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AI and the Future of Work: Everything Resource Managers Need to Know

May 4, 2018 | By Sean Pales

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been a hot topic for years, but now it’s finally making the leap from science fiction into our homes and workspaces. Business leaders across industries are looking to use AI to gain an advantage over their competition. Technology vendors are providing AI solutions for businesses to speed up and optimize processes. This will no doubt include resource management in the next few years – as there are many benefits to be had. So, here’s everything resource managers need to know about AI and the future of work, including:

  • The rise of AI in the workplace
  • How AI can benefit resource managers

The rise of AI in the workplace

With virtual assistants (Alexa, Cortana, etc.) in our homes, self-driving cars on our roads, customer service via chatbots, and intelligent machinery providing a safer working environment on the factory floor, it is clear the AI revolution is here.

But the reality of AI – the way it is really being applied in our daily lives – is far from the idea originally imagined and depicted in science fiction. Forget Blade Runner, think time saving, productivity enhancing, insight-generating enterprise solution.

The amount of data being collected by organizations is so vast that it’s impossible for humans to sift through it all. However, AI can do this in next to no time at all. AI has crept into the workplace and is being utilized to mine through vast amounts of data and provide intelligent and actionable insight to business decision-makers. It’s being leveraged to speed up efficiencies and make workers more productive.

What’s more, machine learning enables AI to learn as it goes, meaning it can become more efficient and produce more sophisticated solutions to business problems.

AI and the future of resource management

Resource management can utilize and benefit from the power of AI. As resource management tools, like Tempus Resource, clearly demonstrate: intelligent reporting, analysis and forecasting are a resource manager’s best friend. Resource management software offers increased visibility over resources, as well as the ability to predict and plan for future outcomes and react to any unexpected obstacles that arise. Imagine boosting this to the next level – using artificial intelligence to trawl through masses of data providing a level of detail, knowledge and insight that goes way beyond what’s possible for resource managers today.  Introducing AI to the mix will achieve this. Let’s look at the potential benefits of AI and the future of work.

Data mining

As previously mentioned, making good use of the data generated by business processes is key to driving organizations forward in the 21st century. AI can do this better than a human ever could, meaning it can provide greater insight into your resources. AI will help resource managers analyze resource data, enabling them to make informed decisions at all stages of a project’s lifecycle.

Ultimate resource visibility

Resource visibility is key to resource management—helping resource managers allocate resources more intelligently and be better prepared to react to the unexpected. AI can spot trends and risks that can help you better allocate resources, i.e. who is best skilled at certain tasks based on the data generated from previous projects. Likewise, by providing insights on potential risks and highlighting areas where projects are likely to break down, you can avoid major dangers before they occur.

The bearer of bad news…?

For resource managers, bad news will always be bad news (e.g. your project has stalled because the correct equipment hasn’t arrived on time, people are waiting around for work to get on with, and bottlenecks are beginning to develop). But, how quickly you become aware of bad news can make a big difference between successfully resolving an issue and failing to do so. For instance, if something goes wrong and you don’t find out about it for a few hours or even days, the consequences multiply. When something goes wrong, you need to be alerted to the problem as quickly as possible. AI can help by spotting when things go wrong immediately and bringing your attention to it, so that you can react before the issue gets out of hand.

Taking care of manual, monotonous work

AI can take care of difficult and time-consuming tasks, saving invaluable time for resource managers. This means more time to focus on the human side of project management (e.g. leadership, inspiring the team, creative problem solving, etc.). This is the real value you provide as a resource manager.

AI and the future of work today

It’s exciting to think about AI and the future of work. It may still be a few years away, but it won’t be long until AI is helping resource managers achieve more and drive their organizations forward.

At ProSymmetry, we are always at the cutting edge of technology. Our resource management solution, Tempus Resource, is a great example of this – with what-if analysis, intelligent modelling, easy-to-use data inputting and data reporting, it is leading the way in terms of providing the latest technology for resource managers.

To learn more about AI and the future of work for resource management as well as other future trends, get in contact with us at ProSymmetry today

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