PM and Sustainability - Symbiosis - Part 2
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As a reminder, the theme for this two-part blog post is symbiosis. In the first post I illustrated symbiosis with the example of the clownfish and the sea anemone. This time: another example – the acacia tree and a species of aggressive, stinging Pseudomyrmex ferrugineus ants Once again, I don’t mean to infer that sustainability is represented by the tree and project managers are pseudomyrmex ferruginei. It’s just an an-t-alogy. Learn more about this with this academic paper from SciencDaily. Or, watch this 2 minute video from National Geographic: The symbiosis to which I am referring is about the mutual benefit that the CSO (Chief Sustainability Officer) department of an organization can (and should!) have with the project managers. To take this idea to another level – an important level, I decided to see what this meant in terms of careers and jobs. I entered what I thought would be a very helpful prompt into ChatGPT, and here is what came out. My Prompt: Acting as a talent acquisition manager, identify the connections between project management and the positions of Chief Sustainability Officer or Director of Sustainability or ESG Director. ChatGPT’s response (highlighting is mine): As a talent acquisition manager, it's essential to recognize the connections between project management and positions like Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO), Director of Sustainability, or ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) Director. Understanding these connections will help you identify suitable candidates with the right skills and experience for these roles. Here are the key connections:
When recruiting for positions like Chief Sustainability Officer, Director of Sustainability, or ESG Director, it's important to look for candidates with a strong background in project management, excellent communication and collaboration skills, and a passion for sustainability and environmental stewardship. These candidates will be well-equipped to lead sustainability initiatives, drive positive change, and align sustainability efforts with the organization's broader goals. OK. Now that you have seen that, I know that at least my students of my Project Value Strategies class will recognize much of what is taught there. It could almost be the Syllabus of the course. So the lesson here is that the intertwined needs and outcomes of good project leadership and sustainability professionals means that opportunities for holistic, long-term, value-based project leaders (I stay away from the word ‘managers’ here, because… well, because this is leadership) will be the ones that are in highest demand in the near future, especially with the advent of AI. With that in mind, I asked ChatGPT what those skills would be to see if I was at all on target, or more like an ant climbing up the wrong tree. My prompt: Responding to a project manager concerned about losing their job to AI, what particular skills should they work on which will make them more resilient to the advent of AI in project management?
Chat GPT’s ant-ser: To become more resilient to the advent of AI in project management, project managers should focus on developing specific skills that complement and go beyond AI capabilities. Here are some particular skills to work on:
By concentrating on these skills, project managers can position themselves as indispensable assets in the AI-driven project management landscape. Remember that AI should be seen as a tool to augment your capabilities, not a direct threat to your expertise and contributions. Being adaptable, innovative, and focused on adding value will ensure your resilience in the face of AI advancements. Notice the connection here? The more you focus on holistic, long-term thinking, the more secure your career, and the more you can do well by doing good. Bottom line: when it comes to integrating sustainability thinking into your project management work, remember – that’s going to make you more resilient. Think: Project Leadership, not Project Management. |
ChatGPT Drank My Water
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I’ve previously posted “ChatGPT Ate My Brain”. Now, here, I’m posting on AI’s increasing and seemingly unquenchable thirst for water. I was triggered to write this based on an email exchange with fellow BU professor Dr. Dave Silberman, who went me a recent article from Forbes, “AI’S Unsustainable Water Use: How Tech Giants Contribute To Global Water Shortages” which quotes a to-be-peer-reviewed article (download here): which states: "training GPT-3 in Microsoft's state-of-the-art US data centers can directly consume 700,000 liters of clean freshwater", which they calculate could be used to produce 370 BMW cars or 320 Tesla electric vehicles. Furthermore, ChatGPT 'drinks' the equivalent of a 500ml bottle of water for a simple conversation of 20-50 questions and answers. Which may not seem like much... until you consider that the chatbot has more than 100 million active users, each of whom engages in multiple conversations. So, I thought it would be a worthy use of a little H2O to ask ChatGPT what it thought of the situation. It was surprisingly frank: My question: As a person interested in sustainability, I am alarmed to see that AI is very 'thirsty' for freshwater, based on this article https://www-forbes-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.forbes.com/sites/federicoguerrini/2023/04/14/ais-unsustainable-water-use-how-tech-giants-contribute-to-global-water-shortages/amp/ . Is it true that AI consumes large amounts of water, and what is being done about it? The answer from ChatGPT: Yes, it is true that AI systems consume significant amounts of water, especially in the training phase of machine learning models. This is because AI requires vast amounts of computational power, which generates heat that needs to be dissipated, and cooling systems that use water to maintain the necessary temperature. Additionally, data centers that host AI models require a lot of water for cooling and other operational needs. The impact of AI on water resources is an important concern, and there are ongoing efforts to address this issue. One approach is to use more energy-efficient hardware, such as specialized processors that can perform AI computations with lower power consumption. Another approach is to develop more efficient cooling systems that use less water, and to use recycled water or other sustainable sources of water for cooling. In addition to technical solutions, it's important to consider the environmental impact of AI in the design and deployment of AI systems. This means taking a holistic approach to sustainability and considering the entire life cycle of AI systems, including the raw materials used to manufacture hardware, the energy used to power AI models, and the disposal of electronic waste. Overall, the AI industry and the broader technology sector are increasingly aware of the need to address the environmental impact of their activities, including water use, and are taking steps to reduce their impact on the planet. The video just below from Amazon Web Services (AWS) tackles the issue and provides some ways that AWS is helping to battle this, wanting to be “water-positive” by 2030. When you watch this video, note that what they are really discussing, without saying it directly, is that they have a portfolio of programs and projects which initiatives that execute the strategy aimed at that goal, which is in turn, aligned with their sustainability-oriented mission and vision statement. This is very much in line with the model that (for example), folks like Gilbert Silvius, Alexandra Chapman, and others have been promoting for a long time. Google recently shared a blog post revealing its water use – a staggering 4.3 billion gallons of water in 2021, which works out to an average daily water footprint approaching a half-million gallons per data center. It gets complicated as well, because there is a trade-off (we’re used to those as a project manager, though) between reducing water and reducing carbon. The initiatives you see in the video, I’m sure you have already guessed, take energy and have their own impact. From the Google blog post: When used responsibly, water cooling can play an important role in reducing emissions and mitigating climate change. Water-cooled data centers use about 10% less energy and thus emit roughly 10% less carbon emissions than many air-cooled data centers. In 2021, water cooling helped us reduce the energy-related carbon footprint of our data center portfolio by roughly 300,000 tons of CO2." So it is a complicated, convoluted, higher-level, higher stakes balancing act that we must perform. “Going Waterless” was one of the top eight trends identified by Data Center Frontier. So at this point it seems we’re at least conscious of the problem. Now – can we get the right amount of talented project, program, and portfolio leaders on the job? It’s an important enough problem to pour over…
References:
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ChatGPT Ate My Brain
Categories:
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Categories: ChatGPT, projectmanagement, projectleadership, green, Sustainability, Artificial Intelligence
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Many of us are hearing about ChatGPT and its impact on the world. This morning I read an article about ChatGPT writing real-estate postings. The agents are wowed by the results. I thought I'd try it out, so I made some real-estate available in my schedule and logged in. While by no means perfect, the system is scary-good. This brings up a whole bunch of ethical issues especially with respect to education. That's not in scope for this post. Here, I want to share with you the result of a conversation (that's the best way to put it) with ChatGPT about Sustainability in Project Management. Then I want to conclude by letting you see how it insulted me at the end of the conversation. I asked a series of questions in a variety of formats to ChatGPT. The real art and science of dealing with it is how you engage it in conversation. Yes, you can say, "write an essay about General Lafayette" and it will do that, but you get more thoughtful answers if you frame your questions more creatively. Let me start with one that absolutely amazed me. I asked it to compare two project managers' results based on their approach to sustainability thinking: Two project managers are working on large IT projects. One spends extra time and effort assuring that the project will have a more responsible, ecologically-sound long-term result, and overspends the budget and brings the project in a bit late. The other project manager focuses on the budget and stays under the budget, and delivers the project on time, but does not consider the project's outcome in its steady state. Compare the two projects. It almost sounds like a PMP(R) question stem, doesn't it? Anyway, here's how ChatGPT answered it: A comparison between the two projects would consider both the short-term and long-term outcomes. The first project manager, who focused on a responsible, ecologically-sound outcome, may have overspent the budget and brought the project in a bit late. However, the long-term benefits of a more sustainable project may outweigh the initial costs and delay. The project's positive impact on the environment, reputation, and stakeholder satisfaction can lead to increased support and profits in the future. On the other hand, the second project manager who focused only on the budget and delivered the project on time may have saved costs in the short-term. However, if the project has a negative impact on the environment or stakeholders, it could lead to decreased support and financial losses in the long run. In conclusion, while staying within the budget is important, it should not be the sole focus of a project manager. A balanced approach that considers both short-term and long-term outcomes, including sustainability, is crucial for the success of a project in the long run. Pretty, pretty, pretty, good, n'est pas? I went on to ask some other questions in different ways, and although not perfect, nor even totally consistent, there is wisdom (drawn, I think, from human minds) here. Have a look at the rest of the conversation (I will use italics for my question and purple text for the answers): Why should a project manager care what happens after the project is complete? A project manager should care about what happens after the project is complete for several reasons:
By considering the long-term outcomes of a project, a project manager can demonstrate their commitment to responsible and effective project management, and ensure that the project delivers positive outcomes for all stakeholders. As a project manager, can you give examples of projects where failing to consider the long-term caused problems after the project was handed over to operations? Yes, here are some examples of projects where failing to consider the long-term caused problems after the project was handed over to operations:
In all of these cases, considering the long-term outcomes of the project could have prevented these problems and ensured that the project delivered positive outcomes over the long term. As someone who wants to convey the importance of thinking long-term to an audience of project managers, can you give three examples of disastrous projects in which failing to consider the long-term led to problems? Yes, here are three examples of disastrous projects where failing to consider the long-term led to problems:
These examples demonstrate the importance of considering the long-term outcomes of a project and taking a responsible and proactive approach to project management, to ensure that the project delivers positive outcomes over the long term and does not result in disastrous consequences. Is there value for a project manager to think beyond the end date of their project? Yes, there is significant value for a project manager to think beyond the end date of their project. Some of the key benefits of thinking long-term include:
Overall, considering the long-term implications of a project can help project managers deliver more effective and sustainable outcomes, and increase the likelihood of success for their projects. Thinking as a program manager or PMO director who wants to help project managers think in the long term, what roadblocks exist to this effort? As a program manager or PMO director, the following roadblocks may exist in the effort to encourage long-term thinking amongst project managers:
Overcoming these roadblocks requires a strategic approach, including leadership support, communication and collaboration, training and development, and the development of metrics and incentives to support long-term thinking. Next, I got personal. I asked ChatGPT if it had an environmental impact: What is the environmental impact of ChatGPT? The environmental impact of ChatGPT is primarily associated with the energy consumption and carbon emissions associated with running the vast amounts of computer hardware required to train and run the model. This energy usage contributes to climate change, a major environmental issue. It is important for organizations using AI technology to consider energy-efficient practices and sustainable energy sources in their operations. Then, I got personal from my side: Who is Richard Maltzman? I am not aware of any notable person by the name of Richard Maltzman.
OK, ChatGPT, well, then, fine, I am not aware of any notable person by the name of ChatGPT! But I am now aware that this is going to have an impact on search technology, research, education, and (despite its closing slap in my face), a pretty good understanding of how sustainability connects with project management! What are your thoughts? No fair asking ChatGPT. I want your actual thoughts. |
Becoming a Climate Change Project Leader - Part 1
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Image: Inc. Magazine In this two-part series of posts, I would like to point you to an excellent post made right here on Projectmanagement.com by Bruce Harpham. It’s entitled Climate Change: Micro and Macro Opportunities for Project Managers It begins: Climate change has arrived, and it is wreaking havoc across our world. The question now becomes: What can we do about it? There is no single correct answer to this complex question. The first step to coming up with solutions starts with understanding our situation. Bruce goes on to talk about the disappointment some of us share that although global warming or climate change has been a topic of discussion for a long time, not much has been done about it. Who are we? We are project managers*! Get-r-done people. Don’t you find this lack of action reprehensible? I do. I think that we as “Executors” (see Dr. Barbara Trautlein’s wonderful book on Change Intelligence) want to get stuff done. But there is an ironic twist here. We executors like to get things done on time, accomplishing scope, and doing all of this within budget. That often blinds us to thinking about the product of our project in the long-term - see the video at the end of this post for an example. Whatever it is that we build – whether it’s an app or a bridge or a new house-cleaning service, we want it to go live, carry traffic, and clean houses. Once that has started to happen, we do the old “wipe our hands” gesture and say, “now give me my next project!”. That means we have not thought through to the operation of our project’s outcome. Just that simple mind exercise, perhaps when doing risk identification, would make such a big difference in terms of making project outcomes sustainable.
But there’s a catch! Many of the changes to the product or service we may want to make, which consider sustainability and impact (social, economic, or ecological) have to please our sponsors and may, on their surface, seem to be too expensive, or may delay the release of the project. The project manager may be hesitant to raise these suggestions, partially due to a culture in an organization that makes it unsafe to speak up. This topic is enough for an entire series of blog posts, and in fact is an entire chapter in an upcoming DeGruyter book, The Handbook of Responsible Project Management. So I won’t follow that thread here; suffice it to say that it will take courage, supported by facts, supported by likely high-level commitments at the corporate level to Corporate Social Responsibility, to make these suggestions and, yes, perhaps delay the project or make the product or service more expensive, but to move the needle a little bit in terms of (for example) climate change.
In Part 2, I will take a look at Bruce’s point-by-point list of things we can do as project leaders and, for what it’s worth, add my opinion and angle on how you can make those a reality in your projects.
*I prefer (and am starting to assert the use of)"Project Leader" instead of project manager. Look up the list of traits and attributes associated with manager, then do the same for leader. You’ll see. Your title should be Project Leader. |
An interview with Blue Latitudes' Emily Hazelwood and Amber Sparks
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In the prior post, "Repurposed Rigs", I discussed the ways in which oil rigs at their end of life were being repurposed - as diving resorts, or coral reefs. One company, Blue Latitudes, specializes in the research, consulting, and planning for such projects. Co-founders, and marine biologists Emily Hazelwood and Amber Sparks have been featured in Forbes magazine (see this article) in their "30 under 30" section. I recently had the privilege of speaking with them about these initiatives from a project, program, and portfolio perspective. If you haven't already, please have a look at this amazing video that gives the background of the work Blue Latitudes is doing. Let me start with their backgrounds and then just have you take a look at the interview. Blue Latitudes' Mission (from their website) is: Our vision at Blue Latitudes is to find silver linings in our oceans at the intersection of industry and the environment.We unite science, policy, and communications to create innovative solutions for the complex ecological challenges associated with offshore industry.As to the co-founders, there's a photo above from a profile on Scubapro.com, and below, a photo of them with an old friend; then we get right into the biographies and the interview itself.
Emily Hazelwood is a marine conservation biologist, oil and gas consultant and explorer. She has a B.A. in Environmental Science from Connecticut College and an M.A.S degree in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation from Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Emily was recognized on Forbes 30 Under 30 list in the energy sector for her work with Blue Latitudes to develop sustainable, creative, and cost-effective solutions for the environmental issues that surround the offshore energy industry. Emily has extensive experience conducting both international and domestic environmental impact assessments for governmental agencies and private sector clients, and specializes in developing sustainable environmental strategies for offshore energy development and decommissioning. Mrs. Hazelwood previously worked as a field technician on the BP 252 Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico. This is where she witnessed first hand the destruction and devastation wrought by an oil spill. However, it is also where she learned of a unique silver lining despite the realities of offshore oil and gas development, the Rigs to Reefs program. She is a PADI certified Dive Master and an AAUS Scientific Diver. Amber Sparks is an oceanographer, environmental scientist and entrepreneur. She has a B.A. in Marine Science from UC Berkeley and a M.A.S in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation from Scripps Institution of Oceanography. In 2018, Amber was recognized on Forbes 30 Under 30 list in the energy sector for her work with Blue Latitudes to develop sustainable, creative, and cost-effective solutions for the environmental issues that surround the offshore energy industry. Amber also has a strong background in technology. A former Ocean Curator at Google, she engineered and launched intelligent layers in Google Earth and Google Maps that distill and relate complex concepts in ocean science for a variety of audiences. Today she uses those skills in the oil and gas industry to map fishing activity in proximity to offshore structures and inform decommissioning decisions in relation to commercial fisheries. Mrs. Sparks has extensive experience as a project manager specializing in ecological impact assessments, marine biological monitoring and habitat restoration through the Rigs to Reefs program. She is certified as an AAUS scientific diver. Here's the interview (about 37 minutes): |
