A Virtual

Partnership?
How Artificial Intelligence will disrupt
Project Management and change the
role of Project Managers

1
2
Table of Contents

Foreword 05

Moving from Reactive to Proactive 06

Going the extra mile 06

Five ways AI will transform Project Management 08

The future of AI in Project Management - are you ready? 12

Proof of Concept - Combining AI with RPA 16

Points of Contact 18

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4
Foreword
We are living in a time when global megatrends are actively reshaping our world at a rapid pace. These large-scale
macroeconomic and geostrategic forces – which we define as changes in ‘demographics’, the ‘shift in global power’,
‘urbanisation’, ‘climate change’ and ‘technological breakthroughs’ – are raising both profound challenges and
opportunities for governments and business alike. In particular, ‘technological breakthroughs’, and the impact of
advances such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), will have a huge impact on the future of the workforce, including the role
of the project manager.

PwC’s recent analysis of OECD data covering 200,000 jobs in 29 countries1 breaks AI’s job-displacement effect into
three waves: algorithmic (until the early 2020s), augmentation (to the late 2020s) and autonomy (to the mid-2030s).
The first wave will impact relatively few jobs – perhaps 3%. By the mid-2030s, however, up to 30% of jobs could
be automated – mostly those involving clerical and manual tasks. The need for upskilling the workforce is clear: as
technology evolves at an ever-increasing pace, so too will employees’ skill sets in order to adapt and keep pace with
such changes, so allowing all to thrive in the new era of AI.

AI will change how the discipline of project management and the role of project managers will function in the future.
By 2030, 80% of the work of today’s project management discipline will be eliminated as AI takes on traditional
project management functions such as data collection, tracking and reporting.2 In this context, the role of the project
manager will shift from ‘managers’ to ‘leaders’ who are able to integrate AI capabilities into new practices and
procedures, allowing for a greater focus on activities requiring soft skills such as ideation, communication, listening,
problem solving and emotional intelligence.

AI can be used to analyse disparate and ‘big’ data with greater speed and dexterity to derive actionable, tangible
insights. In this way, project managers will be empowered with more and better quality data and insights to improve
the speed, quality and accuracy of decision-making throughout the project lifecycle.

In this report, we outline the five main areas where AI will transform the practice of project management and examine
the characteristics of future project managers and organisations. We highlight the key considerations to make before
implementing AI-enabled project management software and the important next steps that organisations can take
today to prepare for a future where AI and humans will work together.

Riyadh Al Najjar
KSA Country Leader Faisal Al-Sarraj
Transformation Management BU Leader Transformation Management BU Partner
Middle East Region Middle East Region

1 PwC, ‘Will robots really steal our jobs? An international analysis of the potential long term impact of automation’, 2018
2 Gartner, ‘How AI will reinvent Program or Portfolio Management’, 2018
5
Moving from Reactive to Proactive

Going the extra mile to improve the collaboration between their different
functions, increasing efficiency and effectiveness while
reducing cost and effort.
Project management has evolved over time to help
organisations identify project, programme and portfolio Current project management tools and software can
benefits and achieve their strategic objectives. The assist programme and project managers in optimising
origins of project management date back to the their efficacy and tracking key metrics against KPIs
Egyptian epoch; the pyramids of Giza, built 4,500 and project milestones. However, they cannot predict
years ago, are considered the first structures built ‘what if’ and future scenarios or proactively alert
using project management practices. Nevertheless, it project managers before a major issue arises.
was not until 1977 that the first project management
software emerged.3 In addition, current tools provide information in ‘pull’
format and not ‘push’. In the increasingly complex
Developments catalysed by the advent of the internet project management environments that we see today,
have dramatically changed business practices, the need for such tools to proactively ‘think’ and ‘do’
including project management. For example, the on behalf of the project manager and provide on-
development of Software as a Service (SaaS) and demand information to support their efficiency and
cloud systems have allowed stakeholders to access effectiveness is clear.
and navigate project information, dashboards and
reports at any time and from anywhere, with an
increasing emphasis on real-time data displays. By
using enhanced tools for streamlining standardised
project management processes, organisations are able

Fig.1 The evolution of project management 4 IoT

AI

Project management has been practised for thousands of years dating

Big
back to the Egyptian epoch. (Pyramid of Giza) Data
VR

1917
2000 -
1960s Present
Henry Gantt created
a scheduling
The development of
diagram called the The Work
Gantt chart. Breakdown 1990s SaaS and
cloud-based
Structure (WBS) project management
approach was software and
created. The WBS
1950s remains a common
1970s - Developments advancements
related to the continue to emerge
project 1980s internet dominated (i.e. ASANA,
management tool. this period and BASECAMP...)
Organisations changed business
started applying Growth of project practices
project management dramatically,
management tools software including Project
and techniques (i.e. businesses such Management
CPM & PERT) as Oracle, Artemis,
and Scitor
Corporation

3 Project Smart, ‘The Evolution of Project Management’, https://www.projectsmart.co.uk/evolution-of-project-management.php

4 *History of Project Management Software: How It Developed: https://project-management-software.financesonline.com/history-of-project-manage-
ment-software-how-it-developed 6
**SaaS and cloud-based project management software: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_management_software
One of the major breakthroughs that will affect the in project management based on total impact, closely
discipline of project management is AI, which is ranked behind Cloud Computing and the Internet of Things
by the Project Management Institute (PMI) in its ‘Pulse (IoT). 5
of the Profession’ research as the third top disruptor

AI is ranked by PMI as the third top

disruptor in project management
“Artificial Intelligence is the
designing and building of
intelligent agents that receives
percepts from the environment
and takes actions that affect that
environment.”
1 2 3
Cloud Internet of AI
Computing Things
– Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach, Stuart Russell and Peter Norvig (Pearson, 2009)

AI has created a multitude of opportunities for different 23% have introduced AI in their business but only for
industries and fields, and is reshaping the way ‘limited uses’. Globally, the overall sentiment is that AI
organisations take strategic decisions. will be a catalyst for transformation across regions 7
and the AI market is estimated to increase global GDP
In PwC’s most recent ‘22nd Annual Global CEO 14% by 2030 (adding US$15.7 trillion to the market).
Survey’, 85% of CEOs agreed that AI would In the Middle East alone, the potential impact of AI is
significantly change the way they do business in the expected to be US$320 billion by 2030: clearly, this is
next five years.6 In the Middle East, this number was something which cannot be ignored.8
even higher at 91%. In fact, 78% of CEOs in the Middle
East see AI having a bigger impact than the internet.
And yet, from an implementation perspective, only
43% have plans in the next three years and another

Fig.2 The potential impact of AI in the Middle East

Egypt:
AI contribution of
US $42.7 bn in Saudi Arabia: UAE:
2030 (7.7% of GDP) AI contribution of AI contribution of
US $135.2 bn in US $96 bn in 2030
2030 (12.4% of (13.6% of GDP)
GDP)

GCC4:
(Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar)

AI contribution of US $45.9
bn in 2030 (8.2% of GDP)
5 PMI, ‘Pulse of the Profession. Next Practices, Maximizing the benefits of disruptive technologies on projects’, 2018 (Base: 1,730)
6 PwC, ‘22nd Annual Global CEO Survey’ (Base: 1,378)
7 PwC, ‘22nd Annual Global CEO Survey’ 7
8 PwC, ‘Sizing the prize: What’s the real value of AI for your business and how can you capitalise?’
 1 2

Reduced Cost Greater insights

with Improved for Enhanced
Efficiency Decision-making

Organisations can benefit from AI integration with the 2. Greater insights for enhanced decision-making: The
project management office (PMO) in two key ways: core capabilities provided by AI (predictive analysis,
expert recommendations and risk management
1. Cost reductions with improved efficiency: With AI support) provide PMOs, CEOs and management
substituting repetitive administrative tasks, project teams with greater insights and actionable
managers can spend their time more efficiently intelligence to make key strategic decisions.
working on higher value activities, ultimately leading
to increased utility and cost reductions.

Five ways AI will transform Project Management

AI-enabled project management tools give greater

support and accuracy to the decision-making process
and could be crucial in achieving successful project
management in the near future across the following five
key areas:

Fig.3 Five ways AI will transform project management

Business Risk Human Capital Action Taker Active

Insights Management Optimisation Assistance

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Business Insights

1. Better insights with more relevant knowledge 3. Research new trends and experts

Filtering data to enable management to derive actionable i.e. Virtual Assistants can register for associations,
insights & strategies. publications and find content & experts.

AI-enabled project management tools can provide AI will potentially be able to inform project managers
more insights about the possible outcomes for a of new trends and changes in standards to any field,
project, which will enhance the quality and agility of ensuring that the project manager is always up to date
critical decision-making. with global trends and best practice. Virtual assistants
will be able to register for associations, online
By identifying relationships and trends in data, the communities, publications etc. to find relevant content
system can remove excessive information and ‘white and experts who can enrich project content. Not only
noise’, enabling management to focus solely on the that, virtual assistants can also approach those experts
most relevant and important information to derive and discuss potential involvement in projects.
actionable insights and strategies.

2. Optimised schedules 4. Enhanced data and improved portfolios

Duration and resource requirements for activities based Techniques to provide recommendations on prioritising
on expert knowledge and lessons learned. projects & portfolios (i.e. Fuzzy Logic).

Machine learning algorithms support the optimisation One of the issues facing existing project management
of project schedules to minimise the total cost based tools in general is the quality and availability of data,
on resource constraints. For example, predictive with some project managers entering minimal or no
forecasting can be used to identify potential excess data into their project management tools. Machine
or shortage in resources at certain points during the learning algorithms can determine likely values for
project lifecycle. Machine learning algorithms can missing data and the subsequent AI system can
also be used to provide estimates of the duration and provide recommendations for entering accurately the
resource requirements for project activities based on missing data. AI can therefore solve issues in data
expert knowledge and lessons learned from previous input and provide the system itself with new complete
projects. data sets to learn from. As AI predictions are only as
good as the data they are supplied with, enhanced
data results in enhanced decision-making. Additionally,
incorporating techniques like Fuzzy Logic9 can provide
recommendations on how to categorise, prioritise and
identify dependencies between projects in a portfolio.

9 Fuzzy Logic is a form of many-valued logic in which the truth-values of variables may be any real number between 0 and 1 inclusive. It is employed to
handle the concept of partial truth, where the truth-value may range between completely true and completely false, and it is thus suitable for dealing with
imprecise or inaccurate values. 9
Risk Management

Effective risk management has to be proactive. AI

Fig.4 AI transforms project management by providing risk
enables predictions that are more accurate than
management
traditional software solutions in determining risk
responses, probabilities and their impact. AI can
AI can run multiple suggest corrective action based on historical data
scenarios and continuously track progress to warn the project
manager when risk arises. This includes risks related
to people, vendors, entities etc on the project. Cost
assumptions and time constraints can be examined
by combining current project data with historic data to
run multiple scenarios and generate, assess and rank
AI can suggest viable outcomes. AI can also incorporate real-time
possible remedies data, for example using natural language processing
to scan emails and documents for signs of potential
impending issues and liabilities. It can be used, for
example, in reviewing future contracts to predict
potential unseen risks based on previous project
performance.

Human Capital Optimisation

Fig.5 AI transforms project management by supporting human
capital optimisation
There are several areas where AI can support human
capital optimisation in project management, for
example by incorporating smart educational content
Calculating
to meet the needs of the individual at any particular
best
time, and by building this into life-long learning allocation of
opportunities. Similarly, risky employee behaviour can resources
be used to identify cohorts requiring additional training.
Identifying
AI can calculate the best allocation of resources by the right skill
identifying the right employees for different jobs based for the right
on their skills and availability. Previous success factors job
can easily be taken into account, for example being
cautious about placing the same person into three Pinpointing
consecutive high priority projects because historical training needed
data show the likelihood of increased fatigue. Using for a specific
data, AI systems warn project managers on resource employee
capacity and utilisation issues and suggest preventive
Predicting
actions, while flagging a resource excess or shortage.
resources
excess or
AI-enabled project management systems can advise
shortage
on when and in which skills a particular employee Providing
needs training. They can even provide feedback feedback about
about the behaviour and competency of the project the project
managers themselves based on the decisions, or lack manager’s
of decisions, that are made. behaviour and
competancy

10
36%
36% of the executives surveyed called the
convergence of AI with other technologies a top
challenge for 201910

Action Taker AI can then perform specific analysis and provide

insights or perform tasks such as updating project
AI can transform project management by amplifying progress reports and schedules. For example, in
benefits from other technological breakthroughs such the construction industry, companies are combining
as analytics, Robotics Process Automation (RPA), the drone technology with AI by using drones to monitor
IoT, blockchain and, eventually, quantum computing. In and capture information from sites and then using
a recent PwC report, 36% of the executives surveyed deep learning to correctly identify people, machinery
called the convergence of AI with other technologies and materials. AI-enabled project management tools
a top challenge for 2019 10. DevOps techniques can can then identify risks/issues that require direct
help manage this convergence by bringing diverse intervention, providing recommendations and progress
specialists together to keep projects flowing smoothly. reporting to the project manager and intervening
AI is often the trigger for several digital elements (such directly if needed.
as IoT devices) to act according to specific conditions
and acquire information. As people look to solve a
problem with AI, they need to determine what data
they need. This data may not exist in current systems,
and in many industries sensors and sensor inter-
connectivity through the IoT are the solution.

Fig.6 Example: AI transforms project management by amplifying benefits from other technological breakthroughs such as the IoT

Observe/
Capture
Data Sets
AI Process

Trigger Actions
Construction
Project
Take Action
Active Assistance

One of the most common services carried out by • Actively interacting with project managers to inform
the PMO is status and progress reporting to different them of overdue tasks, schedule constraints and
stakeholders and top management. Applying AI requests from project stakeholders, and also
will assist the project managers by performing providing updates to their current workload and task
administrative and repetitive tasks on their behalf, management
therefore augmenting their skills.
• Listening to meetings to assign tasks to people with
These tasks could include: target dates, send out actions and follow-ups

• Data entry, collection and management AI virtual assistants serving as project assistants
can take over some tasks and provide initial
•Preparing and updating project schedules with inputs insights based on existing data. For instance,
from multiple sources virtual assistants could organise meetings, analyse
variances and send reminders to the team.
•Generating status reporting and flagging exceptions to
bring them to the project manager’s attention

10 PwC, ‘2019 AI predictions: Six AI priorities you can’t afford to ignore’, 2018
11
The future of AI in Project Traits of future project managers

Management - are you ready? In the future digital era, where humans and AI work
together, project managers will need to build a skill set
Organisations and project managers need to be that focuses on the areas where AI falls short: these
prepared for the new AI era where humans and are the core ‘people skills’ or ‘21st century skills’. The
machines will collaborate to deliver projects, execute use of AI will also require a diverse and flexible skill set
strategies and provide insights to key stakeholders. to be able to cope with future challenges.
PwC research has found that, while 73% of people
don’t believe that technology can replace the human According to research commissioned by APM and
mind entirely, the synergies for collaboration between undertaken by PwC (a study of the contribution
the two are clear.11 Automation, including robotics and of project management and projects to the UK’s
AI, is advancing quickly and has the power not only to economy and society – ‘The Golden Thread’13), the
change the types of jobs we do, but also to alter how most important skills are leadership and management
many jobs there are and how much we value them. skills, budgeting and financial management, planning
The recent PwC report ‘The Workforce of the Future: and monitoring, along with strategic management,
Middle East Edition’ revealed that the ‘Brains and bots digital skills and risk/opportunity management. All of
in collaboration’ category had a high risk of reducing these were rated as important by more than 80% of
the number of human jobs and replacing them with businesses.14
technology, with the Middle East having a higher risk
rating than the world as a whole in 86% of the areas As business-as-usual tasks become automated, soft
questioned.12 Crucially, less than 28% of Middle skills increase in value. It is essential for project leaders
Eastern respondents were exploring how robotics and to have strong communication, negotiation skills and
AI could enable the redesign of human work in their emotional intelligence to inspire teams and lead them
organisation, compared with 40% globally. collaboratively. According to the latest PMI ‘Pulse of
the Profession’ report’ the most commonly cited new
skills for organisations are soft skills at 45%.15 Four out
Project managers of the future of five respondents reported that soft skills are more
important today than they were five years ago. The
Will AI replace project managers? need for soft skills was closely followed by computer/
web/IT and management/project management, both at
Project managers need to capitalise on the 39%.
opportunities generated by technological disruption,
and in many ways be the champions of new Considering that AI acts as a project management’s
technologies as they emerge. However, according to ‘virtual partner’; project leaders must have an
PwC’s ‘The Workforce of the Future’ survey, 73% of innovative mindset and customise their knowledge to
people think technology can never replace the human drive this digital transformation forward. Having strong
mind. Indeed, AI tools rely heavily on data input from ‘digital know-how’ and data science skills is key,
project leaders and without their guidance, AI systems alongside security and privacy knowledge. The legal
will not be able to perform distinctly. and regulatory knowledge to manage contracts is also
important.
Both AI and project managers depend on each other;
the project manager is required to have the right skill Figure 7 depicts how AI and project managers will
set to be able to manage AI and AI is inoperative collaborate in the digital era.
without the input and added value of a skilled project
manager. As awareness of the profession continues to increase,
it is expected that a greater proportion of project work
Fig.7 PMI: ‘Pulse of the Profession’ report, 2018
will earn more distinct attribution for the profession
itself, giving more recognition and appreciation to the
role of the project manager.
80%
of innovators’
organisations are
45% recruiting project
leaders with the
Said the most skill sets that are
commonly cited necessary to drive
new skills for the organisations
project managers forward into a
were soft skills digital environment

11 PwC, ‘The Workforce of the Future: The competing forces shaping 2030’, 2018
12 PwC, ‘The Workforce of the Future: Middle East edition’, 2019
13 Association for Project Management & PwC Research, ‘The golden thread- A study of the contribution of project management and projects to the UK’s
economy and society’, 2019
14 Association for Project Management & PwC Research, ‘The golden thread- A study of the contribution of project management and projects to the UK’s
economy and society’, 2019
12
15 PMI, ‘The Project Manager of the Future: Developing Digital-Age Project Management Skills to Thrive in Disruptive Times’, 2018
16 PM Network, January 2019, Volume 33, Number 1
 Fig.8 The Project manager’s skill set compared with AI

Project Managers AI
21st Century Skills Virtual Partner

The organisation’s role in the new AI era Organisations will require a mix of traditional business
and management skills, technical and digital skills.
A culture of adaptability and lifelong learning will be They need to create a culture that embraces disruption
crucial for shifting today’s project management roles as an opportunity to achieve success. Furthermore,
into the future; both soft skills and digital skills will they need to revisit the processes and methodologies
be required in collaboration with each other more used to ensure greater agility and flexibility. As digital
than ever before. Recent PwC research found that becomes an ever-increasing part of an organisation’s
only 33% of HR leaders were felt to have an in-depth DNA, there are many needs to consider (other than
understanding and insight into the technological increased information accuracy and time-saving) in
landscape.17 Governments and business need to work order to increase the maturity level of portfolio and
together to help people adjust to new technologies project management practices and shift gear from
through upskilling, retraining and career changes reactive to proactive.
by investing in formal processes to develop project
manager competencies and skills. According to PMI’s
‘Pulse of the Profession’ report18, the top drivers
for effectively managing disruptive technologies in
organisations are:

1. Skills, training and 3. Tools and

aadevelopment aaApproaches

By investing in talent, increasing 2. Culture By using digital tools and

innovation and seeking digital era skills. approaches and reducing paperwork.

Creating a digital environment and

viewing disruption as an opportunity.

17 PwC, ‘The Workforce of the Future: Middle East edition’, 2019

18 PMI, ‘The Project Manager of the Future: Developing Digital-Age Project Management Skills to Thrive in Disruptive Times’, 2018
13
Key Considerations and knowledge when managing new projects that may
have an unfamiliar scope or unique challenges will
As with any digital transformation, organisations impact the quality of data put into the AI system and
need to be mindful of the main obstacles (financial, therefore impact the outcome. Understanding what AI
infrastructure, cultural etc) and work on plans to can do is crucial for successful implementation and the
overcome them. PwC’s 2018 ‘Global Digital IQ’ realisation of benefits.
survey found that inflexible processes and a lack of
properly skilled teams are the top two barriers to digital Digital transformation relies on an organisation’s ability
initiatives, followed by outdated technologies.19 And to integrate technology rapidly and tools that are
when implementing AI, there are additional challenges evolving. The changes brought about by AI disruption
that are unique to this scale of transformation. are coming, whether organisations are ready for it or
not. It is important to start preparing today, as early
For example, current AI tools rely heavily on data adopters will gain a competitive advantage in the AI
input from project managers. Given the general lack ecosystems of the future.
of industrial experience of project managers, AI’s risk
identification and prediction ability is subsequently
impacted. In addition, the initial lack of experience

Fig.9 Top barriers to successful digital initiatives

Inflexible/slow process Lack of skilled teams Outdated technologies

39% 39% 38% 37% 35% 29%

MEA World MEA World MEA World

How ready are workforces for change possibility of losing their jobs due to automation.20 As
humans work increasingly with advanced technology,
Organisations should be aware that they will face a the core skills required need to change in order to allow
massive wave of change and shifts in their workforce employees to interact successfully with technology.
by the invasion of these disruptive technologies. These new skills will fail to meet expectations without
They should really be considering now the impact of proper change management practices. Once solid
technological disruption and embedding it into the foundations are in place, organisations will be well
culture of their workplace and into the mindset of positioned to embrace disruption. According to the
employees. PMI ‘Pulse of the Profession’ report, 28% of project
professionals say that poor change management was
According to the PwC’s ‘Workforce of the Future’ a primary cause of project failure.21
survey, 37% of workers were worried about the

Fig.10 PMI, ‘Pulse of the Profession’ 2018 & PwC, ‘Workforce of the Future’ 2017

28% 37% 73%

of project professionals say of workers were worried of people don’t believe
that poor change about the possibility of losing that technology can
management was a primary their jobs due to automation replace the human mind
cause of project failure during entirely
the past 12 months

19 2018 Global Digital IQ Survey Regional Focus: Middle East and Africa, March 2019
20 PwC, ‘The Workforce of the Future: The competing forces shaping 2030’, 2018
21 PMI, ‘The Project Manager of the Future: Developing Digital-Age Project Management Skills to Thrive in Disruptive Times’, 2018 14
Adapt and adopt – key actions to take now:

• Assess your organisation’s readiness to apply AI in

project management from the perspectives of its
culture, people, project management processes and
data/automation

• Update your strategy to embrace AI in project

management, make sure it is aligned with your AI
organisation investment strategy

• Promote creativity, design thinking, leadership skills

and innovation in order to capitalise on AI22

• Leverage technology by being prepared to invest to

improve business processes and increase efficiency23

• Increase awareness of digitisation and introduce AI

into project management24

• Upskill the workforce alongside the AI investment

strategy so helping the organisation to integrate
AI and digital technology into the learning and
development agenda

How can organisations minimise resistance today and what can they do to thrive in the digital era tomorrow?

Fig.11 How organisations can minimise resistance to thrive in the digital era

Leverage
Integrate
Update technology by being
prepared to invest in AI and digital
your strategy to technology to improve technology within the
implement AI in business processes learning and
Project Management and increase efficiency development agenda

Assess Promote Increase

your organisation creativity, design awareness of
readiness thinking, leadership digitisation and the
skills and innovation in introduction of AI into
order to capitalise on AI Project Management

22 PwC, ‘The Workforce of the Future: Middle East edition’, 2019

23 PwC, ‘The Workforce of the Future: Middle East edition’, 2019
24 PwC, ‘The Workforce of the Future: Middle East edition’, 2019 15
Proof of Concept – Combining AI with
RPA
Sample of data points collected in one of 60+ projects on average on a monthly basis that
PwC Transformation Management BU’s resulted in 1,920 readings every month, accumulating
over 30,000 quality compliance readings between April
engagements 2017 and December 2018. The data was analysed and
several reports generated to provide better insights on
While supporting PwC clients to deliver programmes
trends, forecasts and project managers’ performance.
and projects efficiently to meet their strategic
objectives, the PwC Transformation Management
Additional data are stored in the project management
BU team collects, monitors and manages massive
system, such as the database of risks and issues
amounts of project-related data. For example, the PwC
(around 2,800), change requests, schedules with
Transformation Management BU team developed a
baselining history and project managers’ and
project management Quality Compliance Methodology,
resources utilisation information. This data, in addition
consisting of 32 checkpoints covering six quality
to the 1,600+ monthly quality compliance readings and
compliance areas, for one of its clients. These
the accumulated 30,000+ readings, could provide a
checkpoints were used to monitor and manage around
significant input into an AI system.

Fig.12 Monthly cycle of project quality compliance checks in one of PwC’s clients

Example of one of PwC Transformation Management BU’s engagements consisting of reviewing on average 60+ projects
monthly

Project Data are collected from Massive Projects data are Data were analysed and
project teams monitored through: several reports were generated
• 32 checkpoints to provide better insights on
• 6 quality compliance trends, forecasts, and project
categories mangers’ performance

16
As a proof of concept, the Transformation based on their performance, previous compliance
Management BU team combined RPA25 with AI to scores and anticipated improvement. The results of the
automate the ‘project management quality compliance compliance checks were stored in a database that was
methodology’ described earlier. A subset of five quality accessible to the AI virtual assistant. The robot also
compliance checkpoints (out of 32) was selected created and shared via email a comprehensive report
covering four of the compliance categories. The related to the compliance check.
compliance check process was initiated automatically
by the system, where the robot selected 10 projects

Fig.13 Sample report generated by virtual assistant

Compliance Summery – Monthly Compliance % of each project

Overall Compliance 52%
- Total # of projects reviewed: 5
- Overall Compliance %age this month: 52%
%100
- Total # of checkpoints evaluated: 5 100%
- No new projects added for compliance this month
%80

%60
60% 60%
%40
40%
%20
0%
Compliance % of each Check Point %0
Overall Compliance 52% Project 1 Project 2 Project 3 Project 4 Project 5

Detailed Results
70%
60%
Project Name / Project Charter Project Deliverables Active Risks Active Issues Expected
50% 60% 60% 60% Compliance and PMP exist Schedule exist (Checking (online system) (online system) Compliance
Check point (checking exists and has folders) %age
40% (equally Folders) marked
30% 40% 40% weighted) initiation and
planning
20% phases marked
as 100%
10% complete
(checking MS
0% project)

Project Charter Project Schedule Deliverables Active Risks Active Issues Project 1 1 1 1 1 1 100%
and PMP exist exists and has exist (Checking (online system) (online system)
marked initiation folders) Project 2 1 0 0 1 1 60%
(checking
Folders) and planning
Project 3 0 1 0 1 1 60%
phases marked as
100% complete Project 4 0 1 1 0 0 40%

Project 5 0 0 0 0 0 0%

Overall 40% 60% 40% 60% 60% 52%

The AI virtual assistant provides a natural language The estimated time, based on the team’s experience,
interface to the report, allowing users to query the data for a human to perform a compliance check of similar
in a ‘human-like’ way. The virtual assistant is able to size is around three days. These checks are naturally
answer questions about the projects that went through prone to human error and timely communication and
the compliance checks, as well as their respective reporting is always a challenge. The robot performed
compliance results. Providing access for senior the same task, accurately and effectively, in up to
executives to the AI virtual assistant via their mobile six minutes. The virtual assistant made the life of
devices proved extremely useful, as the interface the project manager much easier - facilitating the
significantly improves usability, enabling access to the access of important information to any executive at a
information smartly and efficiently. The executives were previously unprecedented level of speed and accuracy.
also able to provide input to the virtual assistant on This is just a relatively straight-forward example of how
future compliance reviews. we can utilise AI and robotics in project management.
The sky is the limit!
The robot analysed the results of the compliance Fig.14 PwC Chatbot
check and came up with recommendations to improve
quality, such as actions to be taken by the project
manager or the PMO director. These recommendations
were shared with the respective team members via
email as well as through the virtual assistant. Based on
the received responses and changes in the projects’
progress, the robot redefined the scope for the next
compliance check.

25 Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is a form of business process automation technology based on the notion of software robots or artificial intelligence
(AI) workers
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Points of Contact
Riyadh Al Najjar Faisal Al-Sarraj
KSA Country Leader Transformation Management BU partner
Transformation Management BU Leader Middle East Region
[email protected] [email protected]

Mohammad Alkhaldi Fauaz Labadi

Transformation Management BU partner Transformation Management BU Director
Middle East Region Middle East Region
[email protected] [email protected]

Areej Abukar Ahmad Alshaikh

Transformation Management BU Senior Transformation Management BU Manager
Manager Middle East Region
Middle East Region [email protected]
[email protected]

Ayham Fayyoumi Hamza Zaidan

G&PS Consulting Senior Manager Transformation Management BU Manager
Middle East Region Middle East Region
[email protected] [email protected]

Lana Al Shaer Dr. Scott Nowson

Transformation Management BU Senior Artificial Intelligence Lead
Consultant Middle East Region
Middle East Region [email protected]
[email protected]

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