![Follow me](https://www.aipmo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/fb.png"){kind=small}
AI has enormous potential to transform organizations, but more than half of all AI projects never get past the prototype stage. Why do so many AI projects fail? How can you make a difference and lead an AI project to success? The good news is that if you’re a project manager, you already have 90% of the skills needed to manage an AI initiative in your organization.
In this book you’ll discover how to demystify AI and gain true AI literacy, real-world Generative AI and ChatGPT best practices, the evolving role of project managers in AI-driven projects, five practical, hands-on steps to build your AI expertise, ten best practices for managing any AI project, how to avoid the most common project pitfalls, conquering the ethical challenges that sabotage AI initiatives, the three pivotal future trends in project management, and how to lead an AI transformation in your organization.
This essential guide offers a step-by-step approach to understanding Artificial Intelligence and applying it to your project management tasks. Each chapter provides a comprehensive plan to develop your AI knowledge, integrate it into your daily work, and successfully implement it within your business.
By the end of this book, you will gain confidence in understanding AI, develop a strategy for managing practical AI applications, discover how to integrate commercial AI tools to enhance efficiency, decision-making, risk assessment, and problem-solving in your projects, accelerate your work by adding ten powerful ChatGPT techniques to your project management toolkit, boost your career and develop a forward-thinking mindset, and learn to profit from emerging AI trends.
Rating: 6.75 – Project Management in the Age of AI: Strategies, Techniques, and Best Practices by Paul J. Clapis effectively captures the current trend that project management must embrace AI. The book provides a broad overview of the topic and offers foundational knowledge that is ideal for project managers who have reached the point where, as AI beginners, they need to address the subject in their own interest.
The author highlights the history of the advent of AI, the foundational mechanisms on which AI is built, its current domains of application, and its limitations. The author also acknowledges that the content of the book may become rapidly obsolete due to the fast pace of the technology industry and addresses this by updating the book and offering readers the opportunity to receive future updates.
The book is written for practitioners and stands out through its practical applicability. In addition to providing technical fundamentals, the author simplifies the AI concept for the layman through high-level explanations combined with practical applications of how to use AI in projects to become more efficient. Examples include the use of tone in prompts, the use of email conversations in ChatGPT to generate reports, practical advice on how to use ChatGPT, and a list of AI do’s and don’ts. The discussion of current tools such as Trello, MS Teams, JIRA, and others in conjunction with AI provides useful ideas, while the extensive section on opportunities for project managers highlights both the benefits and limitations of AI. A relatively large chapter is also devoted to ethics and moral boundaries, serving as an important addition to the subject matter.
The text is well structured and easy to read. The author provides clear and accessible foundational knowledge and presents logical connections and conclusions in a way that is easy to follow. The structure forms a framework that builds upon itself, from the basics to detailed tips and tricks. Although some sections delve into technical aspects, the author advises non-technical readers that they may skip these parts. The many real-life examples and use cases provide a broad foundation for the practical application of the recommendations and help illustrate how the concepts can be applied in practice.
Paul Clapis brings 30 years of experience in academic research, project consulting, and IT. This experience is reflected throughout the book and supports the practical guidance provided. While the book’s strength lies more in practical utility than innovation, it successfully balances overview, depth, and usefulness for project managers of all experience levels.
The cover is appealing and brings people and machines together through a well-designed graphic. The Kindle formatting is easy to read, although not particularly original. The primary area for improvement is research quality, as referencing is inconsistent and some quotations are not referenced. The visuals support the explanation of foundational concepts but remain basic and primarily functional. Overall, this is a valuable and practical introduction to AI for project managers seeking to expand their knowledge and professional capabilities in a rapidly evolving field.
The cover is appealing and brings people and machines together through a well-designed graphic. The size and color of the title attract the eye to the most important elements, particularly “Project” and “Age of AI.” The author also uses a human head silhouette, which the reviewer interprets as representing a transition from a current or traditional approach, symbolized by the red area with the presence of a computer and tablet, toward a future system based on AI, symbolized by the blue area. The person inside the head is interpreted as representing the project manager moving from the traditional approach toward the new world of AI, with the circle in between representing the path from the red point to the blue point.
The author’s name and title (PhD) are placed prominently, establishing authority and serving as a strong marketing approach to encourage potential readers to explore the book further.
The Kindle formatting is easy to read, although it is not particularly original. The all-black-and-white layout is somewhat monotonous, but it helps the reader focus on what is important.
The author explains many of the best practices using real-life examples and use cases. These examples are diverse and provide a foundation for the practical application of the recommendations and courses of action. They help illustrate how the concepts can be applied in practice and support the reader in translating the guidance into real-world situations.
However, the case studies and real-life examples are generally presented at a high level and lack depth in their analysis. While they effectively demonstrate the concepts, they do not explore the underlying challenges, decision-making processes, or outcomes in sufficient detail.
Paul Clapis offers helpful tips on how project managers can use LinkedIn to position themselves effectively. He brings 30 years of experience in academic research, combined with a background in project consulting and IT. He has developed expertise in the field of AI and recognized early on the importance of the topic. This experience is reflected throughout the book and supports the practical guidance provided. This is the author’s first book.