Artificial intelligence in project work: reshaping communication, coordination and problem-solving in project teams

Abstract

This study examines how artificial intelligence (AI) tools are used in everyday project work and how they shape communication, coordination, and problem-solving practices within project teams. The study adopts a qualitative research design based on 46 semi-structured interviews with project professionals in the UK consulting and technology sectors. Drawing on a practice-based theoretical framework, the data were analysed using thematic analysis to explore how AI is incorporated into day-to-day project activities. The findings show that AI becomes embedded in project work in ways that reshape how core activities are carried out. In communication, AI supports the drafting and structuring of messages, while requiring ongoing adjustment to maintain tone and context. In coordination, AI enables continuous visibility of tasks and progress, reducing reliance on meetings but also limiting informal interaction. In problem-solving, AI contributes to the rapid generation of ideas, while shifting attention towards evaluation and adaptation. Across these areas, the use of AI changes the nature of project work, placing greater emphasis on reviewing, shaping, and working with AI-supported outputs. This study contributes to project management research by showing that AI reshapes the nature of project work by relocating professional judgement from direct production towards evaluating, adapting, and integrating AI-supported outputs across communication, coordination, and problem-solving activities. This shift redefines the contribution of project professionals, placing professional judgement at the centre of how AI-supported outputs are interpreted and applied within the social and organisational context of projects.