Seize the opportunities now!

Even though the (buzz) word digitalization has only been used for a few years to describe the change from analog to digitally supported work, project planners in particular have been using digital tools since the 1980s. These are often called Microsoft Excel or Microsoft Project. However, project plans created with these tools are usually only accessible to a small circle in the project team, which creates problems for the stakeholders:

• Information on the current status is never available in real time.
• The only one with a complete overview is the project planner.
• Changes must always be obtained from all those involved and communicated in turn.
• There is no link to other project-relevant data.
• The manual maintenance effort is enormous.

This shows the paradox of digitization: Just because you use digital tools in project management doesn't mean it's digitized. This requires a digital mind-set that looks beyond the use of software. We need to understand what digitization means for project management:

1. new technologies lead to a new way of working.

Digital tools must support cross-departmental communication and collaboration and break down knowledge silos.

3. the digital (working) world is faster-moving and demands a higher degree of personal responsibility from everyone.

Digitalization and Work 4.0
Information, news, status updates - no matter where in the world something happens, we can find out and comment on it immediately. Today, we also place this demand on our project information. I want to know in real time where the project stands, which tasks have been completed, which documents are missing and who is working on what. And I want to know this regardless of whether I am in the office, with a customer or on a plane. In the same way, I want to communicate changes in the project quickly and reliably to the people responsible. To achieve this, digital tools must be integrated into the work processes and not only connect people, but also data.

Software-supported project management brings the best results when the individual systems are networked: Planning, resource or document management are currently operated in many companies in independent applications. This inevitably leads to system breaks and friction loss. This inefficiency can be reduced through smart digitalization and even eliminated through automation. What use is it if a colleague in the project has completed a task two days earlier than planned, but I am not notified of this? Whereas the colleague used to write an e-mail about it, in digitalized project management the software tells me that the higher-level task has now been completed and that I can start the next phase early. If networking is well advanced throughout the company, the completion of the process leads to the accounting department being notified and partial costs can already be settled. Such partial automation has long been established in industry. In project management, this should also become standard thanks to the possibilities of digitization.

Only networking enables innovation
Innovations are created - contrary to the glorified image of the genius tinkering in the garage - through the exchange of knowledge across expert silos. The strength of digitalization lies in the possibilities of networking people and data across departmental boundaries. This creates the basis for bringing in those experts who can best contribute to the successful completion of the project. But this also means that expertise "leaves" the previous departmental silo, at least temporarily. The exchange of knowledge democratizes it. This is often accompanied by a loss of power and can lead to a flattening of hierarchies. Conflicts are inevitable. Here it is helpful to prioritize projects and thus justify the use of experts in high-priority projects. Priority can be given, for example, on the basis of innovation. BUSINESS EXCELLENCE 11 Image: Countrypixel - fotolia.com Just because you use digital tools in project management doesn't mean it's digitalized. should be thought of not just as the creation of a new product or service, but as something useful for customers. As soon as the benefit is in the foreground, the ranking or power position of individuals can no longer be used as a justification for prioritizing projects.

The crux of personal responsibility
Just as the way of working in everyday project life is changing due to digitalization, the roles of project managers, project team members and stakeholders are also changing. However, the following applies to all of them: more personal responsibility. Digitization is a catalyst for a new understanding of responsibility in the project. If everyone has the information relevant to them at their disposal through networked software, they are not only responsible for getting it, but also for making it available to others. In digitalized project management, it is no longer just a matter of software-supported transparency as to who has to complete tasks and by when. Rather, it is about feeding relevant information back into the system and feeding the information cycle. In this way, accessible project knowledge is built up step by step, which can lead more easily and quickly to better decisions and thus enable all project members to actually work independently.

Mistakes happen...
A decisive factor for the success of autonomous work is fault tolerance. This is not about the question of whether the agile, classic or hybrid approach should be pursued in project management, but rather about how to deal with the fact that demanding personal responsibility from employees can sometimes lead to a "wrong turn". A culture of error does not establish itself. But here, too, digitalization offers an opportunity. Because if the process that led to the wrong turn is comprehensible thanks to digitalization, it can be quickly clarified why, for example, a project is taking longer than planned. We learn from bad decisions. In the best case, failed projects can be revisited and successfully completed thanks to the findings from the documentation.