week I have been exploring the potential of AI in project management.  While AI has the potential to reduce the overhead of repetitive tasks, the crux will be understanding the output and using it intelligently rather than relying on it blindly.

One area I see AI being particularly helpful is evaluating the impact of introducing change.  If I have a system to track work and I introduce a task, what is the overall project impact beyond the standard MS Project cascading slip?  How does this change my schedule and resource allocations?  Is there an opportunity to make up ground later by reallocating or reordering tasks?  What are the tradeoffs of accepting the change?  Is there a different way to introduce the change that would result in less risk?  Understanding the risk and coming to the table with options makes having those difficult conversations easier.

Another area AI may be beneficial is providing a project health reality check.  Everyone has had that conversation with stakeholders where your gut is telling you there is no way the schedule is going to work, but the math works out so that's the schedule you get.  AI could be useful in evaluating trends across projects and teams to provide data to back up your gut.  Do some resources consistently under/overestimate their tasks?  Are specific task types consistently difficult to estimate?  Do some tasks generally have a greater failure rate or introduce a higher level of risk to a project?  Are there seasonal trends that reduce capacity, and by how much? Do some clients require capacity exceptions?  Having this data at your fingertips makes it easier to set and manage expectations.

The bottom line is that AI looks like a potentially useful tool if it is used correctly.  Like all tools, the user has to understand the capabilities and limitations of that tool.  Using a tool incorrectly is only going to result in an undesired outcome.  Your mileage may vary.

Interesting reads:

• Forbes - AI In Project Management
• TechRepublic - 6 AI technologies changing project management
• Atlassian - 3 ways AI will change project management for the better
• PR Magazine - AI and Project Management

Where do you see AI benefiting how you work?