Enabling Project Managers to Work Smarter: A Glimpse into Deltek PIM Innovations

At Deltek, we believe that innovation is a mindset that drives us to create solutions that meet and exceed your needs and expectations. As the leading project information management solution designed for architecture & engineering (A&E) firms, Deltek Project Information Management (PIM) enables project managers to work smarter through purposeful innovation.

At Deltek ProjectCon 2023, the annual event for project-based businesses, the Deltek PIM team addressed the challenges faced by project-based businesses and the critical role information management plays in project delivery. Grounded on the importance of information management for the project management role, the product team showcased how Deltek PIM can help improve information sharing, de-risk project delivery and drive efficiency. The Deltek team is committed to helping project management teams work smarter throughout the project lifecycle.

Deltek PIM is committed to helping project managers work smarter throughout the project lifecycle.

There is a massive opportunity for solutions like Deltek PIM to centralize project information, reduce fragmented data silos and provide structure for project collaboration. The Deltek team highlighted the top challenges to managing project information according to the 44th Deltek Clarity A&E Industry Study.

• 64% of firms still use Excel for project planning and 90% use email as the primary collaboration tool - this causes data silos and fragmented information.
• 49% of firms don't use construction spec software - resulting in unorganized project information.

Deltek PIM provides project managers (PMs) with capabilities to eliminate information silos, collaborate effectively and stay organized. Key ways Deltek PIM supports PMs include:

• Finding project files from one location, even if located in network directories
• Managing work-in-progress documents and drawings
• Ensuring project emails are stored in a central location
• Accessing project information from anywhere with the PIM mobile app
• Enabling external user access to project files through PIM Teamwork 
• Managing outstanding actions and design revisions
• Providing visualization and easy identification of project images
• Evaluating project team performance with PIM Team Evaluation

Deltek PIM enables project managers to eliminate information silos, collaborate effectively and stay organized

Committing to Working Smarter

Deltek PIM is committed to helping PMs work smarter by incorporating emerging technologies into its solutions to re-imagine how projects are delivered. This ongoing commitment is evident in recent releases and in the product roadmap for Deltek PIM.

• Pre-PIM 20.0 included its making search suggestions to help teams find information faster.
• PIM 20.0 introduced semi-automated email publishing, making suggestions of which projects the email should filed against so that users can save emails more quickly.
• PIM 21.0 unveiled automated mapping of network folders, increasing the visibility into project documents from within Deltek PIM.
• PIM 22.0 reimagined the bulk replacement tool, allowing users to replace hundreds of documents in one step.
• PIM 24.0 expects to expand on the automated mapping of network folders to support the bulk upload of project files into Deltek PIM.

The future is bright for Deltek PIM as the product team continues to explore how generative artificial intelligence (AI) can further power information and knowledge management to empower project management teams.

Innovating through Customer Feedback

The team underscored how user feedback directly shapes the roadmap. User feedback helps Deltek better understand needs, challenges and preferences. That’s why your Deltek PIM feedback is critical through the Deltek Idea Portal. This platform allows you to submit ideas for new features or enhancements within the system, vote for and comment on other user ideas and watch how those ideas become a part of the solution.

Since its availability in May 2022, the Deltek PIM team has received more than 750 ideas. Of those ideas, 61 were incorporated in 2023 through two PIM releases and 28 are planned for PIM 24.0.

We are grateful for your participation and contribution to the Deltek Idea Portal. Keep the ideas coming!

Key Takeaways

In conclusion, Deltek PIM is a powerful information management tool that can help businesses improve their project management capabilities throughout the project lifecycle. The roadmap demonstrates Deltek’s commitment to Deltek PIM to ensure it continues to empower users to power project success.