Digital Platforms’ Influence on Project Management

The use of digital platforms has increasingly been adopted for project management with various levels of success. The use of these platforms in organizations has its strengths as well as weaknesses. This paper explores the emergence of digital platforms, the influence of such platforms on project management practices, and the current use of such platforms up to this date through secondary research. The paper also identifies certain strengths and weaknesses that are accompanied with the use of such platforms for project management purposes in the local governmental entities, to be able to eliminate or minimize negative impacts and maximize positive impact through the exploitation of observed strengths. Multiple structured interviews with participants from different UAE Governmental entities were conducted. The results indicate two major strengths; providing support to the project during various phases, and minimizing the complexity of projects. Other strengths identified include promoting better cooperation in the workplace and facilitating better resource management. The major weaknesses of digital platforms used in project management were also identified, including high costs and skills mismatch. These platforms are relatively costly and require expert skills, which may be missing in the workforce. Other weaknesses identified include overdependence on software and information privacy. Proposed alternatives as solutions to these weaknesses include the customization of the platforms, training employees on how to use the platforms as well as limiting access to such platforms to promote data security. These alternatives are likely to take the use of digital platforms in project management processes to a better level of performance.