Five Tips to Turn Digital Disruption into a Competitive Advantage

The only constant is change, a truth that is abundantly clear in today’s fast-paced digital age. No sooner have organizations adopted the latest and greatest technology does a newer, version come along. PMI’s Global Megatrends 2022 report offers a detailed look at how digital disruption is making organizations retool their business models in order to turn this trend into a competitive advantage. Moving at light speed to harness these technologies, project managers must continually improve how they collaborate, communicate, and deliver successful outcomes.

These tips will help project professionals thrive amid ongoing digital uncertainty:

1. Embrace technology. PMI and PwC's research shows that only a minority of project managers are using technology for more than updates and basic reporting, and a lack of technical skills is a top barrier. Achieving an entry-level PMI certification can help you get started.
2. Lead with strategy. “Transformation is less about digitalizing processes than about a larger and more profound change the organization needs to make,” says Ade McCormack, founder of the Disruption Readiness Institute. He believes project professionals must be more of a business advisor than a scheduler, questioning which projects have the most value considering macro trends. Flexibility is needed; for example, breaking up big-ticket projects to get immediate value.
3. Harness creativity. Project professionals “should focus very much on their creative capability because that's where the bulk of the value proposition will be,” McCormack says. They can also leverage collaboration tools to help far-flung teams solve complex problems.
4. Take risks. “You will not innovate unless you take risks,” McCormack notes. He advises having a contingency in project budgets for innovation and giving teams some flexibility in how they get things done.
5. Develop leadership skills. McCormack distinguishes these from management skills and stresses the importance of connecting: “Project managers have got to have empathy—to be much more human, much more coach-like, much more engaged with their team.”

Additionally, training is vital, though organizations are generally not using a diversity of training methods or monitoring usage and progress. Project teams must work with human resources (HR) to get the training they need, and also take charge of their own learning.

Explore digital disruption in more detail, along with five other trends, in the Global Megatrends 2022 report.

Read More On Digital Disruption:
Digital Disruption – Full Report
Cybersecurity
Data Ethics