Dee Hock, the VISA international CEO Emeritus, states that having your heart and soul in leadership is crucial. The best and most effective safety leaders divide their time into these parts:
It is critical to use language that the person can relate to when discussing the problems or successes in the safety culture of the company. This helps build report with the workforce.
Safety leaders who wish to effectively make change realize change begins with one’s self. A great starting place is assessing your risk personality to see which areas you need to work on in order to increase your safety self-awareness. Self-change isn’t always easy, it becomes easier through self-monitoring. According to CEO of Alaska Tanker Co, Anil Mathur, it is a process of learning from the past and realizing what can be done in the future. Ask yourself some of the following questions when assessing your improvements:
Too often do we try to accomplish a task on our own when it is unnecessary; if we were to only ask for assistance our performance level would increase. It is the same principle when it comes to being an effective safety leader. Finding someone with more experience, whether in your field or otherwise, can guide you through tough decision making and learning more how your personality fits in your leadership role. Select a mentor you can foster an ongoing relationship with; someone you admire and have respect for that can give you guidance and honest feedback. One place to find someone willing to be a mentor is through your local American Society of Safety Engineers chapter.
Becoming a safety leader for your company can be both a great asset to your company as well as a great way to move up. To learn more about your personality, download our free whitepaper on understanding the link between personality and safety.