News
AI in project delivery and the PMs Action Plan
Last week the Prime Minister announced the UK government’s AI Opportunities Action Plan.
This new plan aligns with Government Project Delivery’s existing strategy for data and AI, which was published in March 2024 in collaboration with the Central Data and Digital Office (now part of Government Digital Service) and industry. The strategy is already being implemented across government and lays the foundations to leverage the power of AI to deliver better project outcomes. Government Project Delivery (GPD) welcomes the new AI Opportunities Action Plan and the boost this provides.
Why does this matter?
Innovation in AI has the potential to be transformative for project delivery. It can be used to streamline processes and tasks that may be time-consuming and admin-heavy. It can also improve our ability to make evidence-based decisions – for example, by systematic gathering and sharing of lessons across the portfolio and more realistic forecasting and estimating.
What is being done?
GPD is already working in collaboration with departments and arms length bodies, as well as cross-sector with industry and academia, to create the conditions for success in the use of AI in projects. The ongoing activities include:
- a refresh of the Project Delivery Capability Framework for project delivery professionals to incorporate digital and data skills. This will be published soon, together with an early view of the implications for key roles.
- the development of a new project data standard which will improve data quality/standardisation across government and consequently the reliability of insights from AI.
- a new community of practice, to share experiences and lessons in the use of AI in projects. This is helping to speed up adoption and support future scaling across the system.
- running an innovative pilot of a new AI tool, ‘Scout’ – developed in-house to improve the efficiency of project delivery assurance reviews. Scout is currently performing well in beta testing and is being prepared for scaling.
What are the next steps?
Over the next few weeks, ongoing activities and events in the data and AI space will be promoted through the GPD newsletter. You can subscribe via mailchimp. This will incorporate the announcement of a new webinar series – Decoding Delivery – which delves into technical elements of project delivery and plans to showcase data and AI innovation from across government.
