Your whole team needs to win. And they need to know that you care enough that they do win.
-Charles Walker
Episode Summary
Charles Walker isn’t afraid to jump out of the plane and deliver—literally. As a Jumpmaster, Senior Logistics Officer and Master Sergeant (to name a few titles) in the U.S. Army, Charles gained the skills he needed (and more) for a storied career in supply chain management, which is exactly what followed. In this episode, he sits down with Scott to share his reflections on his career, the keys to leadership success, and advice for aspiring supply chain professionals.
Episode Transcript
Intro/Outro (00:03):
Welcome to Supply Chain. Now the voice of Global Supply Chain Supply Chain now focuses on the best in the business for our worldwide audience, the people, the technologies, the best practices, and today’s critical issues, the challenges and opportunities. Stay tuned to hear from Those Making Global Business Happen right here on Supply chain now.
Scott Luton (00:32):
Hey, good morning everybody. Scott Luton with Supply Chain. Now we here with you. Welcome to today’s episode. So today we’re talking with one of our all-time faves, right? A fellow veteran supply chain practitioner that I promise you he’s gonna inform, inspire, and entertain you with his perspective, expertise, and point of view. So, especially on All Things leadership, which is of course one of our favorite topics here at Supply Chain. Now. So with no further ado, wanna welcome in our guest today, Charles Walker, logistics business Development manager with the Ginn Group. Charles, how you doing?
Charles Walker (01:05):
I’m doing great, Scott. How you doing? Great
Scott Luton (01:07):
To see you. I’m doing wonderful.
Charles Walker (01:08):
Great to see you again, man. Always.
Scott Luton (01:10):
You as well. It’s been too long. I, I think the last time you were with us, it was with a, on a live stream. We had you and Greg and Crystal, and I think we were talking about things that Bad Leaders did. Do you remember that episode?
Charles Walker (01:24):
Absolutely, absolutely. <laugh>
Scott Luton (01:25):
Absolutely had a lot of fun. We’ll, we’ll see if we can’t put the link to that one, uh, in the episode notes of today’s, but great to see you back. Um, first off, how are things going? Have you had a great year?
Charles Walker (01:36):
Oh, absolutely, man, I wake up, I’m good to go. Um, I just go day by day, man. I’ll try to get ahead. I just pray about it and then, uh, keep it airborne spirit and keep it moving, man. Uh, you wake up, you should be able to get up and do what you gotta do. That’s just it.
Scott Luton (01:50):
Mm-hmm. There you go. Well, I’m glad you mentioned that cause we’re gonna be talking about your time, uh, in Airborne with US Army. So, uh, a listener. Stay tuned for that. But I wanna start with, it’s been a little while since you’ve been with us, and one of my favorite elements, you know, we’ve interviewed you on our veteran voices. We’ve interviewed you a couple times on supply chain and you know, our, our mothership here. Um, I want to give folks, one of my favorite aspects of all of those conversations is talking about kind of your roots and, and, and where you grew up and some of those key lessons learned and some of the food that you and I both love too much, probably. So tell us, where did you grow up? Cause you grew up in a big family in Alabama, right?
Charles Walker (02:26):
Right, right. I grew up in a, in a, in a family of 13 man, seven boys and six girls in, uh, Birmingham, Alabama. Um, you know, a lot of people are familiar with Birmingham and, and the civil rights movement and all of these things that my, my parents and grandparents went through. So they did a lot to, to raise us with, uh, proper respect for others and discipline, man. So I appreciate my family for that. Uh, most of my siblings are still there. Uh, lost a couple, but, uh, everything is good. I’m from Birmingham, Alabama, man, actually, I went to elementary school there and graduated from Parker High School, a Parker High School, a very prominent high school there, uh, in Birmingham, Alabama.
Scott Luton (03:06):
So, does that make you, I think we talked about this last time. Um, I know this is a very contentious issue for folks in Alabama. Are you an Auburn fan? Are you a Alabama fan?
Charles Walker (03:16):
Well, you know, uh, it’s, it is a split. You gonna be either or, but I’m a Bama fan all the way, man, <laugh> so that I’m, I’m, I’m a, I’m a bammer
Scott Luton (03:25):
All day. Well, Nick Saban, I don’t think he can fit any more trophies into that massive trophy case. I mean, he is, uh, talk about a generational, uh, hall of Fame coach and team. Y’all been rolling? Um, yeah. Okay. So growing up in Birmingham, Alabama, gosh, a family of 13, I can only imagine the meals y’all had together and how much fun that had to been growing up. Um, let’s talk about food for a second, because last time you were with us, I think we were talking about, uh, barbecue, one of our mutual favorite, uh, dishes. What’s one food dish that’s inseparable from your childhood growing up?
Charles Walker (04:02):
Actually, we did, we talked about, uh, barbecue in a place called, uh, old Plantation Barbecue in Birmingham. It was a very known place there. Uh, but my main foods is like, uh, you just southern cooking. Um, uh, Scott, uh, in the south, you know, you, you, most of the things are fried and fried chicken, pork chops. And my mom, she, she, she made a meal outta whatever we had. Uh, sometime we, she’ll go to the vegetable garden and get things, and she taught us early on how it’s always something to eat in the house. You just gotta find it and creative. And so she was a creatives person with that many kids. She had to, you know, do what she had to do. So I’m very appreciative of her and how she raised us with the discipline. Uh, some values that she said, you gotta graduate to be in my house, and then you have to make some outta your life. So I think that stuck with me as a kid, and I just developed it as I got older, you know, and food was one of the main things. Uh, uh, breakfast oatmeal early in the morning, you know, you got oatmeal, you know, so a lot of people’s like, make oatmeal, like Yeah, you had that almost every day. It was cheap and they could feed a lot of people.
Scott Luton (05:07):
Right. Well, that’s what I was thinking. I, man, I couldn’t, you know, we’ve got three kids here and, and with me and my, uh, my, uh, better half Amanda Luton. Right. And yeah. And gosh, I think I have a hard time making ends meet. At times. I couldn’t imagine having a, uh, a household with 13, uh, kids. So I’m sure it was a regular, uh, a regular part of, uh, daily focus how to, how to, um, uh, make things go further. Right. Especially food.
Charles Walker (05:36):
That’s right. And, you know, you gotta look at the, the times, you know, right now, we have evolved from a lot of the times with technology and things like that, uh, and just the way people think. But back then, uh, they had large families then had to embrace the struggle. You know, like it wasn’t a struggle to them, it was just a way of life. You know, I gotta feed my kids. I gotta ensure that they get the things they need so they won’t have to live the life that I live. So a lot of times we, and I look at my mom and grandmom now, they, they, they put a lot of time in so saying, Hey, I’m gonna give my kids the things that I didn’t have. Right. But they was really giving us things. They did have, like, self-respect, discipline, and things of that nature that we need to live a long life. And then we get all those things. We, we, we reflect on it when we get older. Say, Hey, mom gave me more than food. She gave me the, the, the values of life that I can keep living and keep going,
Scott Luton (06:29):
Man. I love that strong, uh, strong upbringing that, uh, filled with values and core values that clearly have stated with you, uh, and maybe impact your daily behavior now and, and put you in position to pass those on, is what I’m, some of the things I’m hearing. Um, so let’s shift gears here. So cuz we could talk about probably southern cuisine for hours on end. I bet you and I could compare a lot of different recipes and favors. Absolutely. But let’s shift gears. We’re gonna touch on your time, uh, again, in the US Army Airborne, and then we’re gonna touch on, um, uh, both supply chain lessons learned from that time and leadership, uh, your leadership advice for these uncertain times. So what, backing up, what made you want to join not only the Army, but what also prompted you to want to leap outta planes?
Charles Walker (07:18):
You know, it is strange how it happens, you know, like sometime our life just unfold for us in, initially I left home, uh, my mom was very proud, the first one in the family to, to go off to college. I went off on the Pell Grant back then, it was the Pell Grant, uh, for, uh, lower economic families to go to, to H B C U school. I went to Talladega College initially. And, uh, after a certain period of time being there, I think maybe my junior, sophomore, junior year, the Pell Grant actually ran out. And then I was like, knowing that my mom had put it, we gotta do something productive in life. I, I decided to listen to the, um, the military. Um, and when I scored on the, uh, on the asvab, what came up was like, you know, infantry, all that comes up. But it was, uh, equipment records and parts specialists, which
Scott Luton (08:07):
Was like, so really quick. So Charles, really quick for our listeners, when you say asfab, if I, if I can remember that correctly, as a fellow veteran, that is gonna be your ARM services vocational assessment battery, I believe is what that stands for. And listeners, basically what that is, what he’s talking about taking that test is every, um, entrant into the armed surfaces. They give you this test to figure out where, what skillsets you have and where you might be presenting the most value to the military. And, uh, and that really, uh, has a big impact on what you end up doing in the military. So, is that right, Charles?
Charles Walker (08:41):
Absolutely. Right. And, uh, you know, you, you, you, you do a testing, uh, evaluation of which, uh, military occupational specialty come up the mos they’ll place and say, well, which one of these you want to pick? Or whatever. And when the guy, guy explained to me about supply chain, uh, supply sergeant logistics, uh, accounting for all the property that the commander has in the unit, that just resonated with me because I always wanted to, uh, know and be accountable for everything that appears. You know, I, I wonder how parts come to your house or house. Somebody delivers something and you get what you you asked for. And I wanted to be a part of that. It was just innate, my innate spirit, I think it was. Yeah. So I picked that.
Scott Luton (09:21):
Okay. All right. So tell us about, um, um, some of the things you did as part of US Army Airborne. Cuz I bet it not many of our listeners are gonna be able to relate. I mean, you’re, you’re one of a very special few.
Charles Walker (09:35):
Oh, yeah. And actually, I, I stumbled into, uh, applewood operations. You know, as a child, I was afraid of heights. And, uh, when I was, uh, when I went through basic training at, uh, up in Missouri or Fort Leonard Wood Missouri, uh, one of the drill sergeant was talking to us about, um, the Airborn one needed more supply chain professionals to, to go airborne. And fear immediately came over me. I’m like, dude, I’m scared to go to Six Flags, you know, <laugh>, uh, and everybody in my family was like, so I raised my hand and me and my buddy battle buddy, we said, man, we’re gonna go. I’m like, uh, I raised my hand and they moved us. We left AIT t and, uh, Fort Lee, uh, at the training they sent us right down to 37th, fifth range of battalion. Uh, and they was like, yeah, you guys are gonna be our new logistic teams, but you gotta go airborne.
Charles Walker (10:22):
And I’m like, uh, the fear, fear set in immediately, you know? But, uh, they did, they did a special thing with us to get us over the fear. Uh, it’s like a, a psychological test where you go out and watch everybody coming from the airplanes and everything like that, jumping out. And then you, you watch the planes land. And, and I just got excited about that. And then I said, yeah, I’m gonna go ahead and go airborne. You know, man, they gonna set you apart from everybody else, man in logistic field. So that’s what I wanted to be, I wanted to be on with the elite guys, you know? Cause I saw ’em, I went down seeing the guys at the Range Batal, that’s like, yeah, I wanna be like those guys right now. <laugh>.
Scott Luton (10:56):
Yeah. Well, you know, I love that. Um, and I can only imagine, um, uh, so, you know, arguably, or maybe inarguably, I don’t know, the military invented logistics, right? They basically invented supply chain management in many ways. Um, and there’s some interesting, um, uh, historical writings on kind of where all that originated going way back in ancient times. Um, so clearly with when they basically invited you to join Airborne, you and your battle buddy, as you put it, um, that value that the military puts on logistics expertise and SAP supply chain expertise is, uh, evident once more. What, why did, why, um, did they identify any specific needs of what they needed in Airborne, uh, you know, that you brought to the table?
Charles Walker (11:42):
Yes. Yes, they did. They identified that, uh, uh, they wanted the, uh, logistics, uh, operational teams to be, to be airborne and be able to get supplies and equipment or wherever the guys needed and soft and the special operation forces. They needed guys that could do some of the same things that the special operation forces could do with the same mentality, but be there on right on time and place where they needed it at. So they need you to have specialties skills outside of just your mos. They wanted you to be able to, Hey, if we need you to jump in and set up a tactical operation center or handle supplies and equipment on hand, you have to be able to do those things. That’s a logistics team. And so I thought that was special and that we got the recognition for that as well.
Scott Luton (12:26):
Man, that is awesome. Uh, bringing logistics and supply chain know-how, literally to the, to the front lines and, and, um, you know, boots on ground right there, knowing all the conditions, not guessing it at a command center somewhere. I can only imagine the efficiency and the gains overall and the immense value that that has to, you know, have you and, and your fellow logistics pros right there with the, the special ops teams and, and the rest of the airborne units.
Charles Walker (12:53):
Exactly. And you gotta look at it, if a guy can jump out a preferably good airplane, a lot of his fears gonna be out the way when he gotta have supplies and equipment in place. Uh, because he’s already showed that he can conquer fear, uh, because of, if you can jump outta airplane and trust your equipment and trust your, your battle buddies, uh, of course you can get the equipment in a place where it need to be at all times. So, yep, that’s special.
Scott Luton (13:17):
All right. So moving more directly into that supply chain conversation, and now that, you know, you’ve been in supply chain since you separated, uh, from the Army, um, for years now. What, what’s, uh, if you were to think of a short list of things that the Army really instilled in you, uh, especially like supply chain lessons that you’ve applied since, uh, in your career as a practitioner, what are some things that come to your mind? Charles,
Charles Walker (13:43):
I, I really, man, I really think, Scott, you know, I, I’m big on the, uh, the three Cs man, but, uh, no communication, proper communication, collaboration with others, and then just cooperating with people. But as I get older and this flat chain feel, I’m looking at caring, you know, the empathy and, uh, the loyalty to ensuring that everybody’s succeed on your team. Man, it is like, you know, loyalty. Like, we look at it as loyalty to a personal whatever. I look at it as loyalty to a bigger, uh, field where everybody win on your team, man. Like, it’s not one guy win. When you got a team, everybody gotta win. Uh, it’s a win-win situation on the team. So I say caring, empathy, and then loyalty to the fact that your whole team needs to win, and they didn’t know you care enough that they do win. You know what I’m saying? So that’s where I’m at with it now.
Scott Luton (14:33):
I love that. Uh, and as I recall, there was a, and I cannot remember her name, uh, I bet, I’m sure you can. There was a full bird colonel, I believe that, uh, you served under, and she was an inspiration to you. And, uh, and she ended up, I also, I believe, jumping outta planes too, too. Who, who was that person again? Charles,
Charles Walker (14:53):
That was, uh, Colonel Eugen. Sne, yes. She was the, so she was the socom g4. Matter of fact, every holiday, as a matter of fact, on uh, Thanksgiving, she’ll send the whole team still, uh, uh, a text message of, you know, she said, I’ll go in battle with you guys right now today, again, this is just recently we talk on a regular basis and we just, um, do buddy checks still to this day. Uh, she was an inspirational logistics, uh, quartermaster leader, uh, no fear at all. Um, able to, to lead, uh, logistic team of all males, you know, all us are seniors and nnc NCOs, I think the lowest ranking person on our team was an E seven. Uh, and we had, uh, uh, <inaudible> Special Operation Support Command, had a logistic operational team that worked, uh, to support the one 12 Signal Battalion, and then the five two a support battalion. And we supported all special operation forces. So she was very, I followed her leadership for quite a while to learn from her, uh, and watch how she dealt with pressure. See, cuz I like to look at leaders and see, when you put ’em in a pressure position, what decision do they make at that time? So I studied that a lot. Yeah.
Scott Luton (16:03):
So, Colonel Sneed, if you’re listening, uh, clearly you’re an inspiration to Charles and, and many of the folks that, uh, that worked and served with you. Um, and Charles, that kind of takes it back to, uh, at least what I heard there, um, one of your biggest lessons learned was, was, uh, you know, commitment to team, commitment to all team members winning and advancing and opportunities for all. And it see, and of course, the value of, um, that buddy check you mentioned, which is common lingo in the military. Yeah. Uh, I’m not sure what an equivalent would be on the, you know, the private sector or the civilian side, but just making sure your colleagues are taken care of. You know, so many folks as a pandemic has taught us. Charles, I’d love to get your take here. So many folks, um, suffer in silence or suffer by themselves alone, and, and they’re really isolated. I don’t know about you. I saw that time and time again. Even some of the interviews we did, you know, some of remote interviews where you could tell folks had been by themselves for so long and it had impacted their mentality, but the value of that buddy check or, or, you know, picking up the phone and reaching out or dropping by and, and seeing people and saying, Hey, how you doing? Tell what you know, what’s going on? And, and, and just, uh, engaging with your, your fellow colleagues. The value of that is immense. Right?
Charles Walker (17:18):
That’s right, man. And, and, uh, it’s gotta be sincere, man. They gotta, they gotta know you mean it, you know what I’m saying? Cause people can feel, man, it is, you know, like you saying, like, man Angelou said, people might not forget how you treated them or what you did, but they’ll never forget how you made them feel. And then sometimes you can call somebody and it be the right voice at the right time. The voice that they need to hear and uplift them and say, Hey, you know, it’s gonna be okay because we are all going through something. You know, people might show exterior a week, everything is fine, everything’s fine. But man, you gotta balance your family. You gotta balance, balance your health. You gotta balance your finances. You gotta balance your job. And then you gotta keep everything in balance. And then you gotta balance your own mind, man.
Charles Walker (17:57):
Because I would call it the super computer man, because whatever was on your database, man, hey, you change the software anytime. You know what I’m saying? So you just gotta look at it. You gotta look at it like, Hey, man, but I’m gonna share this with other people because there’s no need for me to know something that’s gonna help somebody and keep it within, you know what I’m saying? It’s not right. And I don’t, it don’t make me feel right. So I just always check on people, you know? And you never know, man, you could save somebody life, man, because the military people, we, we deal with things differently than a lot of people. We seen a lot. We’ve experienced a lot. And when we see a lot of foolishness, external foolishness, we, we can’t deal with that like that. We have to be in a controlled environment where we got an objective and a mission, and we know an instate is in, in, we can see an instate, not just chaotic foolishness. We wanna know, right? You want me to do this, it’s the process. I’m gonna follow your process. And you, my leader, you should have that process already mapped out and I’m gonna follow you a hundred percent. That’s the way it’s
Scott Luton (18:58):
All right. So, uh, Charles, from our previous conversations, you’re a big time reader, right? You’re reading books all the time. You got big love and passion for reading. What is, um, what’s one of your favorite recent reads maybe this year?
Charles Walker (19:13):
The one recent read this year, I’ve been looking at the 48 Laws of Power. Um, you know, Robert Green, he breaks it down from the ancient times to now. Um, and how people can use power or misuse power or power is a, is a it is, it is, it can create a man or a mouse, you know what I’m saying? Because of the fact that there’s so many ways you can use your power. Uh, we all have power, uh, but it’s just how you strategically use it to uplift people. And then if you uplift other people, you uplift yourself. You know, it is just, and I look at, I, I listen to Jim Rome almost every day, and people that really live life, uh, that I want to live. So I study them. Uh, I got a library that a lot of people wouldn’t even believe, but a lot of people that know me in the military know I was a reader. Uh, I always read, and I like to know, uh, from my own standpoint how things work. Instead of listening to a lot of people, I like to study and show myself approved about it. So mm-hmm. <affirmative>, it’s different books I read, uh, depending on my feelings and my mood early morning, I’ll go into it and I try to share it on LinkedIn. That’s mostly what I try to share with others, uh, of how we can get, we can endure it through these challenges that we face. We just gotta know, stick together,
Scott Luton (20:26):
You know? Yeah. I love that. And I see that all the time on LinkedIn, folks, listeners, if you’re not connected or following, uh, Charles on LinkedIn, you’re missing out. We’re gonna have a link to that, um, in the episode. Uh, notes. Okay. So what I heard there, uh, I heard Jim Ron, and, and that’s r o h n, right? That’s one of the folks you listened to, to, um, and then Robert Green. Is that the, the book you mentioned? What was the name of that title again?
Charles Walker (20:52):
The 48 Laws of Power.
Scott Luton (20:54):
The 48 Laws of Power. Yeah, man. Okay,
Charles Walker (20:58):
Man, it’s little deep. And then he breaks it down on the right, on the right side of the book. He breaks down what, what it’s saying. It is like, it, it’s sort of like he writing it in parables, uh, a story within the story, but you gotta get the story within the story. It’s just not face value. There’s a message in there for you, and then how you make it applicable to your own life, and then how you see others doing the same thing that he’s, that he’s expressing. So it’s a great book, man. And, and most people that, people that you meet on LinkedIn that are real smart people, I pay attention to a lot of ’em strategically search ’em out. I, I know they know about that book.
Scott Luton (21:35):
Okay. Uh, well, we’re gonna check it out. So, Robert Green, looks like you’re doing some good work out there if you’re listening. Um, okay. So Charles, we’ve, we’ve really been talking leadership, the whole conversation. I mean, it started with, uh, sounds like your, your folks in Alabama and what they, how they raised you and, and the, the values they instilled in you to the time in the Army, uh, your time in the Army, and who you served with and who you worked for with, you know, Colonel Sneed and the impact, uh, all those folks good folks had on you. And then of course, now we’re talking about, um, depending on who you talk to, we’re either in a recession or heading into a recession, right? Um, and, and for a lot of folks, there’s a lot of the uncertainty continues, right? We’ve been through the pandemic, uh, globally, and, uh, and we all know the, the, um, turmoil and, and, um, the tragedy that that, uh, that inflicted on so many people, of course, global supply chain had to find a way to do business much differently. And, um, I think that’s one of the silver linings of just how out of sheer necessity, the innovation that, um, uh, that the pandemic fueled, uh, across global business, really. Um, so let’s talk about, in all, with all of that said, with, uh, economic uncertainty and, and so much more as we move into the new year, what are two or three leadership principles you believe are more relevant than e than, than, uh, you know, during different times?
Charles Walker (23:01):
Well, for me, everything you mentioned, Scott, is external to me. Everything, everything, you know, like I look at, I read about American history and, and the history of different countries, uh, they went through worse things than that. You know, pandemics, uh, recession, uh, depression, you know, if you look at depression, created more millionaires than, than, and people who realize, uh, because those people didn’t look at the external factors that was going on or the noise, uh, people can predict anything. They can say, okay, we have earthquake next year. Am I gonna sit here and worry about an earthquake next year? No, I’m not that kind of person. So what I do, I focus on me and what I can, what I, I can control and what I can do. And then every leave stress for me, you know, I don’t sit there and think about, oh, oh, they say, oh wait, monkey P is out. Me. What’s Monkeypox? I don’t know what monkeypox is. I don’t wanna know. So I don’t, I don’t entertain those things. I just, I just entertain things in my mind that I pray about, and I focus on those things, and all the other noise just get silenced for me. Mm-hmm. <affirmative>, a lot of people, they focus on the news. They focus on what could happen. I focus on how I react to what happened. You know, that’s what I so
Scott Luton (24:13):
Power, the power of focus. The power of focusing on what’s within your control seems to be a big, uh, a big part of your overall approach. Is that right?
Charles Walker (24:20):
That’s it. That’s it.
Scott Luton (24:22):
Um, clearly from what you shared earlier, uh, the power of empathy and, and, and caring for others is a big part of your approach. If you’re speaking to other leaders or, um, folks coming up through the ranks, you know, um, recent graduates, you name it. What else would you, from a leadership, a practical leadership, uh, perspective, what else would you add to your priority list right now?
Charles Walker (24:44):
I would just say the main thing is trust and believe in yourself. You know, um, you know, we instinctively know what we want to do, uh, and we know what we can do. You know, stick with grab, grab one or two things that you do very, very well, and you enjoy doing it. Um, you know, you might just want to be around a lot of people and uplift them or whatever. If you enjoy doing that, and you would, and you would do it for free, stick with that. But that’s really your passion. Uh, when you go out and try to step outside of who you really are, then you’ll pretend to be somebody else, and then you’re not gonna be happy. So what I do, I, I enjoy people. I enjoy expressing with people and sharing because of the fact that some of the things I learned in life might help some of these young people out here that’s doing things that’s crazy to me. But they don’t, they don’t have the foundation of, of grew up like I did, or they didn’t have those leaders in the military that took out time with me and accepting me for who I am. Right. So I have to go back and share that with other people too. And that’s what I do, man. I tell anybody, stick with what you would do for free. Mm. And that’s your real passion. And that’s where your money at <laugh>, that’s where your money Yeah.
Scott Luton (25:56):
That’s important for everybody, right? Everybody wants to be successful. Um, right. All right. Uh, two last questions here. And, and, uh, the first one’s related to what we’ve been talking about, um, in between supply chain management and leadership, um, for folks that won’t, what advice would you give, um, folks we’re thinking like, um, students in college or maybe even high school, and they’re considering what career fields, uh, to go into? You know, you and I both are, are very, um, we’re, let’s just, let’s just put it plainly. We’re big supply chain nerds, right? Big supply chain fans. Absolutely. How, how would you, um, advise students on why to enter the supply chain management field as a career? What would your answer to that be?
Charles Walker (26:45):
It would be simple for me, because of the fact that I would say, look at the problems that touched you. You know, like, look at the world and like, look at supply chain. Look at Amazon. If you ordered something off Amazon, right? And it, it didn’t come as you saw it, or your friends said the same thing, you said, Hey, you know what, Amazon, it looks like this on the internet, but it didn’t show up like that, right? So you should be thinking, how can I fix that? Because, you know, people pay you to fix problems, man. The world is for whenever you see a problem, that’s an opportunity, that’s a job for you, really, because, uh, people that solve problem get paid. When people say, uh, how he make more money than me? When he solved problems, he solved more problems than you, man, <laugh>, it’s simple. You don’t solve no problem <laugh>. So, uh, and I just tell people that, look for problems, then you find opportunities, period.
Scott Luton (27:37):
And supply chain touches anything. You, you’ve got no shortage of problems either you’re reacting to, unfortunately too often, but more and more you’re proactively avoid helping to, uh, helping organizations and supply chains avoid. So I, I love that. Uh, be a problem solver, make a difference, move the needle and, uh, come join us in, in global supply chain, trade industry. Um, okay. So Charles, always a pleasure connecting with you. Uh, Charles Walker with the gen, um, no, the Gin group. The gin group. A hard G. Yes,
Charles Walker (28:09):
Sir. Yes, sir.
Scott Luton (28:10):
Um, how can folks connect with you, Charles?
Charles Walker (28:12):
Hey, they connect with me at, uh, at c Walker gin group.com. That’s my email, my personal email, and also on LinkedIn. I don’t know if by hard, because LinkedIn is just an innate thing that I do. Um, it’s, it’s, it’s more spirit based for me. Um, when I feel something that I think, uh, my followers, uh, would benefit from, I post it, man. I don’t have no certain time. I don’t look at how many followers or none of that stuff. I just said, okay, I’m gonna put that positive energy out there that I feel right now for me. And I, I think that my base of people that I follow as well will feel it, um, and connect with it. So I don’t, A lot of people say, well, thank you for 17,000 followers. Thank you for a million follow. I don’t, I don’t know how many followers there are, uh, because, uh, I just connect with the right people like you and I connected you and I connected, man. It was just, it, it was just, I, I feel like I create the people that show up in my life, man. Uh, if, if I, if a clown show up in my life, hey, I gotta look at myself. You created the Clown Man. So <laugh>, uh, and I, and I, I do it like that, man. That’s just the way I am, man.
Scott Luton (29:18):
No, um, I can, I can vouch for that. Charles, you and I have known each other for, you know, going back a few years now, and I’m a big believer and a big fan of your approach to LinkedIn. Um, you know, cause it, it clearly is genuine. It comes from the heart. There’s a ton of expertise. There’s a, there’s a ton of give back based on what you’ve learned. And, and perhaps one of my favorite parts is it’s, it’s very inclusive and inspirational. So folks, make sure you’re connected with or following Charles Walker, and we’ll make sure we have a link to that, uh, in the episode notes,
Charles Walker (29:53):
Okay? And make sure they follow your show, Scott, because you guys, you, you guys don’t know the impact you have on supply chain personnel, man. Uh, I showed a couple of videos here in my, in my, in my job here to these guys. They didn’t, they weren’t familiar with it. I’m like, dude, there’s a lot of good information here, man, that we can, you know, in, in the supply chain business or, or government contracting, uh, you guys, you touch on pain points for government, uh, uh, agencies. And you actually, you giving a solution. If people look, listen to you, you guys are or are looking at pain points. And when you relieve pain points, that’s a contract, man. So there’s so many ways to do it, but a lot of people, I use LinkedIn for the, the smart people out there because actually I hate, I paid for all these degrees I got because LinkedIn is an actual degree. If you listen to it, you get the right people and you connect with them, they’ll share some information with you that you didn’t get in the university that you paid for. So you gotta look at LinkedIn as a tool of smart people that gather together, and they are willing to share. They care enough about you, and they’ll loyal you to your success. So that’s what make it is to me.
Scott Luton (31:06):
You know, I wonder if degrees are, are part of the next phase of the LinkedIn business plan. They might as well. They’re doing everything else, you know, but to your point, uh, I bet they roll that out soon. Uh, and charge of pretty pinning for it. We’ll see Charles, uh, yeah. But hey, I always enjoy our time together. I really appreciate what you do and, and the good and, and the positivity and the constructive, uh, contributions you put out there in industry. So thanks so much, Charles Walker with the again group. We’ll make sure folks connect with you.
Charles Walker (31:35):
And I appreciate you. You know, it’s, it’s, it’s, it is, uh, it’s heartfelt, man. I appreciate you. And remember that common sense is the new PhD.
Scott Luton (31:46):
Okay? Hey, <laugh>, I like that. I like that we’ve got lots of T-shirt isms every time we get with, with uh, Charles here. But hey, listeners, hopefully you’ve enjoyed this, really frank, um, and, and hard driven conversation here with the one and only Charles Walker. But hey, it’s all about deeds, not words. You gotta act on this good advice you get. But regardless, uh, on behalf of our entire team here at Supply Chain now, we wish you nothing but the best. Hey, do good, give forward and be the change. Be like Charles Walker. And with that said, we’ll see you next time, right back here at Supply Chain now. Thanks everybody.
Intro/Outro (32:19):
Thanks for being a part of our supply chain Now, community. Check out all of our programming@supplychainnow.com and make sure you subscribe to Supply Chain now, anywhere you listen to podcasts. And follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram. See you next time on Supply Chain. Now.
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Charles Walker is a military retired Army Master Sergeant with over 20 years active duty in Special Operations Logistics. Served in mainly Special Operations Units including Task Force 160th, 10th Special Forces Group (Germany), 112th signal Battalion, 96th Civil Affairs and Special Operations Support Command, lastly Special Warfare Training Group. He worked in organizations SAIC, Raytheon, Stanley Associates, RGTS and a few others in Program Management Logistics roles. Presently working as the primary business developer for a minority owned, female, veteran small business. Our mission is to acquire government, state and local contracts related to supplies and equipment related to organizational needs and requirements. We have gained much traction with the requisitioning of PPE items required in support of the COVID pandemic. Our capabilities include all logistics supplies and services with warehousing, transportation, storage and distribution being our core components.
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