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Ep 15. Stephen Harvey - If only they'd have followed the rules. Then they would be alive.
"If only they'd followed the rules"—a phrase we hear all too often in health and safety. But what if the story isn't that simple?
In this episode of How Did It Make Sense?, I chat with safety expert Stephen Harvey to uncover the second story—the deeper, more complex reality behind incidents. Stephen shares his journey from mechanic to safety advocate after a near-fatal workplace accident and reflects on a tragic mining fatality where a worker’s decision-making was shaped by experience, pressures, and the realities of the job—not just disregard for rules. We also tackle the myth of stop-work authority, why humour is a powerful safety tool, and how real change comes from leaders who listen, not just enforce.
Resources recommended:
The Field Guide to Understanding Human Error – Sidney Dekker
Pre-Accident Investigation Podcast – Todd Conklin
Disastercast – Drew Rae (a must-listen, you can find on Itunes)
Connect with Stephen Harvey:
Find Stephen on LinkedIn and check out his YouTube and Instagram (@SafetyBhoy) for insights, stories, and a bit of humour in safety.
Human in the System
Transforming teams. Unlocking human potential.
Using principles from Human Factors (HF), High-Reliability Organisations (HRO), and Human and Organisational Performance (HOP), we develop and deliver highly immersive and impactful programmes using the High-Velocity Learning LAB (HVLL) concept. We give you the know-how, the tools and the support to make results stick and empower your people to achieve the extraordinary. We help you answer the question "How do we uncover those hidden stories in our organisation?"
Contact us here
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By Gareth Lock"If only they'd followed the rules"—a phrase we hear all too often in health and safety. But what if the story isn't that simple?
In this episode of How Did It Make Sense?, I chat with safety expert Stephen Harvey to uncover the second story—the deeper, more complex reality behind incidents. Stephen shares his journey from mechanic to safety advocate after a near-fatal workplace accident and reflects on a tragic mining fatality where a worker’s decision-making was shaped by experience, pressures, and the realities of the job—not just disregard for rules. We also tackle the myth of stop-work authority, why humour is a powerful safety tool, and how real change comes from leaders who listen, not just enforce.
Resources recommended:
The Field Guide to Understanding Human Error – Sidney Dekker
Pre-Accident Investigation Podcast – Todd Conklin
Disastercast – Drew Rae (a must-listen, you can find on Itunes)
Connect with Stephen Harvey:
Find Stephen on LinkedIn and check out his YouTube and Instagram (@SafetyBhoy) for insights, stories, and a bit of humour in safety.
Human in the System
Transforming teams. Unlocking human potential.
Using principles from Human Factors (HF), High-Reliability Organisations (HRO), and Human and Organisational Performance (HOP), we develop and deliver highly immersive and impactful programmes using the High-Velocity Learning LAB (HVLL) concept. We give you the know-how, the tools and the support to make results stick and empower your people to achieve the extraordinary. We help you answer the question "How do we uncover those hidden stories in our organisation?"
Contact us here