I was excited to see a research report produced in October 2020. Don’t judge me on this statement. I get excited about a project report.
Although the report was not specifically about project management, it was one I had been waiting for. It was the Word Economic Forum The Future of Jobs Report 2020.
It is published every two years and “maps the jobs, skills, and pace of change…and the expected outlook technology adoption, jobs, and skills in five years.”
I have found inspiration and interest in the previous releases, 2016 and 2018, which has made me think about how project management can be influenced by these findings. This was no exception.
I was particularly interested to see how project management would perform in the world of technology adoption. I am well aware of the importance of project management in technology transformation and adoption. It was therefore fantastic to see The Future of Jobs Report 2020 (see below) which highlighted the role of project managers. This report is expected to increase in demand over the next five year.
If you look at the top 20 job roles, you will see that project management is a key contributor to many of these growing demand roles.
To be clear, I use the term “project” to mean more than its true meaning. I include ‘programmes and ‘all changes’ because it saves me time writing them all out each time. Here’s my list. Do you agree?
Digital Marketing and Strategy Specialists
Digital Transformation Specialists
Project managers (of course)
Strategic Advisors
Analysts in Management and Organization
Organizational Development Specialists
Risk Management Specialists

Here’s where I really want to take this article: technology adoption. Technology adoption is a project. Digital transformation is a project, just with a technology hat on.
Project management is essential for successful implementation of AI, process automation, migration to the cloud, Internet of Things, virtual conferencing, and other projects.
Global Data Centers, a division within NTT, states that “half of digital transformation projects are either always or regularly delayed”. Hmm…
Katherine Tate, Professor of Political Science at Brown University, put it beautifully when she said that “Trying to manage project without project management would be like trying to play football without a game plan.”
It is wonderful to see project managers as a job that increases demand. However, it is far more important than that – it is a skill and job that businesses simply cannot afford to be without. Without skilled project managers and project management, technology adoption will not be successful.
Too many organisations haven’t yet made this connection, unfortunately. I want organisations to recognize that technology adoption and digital transform is a project. Once this is done, organisations can begin to plan their game plan.
Ian Clarkson is a PPM Consultant and Author at QA Limited. Ian is passionate about helping organisations improve their PPM delivery and encouraging the next generation PPM professionals. When he isn’t helping organisations transform, he enjoys reading the latest articles and researching on the topic. Perhaps he should just read more!

Oswald