PreAccident Investigation Podcast Todd Conklin

Welcome to the 500th episode of the Pre-Accident Investigation Podcast! Join Todd Conklin as he reflects on a decade of insightful conversations, safety moments, and the evolution of ideas in the safety world.

Todd takes us through the origin story of the podcast, sharing how it all began with a simple idea to capture the voices and thoughts of safety professionals. He delves into the importance of consistency, the challenges of podcast production, and the joy of connecting with listeners.

Throughout the episode, Todd highlights the significant changes in how safety is discussed, especially the shift in understanding human error. He emphasizes the value of creating systems that are tolerant and expectant of human mistakes.

As Todd reminisces about the journey, he expresses gratitude to the listeners for their unwavering support and engagement. He looks forward to continuing the conversation, exploring new topics, and bringing more intriguing guests to the show.

Thank you for being a part of this incredible milestone. Here's to many more episodes of learning, growth, and safety!

Welcome to the Pre-Accident Investigation Podcast with Todd Conklin! In this episode, Todd delves into the concept that "two heads are better than one" and explores the value of independent verification in ensuring safety and reliability. He discusses how an additional set of eyes can significantly enhance the ability to catch mistakes and prevent failures, highlighting the importance of collaboration and shared expertise.Join Todd for this short and insightful safety moment as he explains how leveraging the skills and experiences of others can lead to greater resilience and reliability in any system. Remember, learning and safety go hand in hand!Stay safe, stay kind, and keep learning something new every day!

In this episode of the Pre-Accident Investigation Podcast, host Todd Conklin delves into a real-life scenario that underscores the importance of effective system design. Through an engaging story about a confusing airport security line, Todd explores the concept of high reliability and the pitfalls of blaming individuals for systemic failures.Join Todd as he reflects on the principles of highly reliable organizations and how they apply to everyday situations. This episode offers valuable insights into recognizing weak links in systems and emphasizes the need for clear, user-friendly design to prevent unnecessary confusion and errors.Tune in for an enlightening discussion that not only entertains but also provides practical takeaways for improving system reliability and user experience in any organization.

In this captivating discussion, Todd Conklin takes on the topic of workplace safety, highlighting the importance of the 'Start Work' approach compared to the 'Stop Work' method. Although acknowledging the and ethical and moral value of having a 'Stop Work' authority, Conklin makes a stronger case for the 'Start Work' approach.During the conversation, Conklin illuminates how 'Start Work' is all about identifying essential safety controls necessary for work and ensuring their validation and verification before any task commences. This preventive method, as he contends, eliminates uncertainties, allows for better measurement, verification, and monitoring while negating the unreliability of attempting to predict and prevent potential hazards at every turn, a requirement often associated with 'Stop Work'.Consequently, Conklin underscores the importance of celebrating the successful execution of 'Start Work' within an organization, pointing out that deciding not to start a task due to inadequate provisions should be viewed as a success rather than a failure. Amid his discussion, he also cautions against using 'Stop Work' as a finding or blaming individual workers for not employing 'Stop Work'.With an emphasis on safety, Conklin concludes the segment urging listeners to learn something new daily, be kind to one another, and above all, stay safe. Tune in for an enlightening discourse on the power of starting when safe and the crucial role it plays in workplace safety management.

In this episode of the Pre-Accident Investigation Podcast, Todd Conklin presents a comprehensive discussion on the risks and consequences associated with outdoor recreational activities, especially school trips to the lake. The conversation emphasizes the crucial need for understanding risk management and implementing practical safety measures in group outdoor settings.Joining the discussion is Associate Professor Mike Brown from Auckland University, an expert with over three decades of experience in outdoor education. He highlights the fatal consequences of underestimating risks in outdoor activities and introduces listeners to his refined process of identifying and preventing accident patterns specific to outdoor education scenarios using real-life examples from coroner's case studies.The episode explores the thrilling allure of outdoor activities versus the imperative of safety, striking a balance between fun and responsible outdoor learning. It offers a profound understanding of the factors that can turn an exciting outdoor adventure into a tragic event, and discusses preventative strategies for future educational excursions.Diving deeper into practical examples, guest Mike Brown discusses a program involving water activities such as stand-up paddleboarding and kayaking, stressing the importance of adequate safety precautions, particularly when engaging with water. Delving into free-time vulnerabilities, complexities around supervision, and the dangers of unpreparedness and uninformed decision-making, the conversation alerts listeners to the critical importance of familiarity with water environment dynamics and adopting a 'fatality prevention mindset'.Concluding on a note of caution, the episode advises that while outdoor activities are mostly enjoyable and successful, the participants need to remain vigilant at all times to avert unfortunate incidents. This thought-provoking episode heightens understanding of the precarious balance between adventure and safety in outdoor education, prompting listeners to think critically about their own safety behaviours.

In this episode, Todd Conklin discusses the critical element of understanding local rationale in the workplace and how it can serve as the starting point for significant organizational discovery. Rather than using this information to point fingers or penalize individuals, Conklin encourages managers and leaders to utilize these moments of rationale to investigate and gain insight into the broader challenges and issues within their organizations.Highlighting the essence of curiosity, Conklin proffers that when workers explain why something made sense at a particular moment, leaders should seize this as an opportunity to learn and understand instead of using it as a weapon of accountability. This interest, he asserts, is critical to uncover deep-seated organizational issues that might often be overlooked.Conklin's message encapsulates the importance of becoming smarter in every aspect of our lives, pushing listeners to adopt curiosity as a pathway to greater understanding. He finishes off the episode with a heartfelt note on learning, fun, kindness, and safety, serving as a reminder of the essential things in life and work.