Host Jeff Plumblee interviews Blake Mallet, Senior IT Project Manager at NMS Labs. Blake has a decade of project management experience, starting in the U.S. Navy. Jeff and Blake discuss the disastrous result of a company that moved without preparing for the move by vetting new local suppliers, and how Blake put the company back on track by moving the process into an Agile methodology. The biggest challenge was persuading all levels of the company of the benefits that would result. Blake advises that project managers learn all aspects of project management and their methodologies. Prepare all parts of a project before starting it, and don’t take peoples’ word that something has been done properly. Trust but verify. Listen in for tips on effective project management.   Key Takeaways: Blake explores the problems of an automotive seat supplier moving from Michigan to Charleston. The “old guard” didn’t change suppliers and the suppliers didn’t meet demand. Blake set up an Agile Kanban system. The biggest challenge was getting everybody on board, but it worked. The biggest challenges in moving from a waterfall methodology to Agile were from the people who had followed the waterfall way for years. Explaining Agile to people one-on-one was one of the greatest parts of the job for Blake. For the best project results, understand project management and project management methodologies and explain them to everybody on the team, showing them the benefits. It’s about making all the stakeholders happy. Blake talks about military project management from his time in the U.S. Navy. Everything is ready before they start any operation so that the operation is successful. Blake jumped into IT with the U.S. military global healthcare system. He tells of a “broken” colonoscopy camera that wasn’t plugged in. Blake advises listeners not to automatically trust everybody because of their position in the organization. “Trust but verify.”   Brought to you by Moovila — Autonomous Project Management Website: Moovila.com/thisprojectlife Email: [email protected] Resources: Moovila.com Blake Mallett NMS Labs Mercedes-Benz Vans Waterfall Model Kanban U.S. Navy