Listen to the podcast
Hosted by Jill James, HSI's Chief Safety Officer.
This safety podcast is a series of conversations with safety professionals about how they came into their role, what they've learned along the way, as well as some of the highs and lows that come with job.
We've created this safety podcast for you, the safety professional.
Latest episodes
#110: Live From NSC 2023
November 22, 2023 | 25 minutes 28 seconds
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!
#109: From Meter Reading to a 30-Year Utility Safety Career
October 25, 2023 | 53 minutes 33 seconds
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.
#108: "Hot" Topics and New Proposed OSHA Regulations with Dr. Todd
September 27, 2023 | 1 hours 3 minutes 29 seconds
In this episode, Jill gets to discuss a seriously hot topic! Dr. Todd Loushine, associate professor in the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater’s Occupational Safety program, ASSP Region Five vice president, and returning podcast guest, sat down to discuss workplace heat. In 2022, Dr. Todd lucked into a temporary position outside of the university, helping with heat-related problems when a company’s safety director took a leave of absence. Tune in to hear how a certified industrial hygienist, who also happens to be a professional engineer, came up with unique — but replicable — solutions for heat safety issues, learn a little about the science behind heat-related illness, and find out how you can give your input on a proposed OSHA regulation.
#107: An OSHA Inspection My First Week on the Job
August 16, 2023 | 48 minutes 24 seconds
Sometimes not being an expert has its benefits. Rusti Dyals, Certified Safety Professional and national director of EHS at ESFM, chats with Jill about getting her degree in public relations, stumbling into a safety coordinator position at a sawmill, and immediately learning the site would be undergoing an OSHA inspection. Listen to this week’s episode to learn how she approaches getting leadership on board with safety-based decisions, why continuing education is so important in this field, and find out Rusti’s biggest piece of advice for anyone in the safety industry.
#106: Live From ASSP Safety 2023
July 18, 2023 | 41 minutes 17 seconds
This month’s podcast looks a little different, as Jill was able to sit down with EHS professionals who were attending ASSP’s Annual Safety Conference and Expo. She met with people from many different industries, including construction, pharmaceuticals, and aerospace, as well as an assistant professor, a Ph.D. student, and even the editor in chief of a safety publication. Tune in to discover their favorite part of being a safety professional, advice for other professionals, their EHS heroes, and what the future of EHS looks like to them. Plus, find out how you could have a chance to contribute your own EHS story during an upcoming live podcast recording!
#105: How I Found My Safety Job at the Dog Park
June 6, 2023 | 1 hours 01 minutes
As is the case with many things in life, sometimes the most obvious advice truly is the best advice. In this episode, Jill chats with Jane Davies, Senior Risk Analyst and Loss Prevention Consultant at the Arizona Department of Administration and OSHA 10/30 trainer, to discuss her unexpected EHS career (that started with a visit to a dog park!) and dole out her best professional advice. Tune in to learn how there is always something you can bring to the table, why building your network is so important, and how simply listening to those more experienced than you can help in many ways.
#104: How a Passion for Worker Justice and Microbes Led to a Career in Industrial Hygiene
May 16, 2023 | 55 minutes 48 seconds
Like many of our guests, Dr. Amber Mitchell didn’t start out with the goal of becoming a safety professional. Chance encounters and unique opportunities that presented themselves throughout her career seemed to push her toward that end. Amber has carved out her own niche within the safety and industrial hygiene industries; studied psychology, received a Master’s and Doctorate in Public Health, completed a pathogenic research fellowship, OSHA’s first national Bloodborne Pathogens Coordinator, and even completed a 500-hour Pilates teacher training program. As she says during her sit-down with Jill, “There are no limits to what you can do in the safety field. It just depends on what drives your heart.”
#103: Preventing Workplace Violence vs. Reacting To It
April 26, 2023 | 1 hours 05 minutes 18 seconds
For decades now, we have seen innumerable examples of violence in the workplace, both by internal perpetrators and external. And organizations are very good at taking swift, actionable response measures to mitigate the damage. But maybe we are looking at workplace violence all wrong. Felix Nater, president and owner of workplace security consulting firm Nater Associates, joins Jill to discuss why preventing workplace violence — not reacting to it — should be our focus. Mr. Nater dives into his history with the U.S. Postal Service, why prevention through education must start at the top of any organization, and how he helps employers make sure their workers get home safe every day.