The Safety Guru

"How can people own a safety program if we don't let them own it and create it?" In this episode, we have an engaging conversation with Ron Gantt about the secret sauce of involving employees in safety discussions at an organizational level. Safety leaders must be intentional about seeking employee input but also identifying processes that encourage or inadvertently discourage necessary safety collaboration across the organization. Tune in to learn how to involve employees on a daily basis not just a project basis. Everyone's voice matters when it comes to safety.

About the Guest:

Ron Gantt has over 20 years of experience in health and safety management, human factors, and system safety working with industries such as high technology, construction, utilities, and chemical manufacturing. He has undergraduate degrees in psychology and occupational safety as well as a graduate degree in safety engineering. Ron is also currently finishing his PhD in cognitive systems engineering at the Ohio State University. He has numerous certifications related to safety management, including being a Board Certified Safety Professional. Ron is currently the Head of HSE – Americas for Yondr Group.

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In observance of World Suicide Prevention Day and National Suicide Prevention Week in the United States, we are privileged to have Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas join the podcast. In this episode, Dr. Sally shares how the loss of her brother to suicide in 2004 left her with a calling to help prevent this from happening to others by engaging the workplace in crucial conversations about suicide prevention. Tune in to learn the depths of correlation between mental health and workplace safety and how organizations and leaders can help prevent and mitigate death by suicide.

About the Guest:

Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas is a clinical psychologist and award-winning mental health advocate with her own personal experience of losing her beloved brother to suicide. Her mission of giving voice to people who’ve lived through suicide thoughts, attempts, and loss and to help those in despair rekindle a passion for living. In addition to helping leaders and communities implement innovative approaches to suicide prevention, Sally is the lead author on the National Guidelines for Workplace Suicide Prevention, President of United Suicide Survivors International, and co-founder of “Man Therapy” (www.ManTherapy.org). Sally has a TEDx talk and gave an invited address at the White House in 2016.

For more information: https://www.sallyspencerthomas.com/

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Ken Woodward was involved in a chemical explosion at work that resulted in the loss of his eyesight, smell, and taste. Rather than talking just as a victim, he embraces what can be learned from the incident that cost him three of his senses. In this episode, Ken stresses the importance of all team members working together equally to target zero damage to people, equipment, products, and finances. There's not just one driver to workplace incidents; there's a build-up over time. Tune in to learn how to increase safety participation in the workplace!

About the Guest:

Ken Woodward was working for Coca-Cola Schweppes Beverages (CCSB) in November 1990 as a production operative when involved in a chemical explosion, which resulted in the loss of his sight. With enormous support from CCSB and following months of rehabilitation and re-training with the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB), Ken eventually returned to work. In 1996 Ken was invited to appear in a Health & Safety Film – ‘Fighting Against Chance’. As a result the video ‘1 in 1.6 Million’ was also produced and this proved to be a valuable tool in Behavioral Safety training. Now an independent consultant since September 2000, Ken’s ‘Passion for Safety’ has taken him all over the UK as well as internationally. In February 2004, Ken’s work was recognized by The Institute of Occupational Safety & Health (IOSH) in the UK when he was made an Honorary Fellow of IOSH.

Contact: [email protected]

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Alyssa Grocutt was 11 years old when her father suffered a fatal workplace safety incident. Over time, this incident has given Alyssa the passion, purpose, and drive toward a meaningful career in bringing awareness to the topic of workplace safety and safety incidents. In this heartfelt episode, Alyssa shares the true impact workplace injuries and fatalities have on family members, friends, coworkers, and leaders. Tune in to listen to her story and learn how organizations and leaders can provide enduring support to secondary victims of workplace safety incidents.

About the Guest:

Alyssa Grocutt's passion for workplace safety started after her father’s tragic death in a workplace safety incident when she was 11 years old. Alyssa’s father’s death was a profound learning and developmental experience, and in time became a challenge to turn life’s negative experiences into personal inspirations. Alyssa is currently a doctoral student in Organizational Behavior at Smith School of Business, Queen’s University in Kingston, ON, Canada, and is the recipient of a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Doctoral Fellowship. Her current research focuses on the impact of workplace injuries and fatalities on secondary victims who are often overlooked after workplace injuries and fatalities, such as family members, peers, and managers of people injured or killed at work. Alyssa actively promotes workplace safety on social media. Alyssa also has a website that tells her story, and provides access to her research. Most importantly, it includes her blog, on which she regularly summarizes some of the most interesting and important research on workplace safety. For more information: https://www.alyssagrocutt.com or https://www.linkedin.com/in/alyssagrocutt/

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Seeking a bid idea to significantly level up safety leadership and performance as an Executive or Safety Leader? In this episode, Martin Royal introduces the power of Executive Safety Coaching and dives into its ROI - improved productivity, better teamwork, a safe space to process and reflect, and support for your internal and external goals. Interested in executive safety coaching? As part of Propulo Consulting's subscription-based executive membership, you will have the opportunity to gain access to the same expertise, insights, and research that many of the leading Fortune 500 organizations rely on to transform their safety cultures, in a format that better suits mid-sized organizations. Tune in to learn more!

Explore your journey with Executive Safety Coaching at https://www.execsafetycoach.com.

About the Guest:

Martin Royal is a Partner at Propulo Consulting. Martin is an expert in Human Performance & Business Transformation, coach and facilitator who helps clients create a committed and mobilized workforce to achieve their operational excellence, safety and wellbeing outcomes. Since joining Propulo Consulting in 2011, he has delivered well over 500+ safety culture change workshops and training programs centered on the development of employee safety engagement, coaching and leadership skills for global clients in North America and Europe. Martin supports Propulo's client organizations in developing and implementing enterprise-wide training and coaching solutions that drive improved safety ownership and better safety performance.

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According to the FBI, the number of active shooter incidents identified in 2021 represents a 52.5% increase from 2020 and a 96.8% increase from 2017 in the United States. Anthony Corwin, the Managing Director at Active Violence Emergency Response Training, walks us through how to appropriately respond in an active shooter incident in this episode. Tune in to learn how you can remain situationally aware of your surroundings and how psychological safety in the workplace can save lives.

About the Guest:

Anthony Corwin is the Executive General Manager for HSI, overseeing the Emergency Care business division. HSI’s Emergency Care business supports a multitude of brands and solutions, some of which have been staples in the market for over 40 years. MEDIC First Aid, ASHI, EMS Safety and AVERT make life-saving skills accessible to everyone with the hope of making an impact on as many lives as possible.

Anthony has a true passion for leading the day-to-day efforts and helping to drive the mission of Making Workplaces and Communities Safer. For more than six years, it has been Anthony’s honor to support over 50,000 authorized HSI Instructors who bring a passion and commitment to CPR and AVERT training to their organizations and communities.

For more information about AVERT and to take the corporate safety readiness survey, go to https://hsi.com/solutions/active-shooter-training/corporations.

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"We'll never realize the accidents we prevent, but we sure will know the ones we don't." In this episode, Alan Newey details the sequence of events that led to a devastating workplace incident in September of 1999. The plant where he had been employed for 15 years had placed production over safety, and the voice in his head knew he hadn't received the necessary training to do his job safely. Alan highlights the role that complacency and comfortability play in workplace incidents and the need to speak up to work together to send every team member home safely.

About the Guest:

Alan Newey is a survivor of a workplace incident. He lost his right dominant arm to a conveyor belt in September 1999. For over 13 years, Alan has been presenting to various groups around Australia on the effects of his workplace incident and the impact that it's had on himself and his family. Alan speaks from the point of view of an injured worker and gives a real insight into what happens to you during and after such a life-changing experience. Alan is extremely confronting on the issues and effects of a workplace incident and his presentation not only addresses the sequence of events leading up to his incident, but the flow-on effects such a life-changing experience entails.

For more information: https://cnbsafe.com.au

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"It's the board's job to be interested in safety, but it's management's job to be interesting when they talk about safety." In this episode, Julie Garland McLellan shares excellent insights into how the board of directors can influence safety outcomes through intentionally observing where the work is performed day-to-day. To make certain everyone remains responsible for safety, leaders must get involved and show interest. Tune in as she emphasizes the importance of making safety real for the board by having authentic conversations that go beyond statistics in the boardroom.

About the Guest:

Julie Garland McLellan is one of very few women to have commenced a board career with a single not-for-profit organization and built it to a portfolio of boards, including chairing an ASX listed company. Julie has chaired boards and committees and is respected for her practical experience. A frequent speaker at conferences, Julie is also a prized reference for journalists and has featured in ABC News’ Nightly Business Report, The Business Programme, The Australian Financial Review, The Financial Times (Britain), Company Director Journal, Keeping Good Companies, and other quality publications.

Julie has also more than 20 years’ experience delivering education programs for the Australian Institute of Company Directors and has written more than 14 courses for that institute. Importantly, Julie is a qualified board reviewer and has conducted numerous reviews of boards, committees, and individual chairs and directors over the past 17 years.

For more information: https://www.directorsdilemma.com

More Episodes: https://thesafetyculture.guru/

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In this thought-provoking episode, we tap into the expertise of Dave Ulrich, one of the Top Management and Leadership Gurus who has been ranked as the #1 most influential person in HR. Gather key insights from his approaches that have helped elevate the role of HR into a more strategic function in leading organizations and grasp how Safety Executives can leverage similar approaches to increase influence in the C-Suite.

About the Guest:

Dave Ulrich is the Rensis Likert Professor at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan and a partner at the RBL Group (http://www.rbl.net), a consulting firm focused on helping organizations and leaders deliver value. He has published over 200 articles and book chapters and over 30 books. He edited Human Resource Management 1990-1999, served on editorial board of 4 Journal and on the Board of Directors for Herman Miller (16 years), has spoken to large audiences in 90 countries; performed workshops for over half of the Fortune 200; coached successful business leaders, and is a Distinguished Fellow in the National Academy of Human Resources. He is known for continually learning, turning complex ideas into simple solutions, and creating real value to those he works with in three fields. Contact e-mail: [email protected]

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"Safety systems and procedures mean nothing if people don't implement them." In this episode, Dan Plexman shares how a culture of production in the workplace led to an incident that changed his life. Complacency often enters into the minds of team members when the focus is on completing tasks rather than completing tasks safely. This National Electrical Safety Month, Dan is emphasizing the importance of team-based safety culture. Tune in!

About the Guest:

For years, Dan Plexman worked successfully and safely as a driver, equipment operator and warehouseman in pipeline, oil sands and general construction. In his early 30s, Dan made the move into the electrical field when he began a 4-year electrical apprenticeship. He was in his 4th year of the apprenticeship when he was seriously injured on the job. Because of this accident, he knows first-hand the serious effects this sort of thing can have on a person and their family, as well as their co-workers. It’s Dan’s hope that people will learn from his experience and embrace a culture of safety so no one else will suffer as he has. Preventable accidents shouldn’t happen. Dan wants to raise awareness about the incredible need for well-thought out and practiced emergency rescue plans and effective work safety cultures that protect workers and their families, as well as equipment and companies.

For more information: https://www.danplexman.com/ or https://1sheet.pro/DanPlexman 

More Episodes: https://www.thesafetyculture.guru/

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