Learning From Normal Safety Work

In this episode, Mary Conquest speaks with Brent Sutton, safety author, consultant and podcaster. Well regarded as a safety coach, he takes organizations on a learning journey to understand how people are seen as the solution so everybody benefits without replacing your existing health and safety system.

Brent actively advocates for doing safety when both workers and the organisation learn and improve, and he begins by explaining why HSE professionals need to shift from learning through accidents to learning through normal work.

Listeners will learn the importance of variability, comlexity and coupling in in safety systems and the difference between weak and strong signals as Brent reveals how “death hides in normal work”.

He shares a simple technique - the 4 Ds - to help safety professionals instigate meaningful conversations with the frontline and explains how making space for post-work reflection can significantly improve workers curiosity, resilience and overall workplace safety.

Increased reflection is a key theme of this thought-provoking interview  where Brent isn’t afraid to challenge existing safety practice. He questions the over-reliance on contextless data, observations without engagement and even suggests that workers should lead safety initiatives, with the organization supporting them.

Forget everything you’ve been taught about safety management and let Brent show you new ways to support the frontline and allow them to lead in understanding and managing the adaptability of the work they do every day.

Find out more about Brent’s work:

Home | Learning Teams (learningteamscommunity.com)

Download Brent’s ‘Learning From Everyday Work’ White Paper:

Everyday Learning | Learning Teams (learningteamscommunity.com)

Brent’s podcast:

The Practice of Learning Teams (bcast.fm)

Brent Sutton on LinkedIn:

Brent Sutton | LinkedIn

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