Practical AI for PMs | 04.11.24
Hi, there.
Ed here.
A few weeks ago, I gave a talk to the Western Lake Erie Chapter of the PMI on the application of AI in Project Management. We covered a lot of ground, but I got the most follow-up questions on a framework I first workshopped at this event.
The framework is my take on the classic Eisenhower Matrix, adapted as a guide on areas where AI can be most effective and appropriate in your workflow.
I adapted this matrix to help guide project managers inundated with new AI tools, unsure which to adopt to maximize productivity and ROI and which were unnecessary flash.
The goal of applying the framework is to give weights to the amount of AI vs Human input/output to a given task or process.
Given the current shortcomings of the available AI models, namely predictability, repeatability, and accuracy, the more important and urgent a task is, the more human oversight is required. In my opinion, this includes excluding AI altogether in some instances (Urgent/Important).
On the other hand, for low-stakes, low-urgency tasks, AI can take complete control with no human intervention (Not Urgent/Not Important).
For tasks falling somewhere in between, the lines become blurrier, and the application of AI becomes a fluid continuum depending on the user and their priorities.
While the weights are certainly up for discussion (see the poll below), I have found this framework valuable when deciding which aspects of my workflow get an AI upgrade and which are perfectly fine still being done with pen and paper.
Resources I Found Interesting:
- If you want to understand where one of the top minds in AI, Andrew Ng, believes how AI Agents will soon manage complex workflows, watch this easily digestible use case video.
- Here is a tremendous resource center on AI for project management from the Project Management Institute (PMI).
- Finally, if you’re feeling a little overwhelmed by all the AI talk flying around at your favorite local cocktail party, these are the Types of Artificial Intelligence That You Should Know in 2024.
This Week’s AI Use Case:
One of my closest friends and tech advisors in Silicon Valley shared this newly released tool from Google with me.
It solves a massive problem of the complexity and integrations previously required to create a personal knowledge base to one that you can start using “out of the box.”
| Name: | Google NotebookLM |
|---|---|
| Pain Point: | The difficulty of creating powerful AI assistants with your personal content or proprietary information. |
| Solution: | This Google tool allows you to upload your content to a knowledge base and nearly instantly start interacting with that content. |
| Tools: | Google NotebookLM |
| Prompt Tips: | N/A |
| Main Hurdles: | – This tool is still in Beta, so it may not be available to everyone yet.- In Beta, it surely has quirks to be worked out, so be especially mindful when using its output.- While Google states, “Your personal data is not used to train NotebookLM, so any private or sensitive information you have in your sources will stay private, unless you choose to share your sources with collaborators,” I’d still be weary of what information you upload until you’ve done your own due diligence. |
Let me know if you end up using NotebookLM and what you think.
OK. That’s all. Talk to you next week.
-Ed
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AI Disclosures: The content of this email was written entirely by me, Ed, a human. This email contains NO AI-generated content. Pract
