Kathleen Walch speaks with Jürgen Eckhart, Engineering Program Manager at Google in Munich, lecturer in project management, and PMI-CPMAI certified practitioner. Jürgen shares how CPMAI expanded his “toolbox” for managing AI projects, grounding them in business value, quality data, and realistic stakeholder expectations.

He explains why AI must be treated as iterative and probabilistic, not deterministic “magic,” and how project managers can shift from delivery to discovery—offloading routine tasks to AI while focusing on orchestration, collaboration, and trust. Jürgen likens today’s AI era to the “fax machine state,” a transitional phase in which AI is already relieving administrative burdens, yet its ultimate potential is still unfolding.

You’ll gain insights on:

• Why project management foundations matter for AI success
• How CPMAI enables continuous reassessment in fast-changing environments
• What practical methods integrate AI into daily workflows, from meeting notes to coding support
• How to balance automation and creativity in stakeholder management
• How ethical standards and frameworks build trust in AI adoption

Jürgen also reflects on misconceptions fueled by hype, shares real-world use cases like AI-assisted SQL scripting and portfolio reporting, and emphasizes the importance of ethics as AI accelerates global problem-solving. Practical and inspiring, this episode is a must-listen for project managers, AI practitioners, and leaders ready to strengthen their foundations and harness AI responsibly.

Kathleen Walch speaks with Vinay Babu Tarala, Agile and AI Transformation Leader at AT&T, PMI Pearl City Hyderabad Chapter General Secretary, and author of AI Meets Agile. With passion and candor, Vinay shares how early AI project failures led him to PMI-CPMAI certification, transforming his approach to managing AI initiatives.

He illustrates how CPMAI’s structured framework reduced software development cycle times from 2.5 months to 1.5 months by embedding AI across the SDLC—from user story creation to coding and testing. Vinay emphasizes that success comes not from chasing tools, but from solving real business problems with quality data and strong governance.

You’ll gain insights on:

• Why AI projects fail without a structured methodology
• How CPMAI enables measurable outcomes and cycle-time reduction
• Why AI is probabilistic, iterative, and experimental—not deterministic “magic”
• How project managers must shift from delivery to discovery, fostering cross-functional collaboration, and a common language
• Practical steps for project managers to start using AI in daily workflows

Vinay also tackles misconceptions about AI, the rise of agentic workflows, and why human creativity and critical thinking remain irreplaceable. Practical and inspiring, this episode is a must-listen for project managers, AI practitioners, and leaders ready to move beyond hype and harness AI as a transformative force in project management.

Kathleen Walch speaks with Johan Sporre, Engineering Manager at IKEA Retail (Ingka Group) and CPMAI-certified professional, about how AI is transforming translation and language services at scale.

Johan explains how his team supports 230,000 coworkers across 64 markets, with 90% of translations now AI-driven, and how CPMAI ensures alignment, quality data, and measurable outcomes.

An IKEA case study shows how redefining translation as “text generation” in IKEA’s voice, powered by a graph database enriched with metadata, created a scalable foundation across dozens of languages. Johan highlights the challenges of balancing linguistic nuance with algorithms, misconceptions about “out-of-the-box” LLMs, and why operationalization—not deployment—defines AI success.

You’ll gain insights on:

• Why CPMAI’s structured phases prevent costly failures
• How IKEA scaled translation from 6 to 46 languages iteratively
• Why tone, grammar, and cultural context matter in AI
• How sustainability and resource use shape AI’s future
• How project managers are evolving as orchestrators of AI-enabled workflows

Practical and rich with real-world lessons, this episode is invaluable for project managers, AI practitioners, and leaders navigating language, technology, and business transformation.