Smartsheet Launches Intelligent Work Management Update: AI, Data, and People on One Platform
Smartsheet announced a major update to its Intelligent Work Management platform at the 2025 ENGAGE conference. The release introduces new generative AI and agentic AI features alongside enterprise-grade security controls and scenario planning. The goal: remove execution silos and help large organizations operate with clarity and speed. It's part of why Smartsheet says 85% of the Fortune 500 use the platform to turn strategy into measurable impact.
What's New
- Smart Agents: AI-driven assistants that automate routine tasks, route work, surface risks, and keep projects moving without constant check-ins. They handle the busywork so teams can focus on decisions and delivery.
- Scenario Planning: Model resourcing, timing, and budget trade-offs before you commit. This helps portfolio leaders stress-test plans, pressure-check assumptions, and pick the path that meets constraints.
- Enterprise Security Controls: Centralized permissions, auditability, and governance to support scale. This matters when you're coordinating across business units and sensitive data sources.
Why It Matters for Management
Execution breaks down when teams operate in different tools and reporting lives in slide decks. Smartsheet's update pushes work, context, and decisions into a single system with AI taking on status churn and repetitive tasks. That compresses cycle time and reduces the overhead of meetings, pings, and manual updates.
- Less time chasing updates; more time directing outcomes.
- Clear visibility from initiative to task, with risks flagged early.
- Fewer handoffs and status meetings; more predictable delivery.
- Portfolio decisions grounded in scenarios, not guesswork.
How Managers Can Put This to Work in 90 Days
- Pick two candidate workflows with high coordination cost (e.g., product launches, cross-functional campaigns, quarterly planning).
- Define success metrics upfront: cycle time, on-time delivery, rework rate, and stakeholder satisfaction.
- Connect core data sources you actually use (tasks, budgets, capacity). Start lean; expand once value is proven.
- Set guardrails for Smart Agents: scope of actions, escalation criteria, and required human approvals.
- Run a pilot with a willing squad, capture before/after metrics, and document what procedures you'll standardize.
- Train and reinforce with short, role-specific sessions for PMs, functional leads, and exec sponsors.
- Operationalize the playbook to adjacent teams. Reuse templates and scenarios to speed adoption.
Governance That Scales
AI without guardrails creates noise. Put accountability in writing: who can create agents, what they can touch, and how approvals work. Require human-in-the-loop for changes that impact budget, scope, or external communications. Partner with InfoSec early to align on permissions, encryption, and audit logging.
Metrics to Watch
- Cycle time: Start to finish for key workflows.
- On-time delivery: Planned vs. actual across initiatives.
- Throughput: Completed projects per quarter.
- Forecast accuracy: Scenario vs. actual for costs and timelines.
- Rework rate: Percentage of tasks reopened or revised late.
- Team signal: Manager and contributor NPS on meetings, clarity, and cognitive load.
Where This Fits in Your Stack
If you're already using Smartsheet for program tracking, this update centralizes planning, execution, and governance in one place. If you're juggling multiple tools, Smart Agents and scenario planning can help consolidate cross-team workflows and reduce spreadsheet drift. The outcome is cleaner decision-making and fewer surprises at steering reviews.
For more on the platform and the new capabilities, visit Smartsheet. If you're upskilling managers and PMOs on AI-enabled execution, explore curated training by role at Complete AI Training.
Bottom Line
Smartsheet's latest update helps leaders close the gap between strategy and delivery. Use AI for the repetitive work, keep humans on the decisions that matter, and measure the impact in weeks-not quarters. The managers who standardize this approach will get compounding gains across portfolios.
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