Don’t Outsource Your Judgement to AI: Why Project Managers Still Matter

by: NathaN Richau - Natcams

I’ll admit it - I’ve caught myself nodding along to AI output that looked right but wasn’t. That’s the real risk for PMs. Not knowing what you don’t know.

A Program Manager I was speaking with recently shared a story and asked for my advice.

He’d been mentoring a delivery lead who used Microsoft Copilot to generate a project communications plan. On the surface, it looked slick, structured and convincing. The delivery lead pasted it straight into a steering pack without hesitation.

But when the Program Manager looked closer, the plan had serious flaws:

• An escalation path tied to a role that didn’t exist

  
  

• Two critical stakeholder groups missing entirely

  
  

• A schedule of bi-weekly updates for a project that reported daily

His question to me was simple: “What do I tell my team when AI output looks this polished?”

My answer was this: AI isn’t the problem. The problem is blind trust.

AI makes things look right - even when they’re not.

And if you don’t know what you’re looking at, or what’s missing, you won’t spot the gaps until they bite you.

The future of PMs isn’t about becoming AI experts. It’s about staying sharp enough to challenge the tools, question the output and apply judgment where it matters most.

So no, I don’t think AI will replace project professionals. But it will replace the ones who outsource their judgement.

Where has AI helped you and where has it tripped you up? Let me know, I’d love to hear how you’re navigating this shift.