The Accidental Safety Pro HSI

Did you know you can utilize your insurance broker for risk assessment on your jobsites? And that PPE for males and females should be designed differently? Or that workplace violence is one of the top three reasons women die in the workplace every year? In this episode, Jill runs the gamut of safety with Christina Roll, casualty risk consultant with AXA XL. Christina is passionate about diversity, equity, and inclusion within the safety profession, and chats with Jill about the importance of PPE created - and fitted - specifically for women. She emphasizes the need to address workplace violence and bridge the gap for women in executive leadership roles. Christina also encourages all safety professionals to be their authentic selves, work on soft skills, and mentor others to ensure the growth and success of the safety profession.

Join Elizabeth Johnson, Senior Director of EHS at Mitsubishi Power Americas, as she discusses what the next generation of EHS professionals will need, in addition to technical expertise, to be successful. We cover the importance of soft skills, such as communication and leadership, the significance of clear and concise writing, and the value of pursuing education. Overall, Elizabeth highlights the importance of supporting and mentoring the next generation of safety professionals and leaving a positive impact on the profession. Elizabeth shares her into the safety profession, starting with her time in the United States Army and her transition into the field of safety.

Meet Rob Fisher, President of Fisher Improvement Technologies. Rob spent almost 10 years in the U.S. Navy before working at the South Texas Nuclear Project for 12 years in various safety and human development roles. Listen along as Rob talks with Jill about how his diverse experiences led to being an expert in human performance and leadership. They discuss the importance of intentional leadership and understanding mental models, the benefits of values-based engagements, and the importance of continuous learning and development in the field of safety. 

Rob also shares his story of investigating the 1999 Texas A&M Aggie Bonfire Collapse and how lessons from that investigation still impact his work today.

Fisher Improvement Technologies [https://www.improvewithfit.com/]

Essential Leadership Podcast episode with Jill James [https://youtu.be/TXScLf8WfwU]

The Aggie Bonfire Tragedy [https://www.texasmonthly.com/the-culture/the-aggie-bonfire-tragedy/]

The Field Guide to Understanding 'Human Error' by Sidney Dekker [https://www.amazon.com/Field-Guide-Understanding-Human-Error-dp-1472439058/dp/1472439058/ref=mt_other?_encoding=UTF8&me=&qid=1590643989]

Understanding Mental Models by Rob Fisher [https://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Mental-Models-Practically-Performance/dp/B0B6XSNT7Q]

In this episode Jill is joined by three guests to discuss the findings of a survey conducted on the challenges and experiences of women working in safety. The survey received almost 900 responses and revealed both positive and negative experiences. The guests discuss topics such as the impact of parenthood on careers, harassment and discrimination in the workplace, and the motivations behind obtaining professional certifications. They also emphasize the importance of allyship and advocacy in supporting and promoting the success of women in the safety profession. The full survey report and additional resources can be found in the show notes or at www.hsi.com [https://hsi.com/resources/2023-women-in-safety-survey-report].

2023 Women in Safety Survey [https://goto.hsi.com/women-in-safety-report-2023]

A few months ago, we launched a podcast episode that featured some of our favorite people — you! We loved hearing your personal stories, ideas, and tips so we wanted to do it again. For this episode, Jill and our podcast producer, Emily, sat down with NSC Safety Congress and Expo attendees from all types of industries: oil and gas, environmental remediation, mining, engineering consulting, pet care, government agencies, and more. They chatted about success stories, advice for safety professionals, what the future of safety looks like, and their favorite parts of the job.

And we're excited to announce we'll be doing this again at ASSP's Safety 2024 in Denver! If you plan on attending, stop by our booth — we'd love to chat with you!

Like many of our guests, Guillermo Sabatier didn't have safety in mind when he started his career. While studying electrical engineering in college, he got a meter reading job with a local utility company, which resulted in a post-college job in the industry. Now, after 30 years working in support of the utility industry, and becoming a North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) Reliability Coordinator and a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt, he finds himself as HSI's Director of International Services. Listen as he sits down with Jill to discuss his unconventional, but understandable, path into safety and hear about some of the interesting situations he has found himself in over the years in the utility industry.