How do you hire the best manufacturing safety professionals?

Having similar experience from the manufacturing field, gives a lot of edge to the safety professional. They understand the risks and hazards far worse than a new comer.

In my experience, safety is not a skill it's more of behavioral attribute. One needs to have a zero tolerance mindset in regards to safety at workplace. The safety professional needs to be very straight forward and clear about the requirements and must have courage to take decisions and speak up at any level when there is any compromising or unsafe condition. Having worked in similar manufacturing conditions makes you aware of all kind of potential hazards related to the product or industry.

When hiring safety professionals in manufacturing, assess their problem-solving abilities while maintaining production efficiency and worker safety. Avoid micromanagement to foster efficiency and reliability. Inquire about their potential contributions to your organization, their goals, and targets. Evaluate their capabilities based on their responsibilities and achievements.

Technical Experience should not be the only criteria when hiring safety professionals. We all agree that Safety is everyone’s responsibility. However, we don’t see it much in action. Therefore, hiring of safety professionals should consider the behavioral aspects of the candidates and their ability to create an independent culture by practicing behavior based safety and help advise but also leverage the risk perception of the employees working in the organization. Safety team has been looked at as an obstacle where everyone wants to avoid. Based on my experience, hire those professionals who can lead your transformation into a collective safety management where everyone is involved

As both qualification and experience are crucial to be an excellent manufacturing safety professional, we need to throughly vet the candidates who best suit this role. We could tap into professional network, use referral and dig into job portal like LinkedIn. Having a Green Book is an added advantage.

Acredito muito no network e relacionamento onde muitas vezes, de uma conversa totalmente despretensiosa, pode aparecer uma recomenda??o de um profissional excelente. Sempre que possível, acione sua rede de contatos e passe suas principais expectativas com rela??o a este profissional que em pouco tempo você receberá boas indica??es.

Sources depend from organisation to organisation,online reference everything has its own pros and cons. The most important part is everyone must get an equal chance to qualify.

For finding manufacturing safety professionals, it's essential to diversify your sources. Online job boards like LinkedIn, Indeed, & Monster, are go-to platforms where candidates actively seek roles. LinkedIn, a social media platform, is excellent for networking & identifying strong candidates. Trade publications & industry associations often feature job postings tailored to safety professionals. Referrals from industry contacts or current employees can lead to excellent candidates. Additionally, partnering with specialized recruitment agencies or consultants can provide access to extensive networks. Utilizing multiple sources enhances the likelihood of finding the right manufacturing safety professional for your company's unique needs.

Experience in a similar industry due to the type of risks and hazards present, this comes with knowledge on mitigation and control measures. Manufacturing set ups have different risks especially where mining is involved, so a person from a familiar background gets an added advantage.

Engage a Headhunter or Recruitment Agency: If you're struggling to find qualified candidates, consider partnering with a headhunter or recruitment agency specializing in safety professionals. They can help you identify and attract top talent.

Hunch. Instinct. Never underestimate your hunch. I had a very successful corporate career of almost 20 years because a technically expert interviewer rejected me and a senior manager, who never forgot he was just a human being, went with their instinct. Sometimes the technically expert candidates, who already know they’re just that, can be a wee bit self entitled. The technically expert interviewer became a very close friend. We shared many beers together in the 20 years that followed.

Technical & behavioral skill is the most important part and it can be judged either over teams or face to face. A good candidate will perform well regardless of the medium for the interview.

In my experience, I see that interviewing candidates is the most important part in the employment process. During the “operation interview” real , on the ground facility challenges can be discussed and questioned . The candidate replies would give a very clear view about his technical capabilities, problem solving proactivity, procedure compliance, accountability, and responsibility ownership.

The way in which candidates ask questions of you during the interview can be insightful; do they demonstrate the kind of thirst for understanding that will let them succeed in facilitating incident investigations.

It's not only about checking boxes on a resume but ensuring a cultural fit and the ability to adapt to evolving safety challenges. Through a meticulous screening and interview process, you ensure a safer work environment while also investing in individuals who can contribute to a culture of continuous improvement and safety awareness.

Yes good compensation and benefits attract good candidates but nowadays apart from salary package companies reputation, work life balance also matters a lot.

A good EH&S expert is worth their weight in platinum, and far more rare. A charismatic change agent that is good with the data-mining, technical details, and can effectively implement OSHA and Haz-Mat regs is a treasure. And is expensive. Very expensive, as they know their worth. Don't skimp here. A poorly executed safety protocal can cost your company tens of thousands of dollars! OSHA and Haz-Mat/Haz-Waste violations are far more expensive than paying an expert to implement policy swiftly and correctly.

Yes it attract the person but also need the professionals must b aware about the hazards and safety procedures and the cause which help him/her to deal on a proper manner

Sometimes, the compagnies aim to hire a very high qualified person but they didn't offer the equivalent competitive compensation and benefits that match their expectations and market value, for this reason, they will not success to get what they expect from the hired person.

Offer Competitive Compensation: Attracting top talent in safety requires competitive compensation packages. Be prepared to offer a salary and benefits that are in line with industry standards to attract experienced professionals.

Introductions and onboarding is often overlooked - you can really accelerate their progress by putting in some effort in this area. Objectives and performance reviews are par for the course. The difficult part is fairness, objectivity and honesty in the review process: Even if targets are missed - was their solid or even exceptional effort? Was the “miss” within their control, how did they / are they adjusting their approach? If targets are met - was there a trail of destruction left behind them? Balancing both metrics and behavior in assessments is important to fairness. As a manager have you coached and helped them to adequately to improve?

In addition to the great comments listed,also budget for professional development. Too often private sector does not provide opportunities for credentialing, additional skill building or networking opportunities like conferences. That always is reserved for c-suites. The mindset in this sector is often, "we can't afford it", or "we cannot run this facility without you". Both of those are bs. It is easier to justify the cost of a new $$ making machine to upper management than asking for $ to cover travel costs to a safety school or conference. The fear factor is implied that if you get more education you will leave. The truth is employees leave bad bosses.

Proper and clear KPI to be set with the hired person helps a lot for him/her to perform well. SMART technique to be followed to determine the KPIs.

Hiring the best manufacturing safety professionals is just the beginning; ongoing support & feedback are key for their success. Start with a thorough onboarding process, introducing them to your team & processes while equipping them with necessary tools & resources. Set clear expectations, goals, & metrics, monitoring their progress. Regular feedback, recognition, & coaching are essential to their growth. Encourage open communication, where they can share their ideas & concerns. By providing continuous support & feedback, you can retain & motivate your manufacturing safety professionals, ensuring their long-term effectiveness in your organization.

It’s not just the hiring good professionals, it’s retaining them by supporting their ambitions and personal development. Ensure that they feel respected!

Over and above the technical know how the Safety professional should have critical thinking and problem solving skills as the risks in manufacturing keep evolving from day to day. A deep understanding of the Hierarchy of Controls is critical as this can affect the production line and efficiency if the wrong control is implemented as a mitigation measure. A safety professional with great communication skills will have a higher success rate at effecting behavioral change in the workers towards embracing a safety culture .

I believe the words of Simon Sinek are always valid for this topic hire "Trust over Performance". You do not want a highly skilled and performing person that you cannot trust. Skills can be learned if there is a good basis and a person in manufacturing safety you want to trust.

The competency of any practitioner builds over the years. There are many facets to occupational health and safety, and an individual will have both their strengths and gaps in their expertise. Meanwhile, an HS manager can benefit from the external support, mentoring and coaching that a good HS consultant can provide. Chosen carefully of course!

safety is not a rocket science. treat safety as other function as production,maintenance,purchase. etc always apply PDCA Cycle.

Remember that hiring the right manufacturing safety professional is a crucial investment in your company's long-term success. Prioritize safety during the selection process to ensure a safe and productive work environment for your employees.