Why I'm coming back to Digital PM Summit

When I stepped away from programming the Digital PM Summit after 2022, I was burned out. Not by the community project management, but by conferences. Specifically, online conferences. And the one I had created became that.

To be fair, all conferences did. It was Covid and we spent our lives on Zoom. I had produced virtual conferences, attended virtual conferences, spoken at virtual conferences, virtual meetups, coffees, reunions...it felt endless. And somewhere along the way, I realized I'd lost the thing I loved most about them: The people.

I'm actually a pretty strong introvert. I enjoy working alone, writing, and disappearing into a project. But put me in a room full of curious project managers who genuinely want to share experiences and solve problems together, and something completely different happens. I leave energized with new ideas, reminded why I love my work.

I'd forgotten that.

So when I had the opportunity to rejoin the team at The Bureau to come back and program the Digital PM Summit this year, I didn't start by thinking about speakers. I started by asking a much bigger question: What makes an event worth leaving home for?

Designing an experience, not just an agenda

When we launched the very first Digital PM Summit back in 2012, our goal wasn't simply to put great speakers on a stage. We wanted to create a place where project managers could learn from experts, certainly, but just as importantly, from each other.

For me, every detail about the experience mattered: The talks, the breakouts, the space for hallway conversations, and over good food and drinks. I really believe that some of the best ideas come from the person sitting next to you over coffee, not just the person standing behind the podium.

Over the years—as happens with many conferences—the format gradually shifted toward more presentations and less participation. When we were forced to move it online, it changed everything from the format to the length, and obviously the social interaction. (Oh my word, trying to manage the first online social event was such an embarrassing nightmare, but I digress.)

Coming back this year gave me the opportunity to rethink that. As I started building the agenda, I found myself returning to those original ideas. This year's Summit brings back more opportunities for people to engage with one another through breakout discussions, interactive sessions alongside the presentations, and the third-day workshop. I want people to leave with great notes, of course, but I also want them to leave with new relationships, fresh perspectives, and practical ideas they developed together. Because that's how I've always learned best.

The conversations we need right now

Something else happened while I was putting the program together.

This year I've also been deep in writing the second edition of Project Management for Humans. Unsurprisingly, the conversations I've been having with myself while writing that book started showing up in the speaker submissions I was reading.

Without planning it, a theme emerged. This year's Summit is really about the human side of project leadership.

That doesn't mean we're leaving technology behind. In fact, quite the opposite. We'll spend plenty of time talking about AI, digital transformation, delivery systems, and how our profession is changing. Kat Murphy will explore the skills project managers need as AI reshapes our work, Chase Williams will challenge us to think differently about AI as a teammate rather than just another tool, and Victoria Wheelehan will share lessons from leading digital transformation in complex organizations.

But the more I looked across the agenda, the more I realized that the most interesting conversations weren't really about the technology. They were about the people using it.

They're about empathy, creativity, trust, relationships, recovery, communication, change....Leadership. Yes, with a capital "L".

Kelly Vega is talking about navigating difficult relationships with empathy. Jennifer Goebel is exploring what happens when we intentionally design a better experience for our teams. Maggie Lynn is reframing delivery itself as an experience that creates trust instead of confusion. Nick Cobb is examining the relationship side of long-term project delivery, while Crystal Richards reminds us that doing our best work sometimes starts with stepping away from it. Dave Prior opens the conference by inviting us to rediscover the creativity that drew many of us to this profession in the first place.

I'm so excited to hear different perspectives from all of these speakers, but be able to tie it back to the big conversation I think project leaders need right now.

Keep the conversation going

I'm most excited about this year actually happens after the Summit ends.

On Wednesday, Rob Harr and I will be leading a hands-on workshop on rethinking project management and operations in the age of AI. Rather than spending the day talking about prompts or chasing the latest tools, we'll focus on something more important: how to redesign the way work actually gets done. We'll explore where AI creates real value, where humans remain essential, and how to build practical systems that teams can take back to their organizations.

To me, it's the perfect extension of everything we're trying to create during the Summit. Not just two days of presentations, but a week of learning, challenging assumptions, sharing ideas, and building a stronger community together.

I'm incredibly excited to be back.

Over the next few months, I'll be introducing more of the speakers, sharing some of the conversations that inspired this year's agenda, and giving you a closer look at what's happening in Asheville this October.

If you're looking for another conference full of slide decks, and how-to manuals, this probably isn't it. If you're looking for a room full of thoughtful people who care deeply about becoming better project leaders—and are willing to learn from one another—I think you'll feel right at home.

T L ; D R : After stepping away from Digital PM Summit, I came back with one question: What makes an event worth leaving home for? The answer wasn't more presentations! It was more participation. This year's Summit returns to the community-focused spirit we started with in 2012, combining great speakers with workshops, discussions, and meaningful conversations about the human side of modern project leadership.