New APM paper shines light on the project profession’s future

Digital disruption is among the trends that will have the biggest impact on the project profession in the near future, states a new paper by Association for Project Management (APM).

The future of the project profession shares insights from APM’s recent summit at Windsor Castle, where senior project experts and C-suite leaders shared ideas on pressing issues relevant to project, programme and portfolio management.

In an era of rapid technological and societal change, issues such as digital disruption, sustainability and people management are high on the agenda. The paper explores topics including AI and data, the circular economy and changing expectations of leadership, with contributions from leading experts. It advises how project professionals can contribute to change at a strategic level, helping their projects – and their organisations – to succeed in a challenging operating environment.

Among the information shared is a poll from the Windsor Summit showing the trends attendees feel will most affect the future of project management.

Despite the expected disruption, there are reasons to be optimistic too. Another poll by APM found nearly three-quarters (74%) of project professionals felt that advancements in AI will be positive for their respective industry sectors. Practitioners can prepare by becoming more data literate.

Nick Smallwood, Chief Executive of the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) commented: "There is always going to be a role for project managers. We just need to be more data savvy."

Read APM’s white paper The future of the project profession here.