In a job market that’s already shaky, it’s easy to see AI-led automation as salt in the wound. But Wade Foster flips that framing: pushing into AI is actually one of the kinder things organizations can do—because it strips away the “mysticism” and replaces it with something more useful: a pragmatic understanding of what AI can save you from (tedious, brain-draining tasks) and what it can’t replace (problem-solving, judgment, taste).

What comes through in this conversation is a more grounded promise: AI doesn’t erase the job—it helps in the “messy middle.” And when you use it as a thought partner (not just a shortcut), it can actually increase the time you spend on meaningful work… because it makes the process more enjoyable and the output better.

Resources from this episode:

• Join the Digital Project Manager Community
• Subscribe to the newsletter to get our latest articles and podcasts
• Connect with Wade on LinkedIn and X
• Check out Wade’s website and Zapier
• Zapier MCP (Model Context Protocol)
  • Zapier MCP Documentation & Setup (Quickstart)
  • Zapier MCP Guide: Use with Your AI Client
  • Zapier MCP with Anthropic (Claude)
  • Zapier Agent Skills for Claude (Blog)

Trust in AI isn’t a vibe—it’s something you can intentionally design for (or accidentally break). In this episode, Galen sits down with Cal Al-Dhubaib to unpack “trust engineering”: a shared toolkit that helps cross-functional teams (engineering, UX, governance, risk, and business) talk about the same trust risks in the same language. They get into why “boring AI is safe AI,” how guardrails and human handoffs actually preserve trust, and why the biggest failures often aren’t the model—they’re the systems (and incentives) wrapped around it.

You’ll also hear real-world examples of trust going sideways—from biased outcomes to hallucinated “gaslighting,” to AI-assisted deliverables causing accuracy issues—and what project leaders can do to prevent finger-pointing when it happens.

Resources from this episode:

• Join the Digital Project Manager Community
• Subscribe to the newsletter to get our latest articles and podcasts
• Connect with Cal on LinkedIn
• Check out Further
• AI Incident Database

PMOs are at a crossroads. As AI-led transformation accelerates, many organizations are still treating PMOs as project police—while quietly expecting them to deliver strategic clarity, risk foresight, and business value. In this conversation, Galen sits down with Amireh Amirmazaheri to unpack why that disconnect exists, what PMOs need to unlearn to move forward, and how the role must evolve if it’s going to earn (and keep) a seat at the table.

They explore the real difference between managing projects and enabling business success, why AI won’t save broken processes, and what it takes to lead a PMO with purpose instead of power. The result is an honest, human-centered look at the future of PMOs—one that prioritizes judgment, ethics, and clarity over templates, tools, and false certainty.

Resources from this episode:

• Join the Digital Project Manager Community
• Subscribe to the newsletter to get our latest articles and podcasts
• Connect with Amireh on LinkedIn
• Check out PMO Solutions

Related articles and podcasts:

• About the podcast
• Our Final Invention: Artificial Intelligence and the End of the Human Era by James Barrat
• 21 Lessons for the 21st Century by Yuval Noah Harari