Towards Project Management 5.0: The role of artificial intelligence, human-centric decision-making, and sustainability in project success—An empirical study from Jordan

Abstract

Project Management 5.0 takes the perspective of viewing AI as a value-creating capability, arguing that it needs to be under human-centric governance, built with sustainability principles. In this study, we presumed after examining the impacts of AI adoption on project success and the intervening variables of human-centric decision-making (HCDM) and sustainability integration (SUS). The gathered data from 384 project professionals from the major sectors in Jordan were analysed using SPSS 29 and Smart PLS 4 software. Results indicate that the use of AI has a positive direct effect on project success (β = 0.284, p < 0.001) and indirect effect on project success through HCDM (indirect effect = 0.203), and SUS (indirect effect = 0.171). Adopting the model explains 58.7% of the success variance in projects and supports complementary incomplete mediation. The study empirically operationalises the definition of PM 5.0 as an AI–human–sustainability framework and offers new empirical evidence in the context of a developing economy.