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Author: David Baker

Will Machine Learning and AI ever replace the Project Manager

With many big companies growing increasingly dependent on machine learning, artificial intelligence has become a much-talked about subject among business leaders today.

Many activities, such as data analysis, are predisposed to being performed faster and more accurately by machine learning systems. And to think that some of these machines didn’t even have to be pre-programmed to work effectively. As a result, many companies are now starting to favor investing in such technologies in place of hiring skilled project managers.

The big question remains though: will machine learning ever be able to replace project managers entirely?

AI and Machine Learning in Today’s Offices

A survey conducted in 2017 by AXELOS, the global custodian on the PRINCE2 project methodology, reveals that 90% of the respondents believe that project risk will increase. To alleviate this risk, they’ll have to learn new skills which according to Ismail includes the following skills:

  • strategy
  • business analysis
  • change management
  • organisation[al] diplomacy
  • influencing
  • relationship-building

Despite the obvious threats that AI poses to human PMs, a lot of this technology can actually work to support them. Here are some of ways the two can complement each other:

Helping you Maximise your Human Resources

AI tools can help you monitor how well your employees are being utilised. For instance, if it sees that certain employees currently do not have any task to work on, it will recommend how you can deploy them in the meantime. This should help improve your company’s efficiency without costing you that much money.

Finding the person fit for the role

Artificial Intelligence can help you determine which of your employees is best for a certain project by finding out all about them and their professional capabilities. After which it will come up with suggestion on whom is the most suitable candidate for the job based on the data it has gathered.


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Helping you become aware of possible pitfalls

Since AI tools are adept in analysing information, you can also use it to study projects that the company has taken on in the past. This should allow you to see which of them has the highest possibility of working out and which will are most likely to fail. It can also keep track of your progress and suggest action steps that you can take to keep your project going in the right direction.

 

Chatbot integration

There are also AI chatbots that can aid project managers in analysing what can be done to make use of project and resources better.

Cameron Stewart, AXELOS’ head of product development also believes that one can’t rely solely on automation. There are certain traits and skills that can only be found so far in a project manager like diplomacy, communication, and relationship building. All of which are crucial for handling successful projects. Likewise, there’s the human trait of emotional intelligence, another important element in managing a project.

“Great project management will always combine a people-first approach with high-grade technical project management skills and knowledge,” Stewart says.

What are the Limits of AI in Project Management?

So now you know how much progress AI can bring to project management. But how far can AI actually go?

Well PMs can rest easy for the time being, as in its current stage, artificial intelligence doesn’t come close to replacing human project managers. Here are just two of the major drawbacks of AI that are pertinent to a project manager’s role:

  1. AI cannot communicate the way human beings do. Good interpersonal skills are essential in handling projects because one will be delegating tasks, and coordinating with team members. Artificial intelligence tools cannot discern the concerns and working styles of a project’s team members, something that a highly skilled project manager is readily equipped to do.
  1. AI cannot motivate people. We all know how important it is to keep employees motivated and bring out their most inspired work and professional best, all of which eventually lead to the success of a project. AI tools and machines are simply not capable of doing that yet.

The Future of AI

 

“AI points towards a future where machines not only do all of the physical work, as they have done since the industrial revolution but also the “thinking” work – planning, strategising and making decisions,” says futurist and best-selling author Bernard Marr.

In business, Marr sees an increase in the implementation of AI—particularly automation across all support functions like human resources. AI solutions are also likely to be used for compliance and legal management. Likewise, he foresees more businesses capitalising on their data to create revenue streams.

What’s most notable in his predictions is that he sees that the use AI will result to more employment opportunities. A report by Gartner predicts 1.8 million jobs lost to automation – with manufacturing in particular singled out as likely to take a hit. That is more than offset by a further 2.3 million jobs created in healthcare, education, and the public sector.

Whilst automation does threaten more manual jobs then, it’s a long way off before AI starts making serious inroads into traditionally thinking based roles like project management.

6 Common Challenges in Managing Small Projects (and how to overcome them)

Small projects are often seen as less important than larger projects, which get a lot more internal promotion and attention.

But, smaller projects are often the building block upon which later bigger projects are built on. They also carry their own set of unique risks and challenges specifically because they are smaller in scopy. It’s the smaller projects that will often experience scope creep and come off the rails precisely because they aren’t seen as high up on the agenda.

Let’s take a look at six common challenges posed by smaller projects, and how a project manager can address them in order to deliver the project successfully.

1. The project method doesn’t get scaled

Some businesses are using project methods that are inflexible and difficult to scale down and whilst project management methodologies like PRINCE2 are very scalable, some PMs will still tend to write off any application of methodology as being too unwieldy and bureaucratic for a small project. They may recognise its value in larger projects with big teams, able to fulfil all of the required roles individually, but the methodology must adapt to fit the flexibility and limited team size and budget associated with a small project. Light touch management is often equated to a play it by ear attitude.

Simply put though, project management methodology is irreplaceable and should be adapted not abandoned in the case of smaller projects.

In fact methodologies like PRINCE2 have been designed and adapted over time to be totally scalable method in which almost every aspect of the project organisation – for example documents, stages, defining roles and responsibilities – can be adapted for a smaller project team.

2. Lack of buy-in from senior management

Even a project with a modest budget and no compelling need for senior input needs a senior management sponsor and buy-in from the organisation. Sometimes, projects that don’t seem particularly crucial turn out to be a key forerunner of another, larger project. Projects that don’t have senior management engagement soon stall. They become an easy target if resources are needed elsewhere and it becomes difficult to deliver key pieces of work. In the competition for resources within the organisation, the PM can often find it harder to get bids prioritised.

The key to overcoming this challenge is to emphasise the business case and the reasons the organisation decided to fund the project, not just during the planning phase but throughout the project. Communication to the project board, whilst not overbearing or excessive, should be regular and succinct. The influencing and persuading strategies of a good PM will really come into their own in small projects, where attention and budget can both be in small supply.


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3. Scope begins to creep

When a project is small, it can be subject to scope creep as the organisation adds extra jobs into the project. While these would be ruled out of scope on a larger project, on a smaller one they may escape formal notice. Organisations sometimes find that a small project that was regarded as not worth worrying about has quite rapidly spiralled out of control. Without any changes to the business case, it may have become a much bigger project with a much greater scope.

An agreed project methodology, even though it is scaled down, will prevent this from happening because changes will have to be documented in a change log. At that point, they will also be costed and as the costs rise, so will the attention being paid to the not-now-so-small project.

4. Small teams can be subject to pressure

A small project team can be a stressful place to work and staff may even have welfare issues as a result. This kind of pressure can lead to dissatisfaction and the departure of key team members. This risk should be recognised formally and added to the risk log for the project. Mitigating measures might include stress audits or informal one to ones.

Because there is far less slack in a small team, it’s important not to plan the project too tightly. Make sure the project plan allows for holidays and down time, otherwise the team will be permanently trying to catch up.

Smaller teams are more vulnerable to staff absence so it’s useful if some members can cover more than one skill area and wear multiple hats when required. Whilst it’s unlikely they’ll be experts in many areas, having a broad overview of how processes and systems work across the business areas the project is covering, is gold dust.

Finally, good leadership remains more essential than ever even with fewer team members, as keeping up morale during challenging periods and inspiring loyalty will both be inevitable challenges for the PM.

5. Specialists are hard to access

It can be hard for smaller project teams to get access to specialist resources. There won’t be enough work to justify hiring a contractor or a seconded resource from the main organisation. And the project will find itself at the back of the queue for scarce IT and other resources because bigger, higher profile projects are being sourced first.

The remedy for this lies in project initiation where resources, or the budget to acquire them, need to be identified and approved.

6. Communications and engagement are neglected

These softer areas are as vital as any other deliverable because they ensure acceptance by the business of the project outputs. So scale them down rather than leaving them out and use communication methods that require the least resources while reaching the largest number of people. When there is less vested interest from corporate sponsors and the project board, then it’s important that communication is maintained at all times.

What makes the Perfect Project Manager?

What makes some project managers more successful than others?

What distinguishes them from their peers, and why are they notably more successful and better at delivering projects on time and on budget?

Of course, there are some simple steps that any project manager can take in order to better structure and optimise project delivery, such as using an established project management methodology like PRINCE2. Of course, many of the best project managers excel at balancing the framework and structure of the project methodology they are using against the specific demands of the project they are currently working on. In other words, methodology will only get you so far.

So what are the skills inherent in great project managers? Some may be learnt and acquired through training and experience over the years and others simply come down to attitude and aptitude. Let’s look at some of the main traits then

Strong organisational abilities

More often than not, staged planning is required in project management. Methodologies like PRINCE2 and Six Sigma equip qualified project managers with the skills to analyse the project in its constituent phases but organisational acumen can also be an inherent trait. Some people are just more comfortable managing multiple tasks, people and processes at once, while others will find it very stressful.

Leadership and diplomacy

Effective leadership combines skills that are both acquired and innate, such as emotional intelligence, which includes self assessment, empathy and the ability to listen effectively. A leader has to exercise judgement as to when leadership is required, and when communication is more important. The best PMs inspire loyalty in their teams, which keeps morale up when the project faces serious challenges or conflicts of interest arise.

Another important part of leadership is diplomacy; project managers need to have an awareness as to when tact and discretion are required, particularly when there are competing agendas and interests that may hinder the progress of the project. Finally, leadership also overlaps with good managerial skills; a good leader understands how to manage their team members and guide them with regard to which tasks to prioritise.


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Integrity

Project managers must be able to demonstrate both integrity and accountability in order to achieve the best possible outcomes during and at the end of a project. Loyalty, objectivity and honesty all contribute to this quality. Being able to demonstrate integrity will keep team members on board and motivated to see the project to the end. This relates to reputation and how it is established. Delivering projects often means working with people from across an organisation, all with their own often competing interests, agendas and ways of doing things. Establishing a reputation for integrity will help to establish that all important trust that will enable people to come together towards a shared goal.

Communication

As far as effective project management is concerned, communicating effectively is both a tactic and a skill. Both empathy and insight are required to communicate with people in different departments and at different levels in the organisation. As we’ve discussed, individual agendas and personalities come into play in this context and the ability to talk to people on their level is key to unification behind a common purpose and set of goals. What one person finds urgent and pressing may be an unwelcome distraction for another. Good communication can bridge these divides to some extent, allowing project managers to help team members work effectively and productively.

Another important element of communication is effective feedback, and having in place a reporting structure that creates an atmosphere of openness and transparency. The channels of communication must move in both directions through the project hierarchy, from the project board to the manager and down to the team. These processes must strike the correct balance: too little information leaves team members feeling left in the dark, while too much leads to confusion as to which part of the project to prioritise.

It’s also important to keep open lines of communication outside the project with the wider business and potential users. This is especially the case if buy-in from users is an important goal.

Strategic thinking

Even though a project manager may be using a structured management methodology, project management is not a one size fits all discipline. One core principle of PRINCE2 is the need to adapt the project method to the environment. As well as being management and process driven, project managers need to be strategic thinkers.

Experienced project managers will already have learned to think strategically but being able to plan and adapt to unpredictable situations and having the ability to keep the project on course comes with experience and, at the end of the day, it’s experience that is one of the greatest traits of all.

How to Use Agile Strategies to Manage a Remote Team

Working remotely, or working as a remote based team, has become increasingly popular over the last few years.

And with half the UK workforce being predicted to work remotely by 2020, it is safe to say that this isn’t just a fleeting trend, but the increasingly realised future for businesses around the globe.

Why? Because it makes good sense.

With remote teams distributed around the globe, larger businesses can work on projects around the clock, and the talent pool for potential employees grows exponentially. At its most basic, hiring remote workers simply saves on the operational costs of hiring office space and equipment.

But remote teams are not without their challenges.

If you’re managing a remote team, you need to figure out very early on how your team is going to operate. Obviously, the primary obstacle to overcome is distance. Even if your remote team is only 10 miles away, rather than 4000, the lack of consistent, if any, face to face interaction can be a huge hindrance.

Not only that, but remote teams may also face the following issues too:

  • Coordinating across multiple time zones
  • A lack of clear communication channels
  • Building a rapport and creating a common culture
  • Facilitating collaboration across different cultures
  • Scheduling informal conversations or meetings over different time zones

Whilst these are problems that can greatly affect the management and success of a remote team, they are by no means insurmountable.

The Importance of Structure

For teams to learn how to communicate effectively, share work and facilitate the growth of a consistent culture between offices, you need to first implement a structure to universalise work procedures.

Project teams that embrace structure scale far more efficiently beyond a singular office, as the culture is already set up to fall in place naturally.

Whilst all project management methodologies practice basic tenets that can ground effective communication patterns over the the increasingly distributed team structures of today, your choice of specific project management methodology is important.

Agile Project Management and Remote Teams

Agile project development was originally constructed for teams that were located within close proximity, and placed an emphasis on face to face conversation as the most effective method of communication between team members.

So it may not seem like the most efficient method for managing a remote team.


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However, despite the prevailing belief in the project management industry that Agile teams need to be co-located. There is significant evidence to prove that the highly responsive nature of Agile project management can be adapted to significantly improve the work of remote teams.

With the right implementation, the prioritisation of communication within an Agile framework can be translated to a remote team and serve to help teams negotiate a lot of the issues that can arise from remote working.

With the facilitation of a deliberate culture of communication through universal procedures such as “daily startups,” individual workers can remain in the loop without losing the autonomy, flexibility and trust valued in remote work. Productivity and teamwork is valued over time spent in unnecessarily complex email threads and update meetings.

But how exactly do you adapt Agile to manage a remote team?

Agile Strategies to Manage a Remote Team

Implement a Self-Sufficient Structure

With multiple remote teams, there needs to be a degree of self-sufficiency in how they operate. Each team should be wholly focused on developing a single part of a project, this minimises the amount of necessary collaboration with other teams that may be in disparate time zones. These teams are essentially autonomous.

With an Agile based communication strategy, meaning that teams will frequently share knowledge, support and maintenance becomes much easier. As teams frequently update each other with vital information, it makes it easy for another office to step in and resolve an issue if one emerges when a different team is offline.

Build a Rapport

Agile is a system that requires a solid rapport. As management, build personal connections with the people within your team and, as much as possible, in your remote offices. Positioning yourself as a colleague rather than a distant coworker boosts morale, increases accountability, and builds trusts.

Video conferencing alone can bridge a significant operational gap between teams, as it gives more of an indication of tone, voice and personality than endless email chains. Although it does have its limitations. Video conferencing itself only allows for small windows of communication, rather long term visibility.

To mitigate the artifice of video conferencing, try to cultivate a culture of natural daily stand ups and encourage your team to share forward looking insight – as well as necessary updates. Alongside building a trust between teams, building rapport enables individuals to place themselves within the context of a wider organisation.

And be fair when engaging stand ups across time zones, don’t allow your remote teams to shoulder the burden of unsociable hours.

Encourage a Collaborative Culture

Whilst a universal structure is necessary to improve measurability and uniformity across offices, a collaborative culture is much more beneficial than enforcing a conformity to headquarter culture across your remote offices.

Creating an “us vs. them” culture versus your remote and local teams is one of the fastest ways to facilitate poor project performance. Instead, find and then share successful practices across all of your locations.

Collaboration can be developed through the following:

1. Encouraging Over Communication

It is important to train your team to understand that when transitioning to, or working within, a remote working culture, that it is best to over-communicate – even if it feels unnecessary.

Within offices, decisions can often be made in informal team meetings, hall conversations and over lunches and this can be easily forgotten when working remotely.

If a decision is made, channels ought to be put in place for everyone in each office to be informed of what the decision is and why it was made. The minutiae of these decisions can be lost or glossed over in email chains. A content management system that can consolidate all the important information in an easily browsable database, with notifications and in-app chat tools can mitigate the amount of information lost between teams.

Encourage team members to share information proactively. Communicating daily and keeping to work schedules, can negate delays caused between team members working on outdated information or waiting on replies should an issue arise.

2. Being Clear in Your Definitions

Managing remote teams means that there is no space for ambiguity. Clarifying the definition of ‘done’ in regards to a piece of work on a project, is important to help build rapport and manage expectations.

Ensure that there are uniform standards in place across all remote teams, to make sure that all work is completed to proper spec.

3. Creating Universal Guidelines

Whilst Agile was originally set up for software development, and the guidelines dealt with bug reports and troubleshooting, the principle of creating a universally followed set of protocols across all workers and teams, makes solving potential issues in any industry far easier. A clear, identifiable set of guidelines means that any team, with the shared knowledge, can step in and troubleshoot without disruption.

5 Effective Project Management Methodologies and How to Apply Them

It’s no secret that in the project management industry, project failure is a recurrent problem.

Complex in origin, prevalent project failure can be attributed to many different sources, from companies enforcing overly optimistic project deadlines to inadequate project management.

As a project manager, there isn’t much you can do to change the outside factors affecting your project, but you can mitigate their effects on your project, and give your project the best chance of success through proper project management.

An effective method to streamline and structure your project management processes is by following a formal project management methodology. A Project Management methodology is essentially a model that Project Managers follow for the design, planning, and implementation of their projects. There isn’t one ‘best’ project management methodology to use as each of them comes with their advantages and disadvantages.

The worst thing any Project Manager can do is become too complacent in a single project management methodology and try to apply that same methodology to every project. Often project management methodologies are as idiosyncratic as each project and trying to force your favorite methodology onto every project, just because you’ve had a row of successes with it, can be as much of a recipe for disaster as not using a methodology at all.

It’s wise that in the planning stages of your project, to thoroughly assess the relative merits of each methodology against the requirements and objectives your project. Adaptability is a core competency for any project manager, even if a methodology doesn’t suit your project exactly, many are flexible enough to adapt to a specific project and project team.

Following is the list of the five most popular project management methodologies used today, and when they are most effective.

Waterfall Project Management

Waterfall project management is one of the more traditional project management methodologies. Utilizing a structure that fits its name, waterfall project management follows things through sequentially, beginning with the concept all the way from project inception to completion and conservation. As such, the project requirements defined at the outset often bear little or no alteration.

Waterfall methodology is most often applied to large software development projects as thorough planning and predictability are paramount to the project process and success.

Agile Project Management

Agile and Waterfall are at the opposite ends of the project management methodology spectrum. Whereas waterfall is sequential and predictable, agile project management works on the premise of adaptability and reacting to regular feedback whether from a client or team member.

Agile project management is best utilized when a project requires constant input from the client or management, as this often results in flexible requirements and role responsibilities. It’s most popular with smaller projects or projects with fast paced development schedules.

Critical Chain Project Management

In opposition to both Waterfall and Agile Project Management, Critical Chain Project Management focuses more on rectifying resource problems. As part of Critical Chain Project Management, each project is deconstructed into a core set of elements that create a project timeline. Within this timeline, it is made sure that enough resources are allocated to the critical chain, as well as simultaneously splitting the remaining resources to other tasks to ensure they can operate parallel, and ensuring that there are still enough resources left over in case reassignment is necessary.

Critical chain is useful for teams that either has plenty of resources or enough flexibility within their team’s skill sets to allow a resource driven project plan.

PRiSM

Project management is never one to shy away from a good acronym, and PRiSM is one of the most well-known. Meaning, when broken down, Projects integrating Sustainable Methods, PRiSM was developed by GPM Global to create a sustainably driven methodology that could adequately consider environmental factors, as well as act as an efficient, large-scale, project structure.

Unique, as it is one of the only project management methodologies that requires accreditations, PRiSM is largely used within real estate development or construction projects that may be problematic for the environment it is situated within.

PRINCE2

PRINCE2 is touted as a government endorsed project management methodology and is used as the industry standard across much of the private and public sector in the UK and beyond. PRINCE2, is one of the only other methodologies, alongside PriSM, which requires certification. However, PRINCE2 offers a multitude of courses that are scalable to both your experience and the level of organization the project requires.

Extremely process oriented, requiring each stage of the project to follow its plan and system of processes, PRINCE2 is one of the most complex, yet thorough, methodologies. Due to its vast approach, and its focus on building a range of strong project management skills and applications, PRINCE2 is workable in the majority of project situations.