The Occupational Safety Leadership Podcast

Goals are broad, long‑term outcomes — the “big picture” of what you want your safety program to achieve.

1. Reduce Workplace Injuries and Illnesses

Create a safer work environment where hazards are identified and controlled before they cause harm.

2. Strengthen Safety Culture and Employee Engagement

Build a workplace where employees feel responsible for safety, speak up, and actively participate in hazar...

In this episode, Dr. Ayers challenges safety professionals to stop looking for better opportunities elsewhere and instead become more valuable right where they are. He uses the metaphor “make your grass greener by watering it” to emphasize that growth comes from effort, not environment.

Instead of wishing for a better job, better team, or better company, invest in improving y...

In this episode, Dr. Ayers speaks to his younger self about becoming more efficient and intentional with time. He focuses on two productivity tools that dramatically improve a safety professional’s effectiveness: time blocking and the golden hour.

• Protecting specific chunks of the day for focused work

• Reducing distractions and task‑switching

• Ensuring important safety tasks (inspections, coac...

Episode 291 is one of Dr. Ayers’ short, practical leadership messages focused on daily planning as a core safety leadership skill. The theme is simple but powerful: your effectiveness tomorrow is determined by the preparation you do today.

Dr. Ayers emphasizes that safety professionals juggle inspections, training, documentation, coaching, and unexpected issues. Without a ...

  Dr. Laura Sicola—executive communication coach, cognitive linguist, and TEDx speaker—teaches that effective executive presence is built on mastering three core communication behaviors. These “3 C’s” form the backbone of how leaders influence, build trust, and drive action. This is extremely important for Safety Professionals to master.

⭐ The 3 C’s

1. Command the Room

This isn’t about being loud or dominating. It’s about ...

-This episode introduces the “eat that frog” concept — a metaphor for tackling your hardest, most important (but least appealing) tasks first.

-Dr. Ayers asks the listeners to identify the task they dread or consistently procrastinate — that “frog” — and to commit to doing it first thing, rather than postponing or wasting energy avoiding it.

-The “Eat the Frog” concept is that by clearing out the most significant (and often most me...

This episode focuses on how hospitals and healthcare facilities respond when a patient arrives after exposure to hazardous materials. Guest Thomas Price walks through real-world procedures for handling these incidents — including decontamination, triage zones, and coordination between transport teams and hospital response staff.

Key Takeaways & Procedures:

-Gross decontamination at the spill site — Before the patient enters t...

Episode 287 is an 8‑minute technical training segment where Dr. Ayers explains how to calculate the minimum and maximum sampling times for air monitoring during chemical exposure assessments. He uses Hydrogen Chloride (HCl) as the practical example to walk listeners through the math and reasoning.

Dr. Ayers emphasizes that choosing the correct sampling time is essential because...

 Key Themes from Episode 286

• Changing Legal Landscape With marijuana legalization expanding across states, employers face challenges in balancing compliance with safety. Traditional drug tests detect chemical presence but not actual impairment, which creates gaps in workplace safety.
• Guest Expert: Ken Fichtler (CEO of Gaize) Fichtler argues for impairment detection technology that measures functional ability rather than chemic...

• NFPA 70 Overview The episode centers on NFPA 70 (National Electrical Code) and its critical role in preventing electrical hazards in workplaces. Dr. Hinton explains how proper training ensures compliance and reduces risk of shock, arc flash, and fire.

• Training Gaps & Challenges Many organizations provide only minimal electrical safety tra...

• Hazards vs. Risks

  • Hazard: Anything with the potential to cause harm (chemicals, machinery, electricity, noise, etc.).

  • Risk: The probability that harm will occur, combined with the severity of the outcome.

  • Example: A ladder is a hazard; the risk depends on how it’s used (height, stability, training).

• Risk Assessment Frameworks

  • Tools like the risk matrix (likelihood × severity) help quantify risks.

  • Le...

The episode explores how personal growth and professional development directly influence workplace safety outcomes. It argues that safety leadership isn’t just about compliance—it’s about cultivating individuals who are resilient, self-aware, and proactive.

• Self-Awareness & Reflection: Employees who invest in personal development (goal setting, self-assessment, continuous learning) are more ...

This episode highlights the connection between structured professional development and stronger safety performance. It argues that investing in employees’ careers isn’t just about advancement—it directly improves hazard awareness, decision-making, and leadership in safety-critical environments.

• Skill Building for Safety: Technical training, certifications, and ongoing education sharpen employees...

• Learning from Incidents: A growth mindset reframes mistakes and near-misses as opportunities to learn rather than failures to hide.

• Adaptability: Workers and leaders who embrace growth are more open to new safety procedures, technologies, and evolving standards.

• Resilience: Growth-oriented employees bounce back from setbacks, maintaining focus on safe practices even under pressure.

• Leadership Role: Supervi...

• Common Fears in Safety: Workers may fear retaliation, being labeled as “difficult,” or slowing production when raising safety concerns.

• Leadership Responsibility: Leaders must acknowledge these fears and actively create an environment where speaking up is safe and encouraged.

• Courage as a Skill: Facing fears isn’t innate—it can be developed through training, role modeling, and reinforcement.

• Psychological ...

• Ego as a Barrier: Leaders or workers who let ego drive decisions may dismiss concerns, ignore feedback, or resist change.

• Impact on Communication: Ego can silence frontline employees who fear being shut down, reducing hazard reporting.

• Humility in Leadership: Strong safety leaders admit mistakes, listen actively, and prioritize safety over personal pride.

• Team Dynamics: Ego-driven behavior erodes trust, wh...

Dr. Ayers speaks directly to his younger self about the importance of public speaking as a safety professional. His central theme is simple but powerful: Avoiding public speaking limits your impact, your opportunities, and your ability to influence safety culture.

• Communicating safety effectively requires clarity, confidence, and presence.

• Speaki...

Dr. Ayers emphasizes that formal leaders play a crucial supporting role in safety, but support does not mean giving unlimited approval or resources. Effective safety leadership requires partnership, communication, and shared understanding.

• Leaders are responsible for backing the safety function, but they shouldn’t be expected to “write blank che...