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What does effective project management look like in an age of AI, remote work, and fast-changing team dynamics?
In an interview with Techopedia, Project management expert Bill Dow shares candid insights on the current state of project leadership, why emotional intelligence still matters, and how teams can be more intentional about their tools, data, and adaptability.
Key Takeaways
- AI can’t deliver value in project forecasting without proper time tracking and data hygiene.
- Remote work remains essential, and rigid return-to-office mandates can harm morale and retention.
- Emotional intelligence is still a vital skill for project managers navigating influence and communication.
- Project managers must embrace continuous learning to keep pace with emerging tech and methods.
- Data curiosity, not data science expertise, is key to making smarter project decisions.
- Choosing PM tools should align with organizational maturity, budget, and realistic adoption strategies.
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About Bill Dow
Bill Dow, PMP, is a recognized expert in Project Management by the Project Management Institute (PMI) for specifically developing and managing Project Management Offices (PMOs). His extensive experience with Project Management and PMOs has enabled him to co-author several comprehensive books available through Amazon.com.
Bill has taught at the college level for over 20 years in Washington State, British Columbia, and Ontario, Canada, and has built and run 10 PMOs across four different companies. He worked at Microsoft for more than 13 years and is now the PMO Director at the University of Washington Medical Center.
Why AI Forecasting Still Needs a Data Foundation
Q: Are companies ready (and employees on board) to use more AI in forecasting?
A: When we’re talking about project forecasting, no, they’re not yet. They’re on board and they’re excited, but they’re not ready yet. It’s around the staffing of projects: How many hours they put in per month, and how many hours per project. Companies don’t do a lot of time tracking, which makes forecasting even harder.
I’ve had great conversations with teams that tell me they are white-collar workers who work in an office and, therefore, they don’t use timesheets. The question is then: “How do you know what your people are working on?” They answer that, actually, they don’t.
The whole concept of AI is going to be around crunching data faster and calculating faster. To take advantage of AI, you have to have the foundations set up. Without that, you’re really going to struggle. We need a shift in attitude. AI isn’t the silver bullet yet.
Remote Work Realities & Leadership Missteps
Q: Will having remote teams continue to have an impact, or do companies have this under control now?
A: The premise of this question is based on what happened during the pandemic. I always point out, though, that a lot of people were working remotely during Y2K. We had teams all over the world. The difference between Y2K and COVID-19 was that the executives went home.
Remote working is not going anywhere. If you think about a project manager, even when they go into the office, they often sit in a conference room all by themselves when all their team members are scattered around in co-working spaces and other offices.
Companies are pulling people back, but that’s a fundamental problem.
I think some people are just going to say: “No, I’m staying at home!” In the US, there are a lot of layoffs at the moment, and so people are going to take a job even if they can’t work from home. It’s a shame.
The success of a company has to be based on people. If you take away the little benefits like flexible working when work output is not being impacted, it really shakes the foundation of a company.
Emotional Intelligence as a Core PM Skill
Q: Will emotional intelligence always have a role in project management?
A: One hundred percent. I go back to the root of project management, which is both an art and a science.
The art is leadership – influence without authority and communication skills. The science is the risk logs, the schedule logs, and the execution of a project.
Emotional intelligence fits into the art side. If we get away from those basics – someone who is really strong in art and not strong in science or vice versa – they’re not going to be a successful project manager.
In this respect, the hiring manager needs to find a project manager with a long game in sight. Recruiters can certainly do the first set of interviews to check whether candidates have the right certifications and whether they fit the minimum requirements. This is the science side.
Then, you need to bring in people who will ask the right questions to ensure that the emotional intelligence is present. They need to ask questions like: “How do you lead without authority? Tell me your communication skills. How do you get that developer to work over the weekend when they don’t directly report to you?”
You can’t lean on either side; you have to be in the middle. You have to be good at art, good at communications, good at presentations, and you must also know how to create a schedule, risk, and issue log.
Staying Relevant Amid Tech & Cultural Shifts
Q: Is it impossible for project managers to keep up with technological and societal changes?
A: I love this question because I think it’s not impossible at all. I think it’s difficult.
I think when you put a lot of projects on a project manager, they’ve got to balance what they’re doing day to day, plus what’s happening. They have to be continuous learners. They have got to be reading and understanding because it gives them a seat at the table.
I do feel like sometimes in project management, this quest for knowledge is sometimes lost. If you’re aware of what’s happening in the wider world of project management, you can bring back elements to your own programmes and projects. A great example is Microsoft Copilot.
I think that you cannot stay in your judicial lane and say that you’re just going to execute programmes and projects and not think about what’s happening around you. You’ll never grow that way. If you care about growing, you’ll find time to do it.
The Role of Data in Modern PM Decision-Making
Q: Do project managers also need to be data scientists?
A: I’m going to say no, but they do need to be data curious. Being a data scientist is an official role.
As a project manager, you’re surrounded by data – risk data, schedule data, financial data, and issue data. They do need to be all over it, asking: “What metrics can we create? What metrics are we hitting? How do we use all that data to make project decisions?”
For SMEs, it might not be possible to have a data scientist on board, so you have to learn how to use data to make project decisions.
Smarter Software Choices for Project Teams
Q: How do companies go about choosing the project management software that they need?
A: Product management software can meet so many different needs.
At the highest level, they might want to look at how mature they are in project management practices in general. If a company is very immature, it isn’t going to work putting a tool on top of that.
They can also look at specifics:
- If it’s a scheduling package, what are their best practices for scheduling?
- Do they have templates?
- Do they have processes to follow?
- How complex are the projects that they’re managing?
- How many teams are involved in a particular project?
- How much of a budget do they have for that software?
- Do they want a cloud-based SaaS solution?
- Do they want desktop applications because that would limit project management software to Microsoft Project and Oracle Primavera?
We often see companies buying the software and trying to plug it into their existing processes. That never works. Also, the whole company has to rally around the software, or it becomes very hard to drive adoption. There’s no silver bullet.
Evaluating Fit: Maturity, Budget & Use Cases
Q: What are the three most important traits of their business in choosing?
A: Maturity. Is it a new company? Has it been around forever? If it’s a mature company, you’ve got the processes in place already.
Budget is next. This is, simply, how much do you want to spend? Companies need to look at the cost per employee per year for a tool and figure out if it will be used often enough or rarely.
Lastly, you need to consider the areas in which employees will be using the software.
Q: What is more important in choosing, the price point or the ability to tailor to a company’s needs?
A: I would say that both are important. You have to tailor to the company’s needs based on some of the questions above.
However, the price point will make a difference. There are some very expensive software packages out there that could sit on desktops and never get fired. Year after year, you’d still be paying those subscription services.
Q: How should a company approach training staff on the new software?
A: Companies need to consider that there are different adult learning styles.
Not everyone learns the same way. You have got to think, look, and talk to learning specialists. Should this training be self-directed? Is this a lecture? Should there be a combination of both? I ran a PMP class several years ago and brought in an instructor. The audience loved it.
Q: Should they pick a provider that offers support?
A: Definitely, especially during the early stages of adoption. Support could be videos, training, or a help desk.
You have to get everyone comfortable with using the software. As time passes, you will see that the three or four people who use it regularly will simply update their knowledge of the components they need.
The Bottom Line
Project management in 2025 demands more than just following frameworks – it calls for digital adaptability and thoughtful tool adoption.
As Bill Dow highlights, success today isn’t about adopting AI for the sake of it or forcing rigid systems onto dynamic teams. It’s about laying the groundwork: building strong data habits, embracing remote flexibility, developing emotionally intelligent leaders, and choosing tools that match organizational maturity and culture.
