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- By Jessica McQuay
- May 29, 2025
Walk into any facility with an impressive safety record, and you'll likely find something more meaningful than just well-written policies or the latest safety equipment. You'll find leadership that doesn't just talk about safety—they live it, actively engaging with teams on the ground and demonstrating the behaviors they expect to see. Despite decades of safety regulations and documented procedures, workplace incidents continue to plague organizations where safety remains merely a compliance exercise. What's often missing is not better documentation or more stringent rules, but the active ownership and modeling of safety practices by operational leadership. Leading on safety doesn't demand technical mastery, it requires showing up with presence, acting with intention, making real investment, and maintaining accountability.
When safety is relegated to a checkbox exercise or becomes the exclusive domain of safety managers, it fails to become ingrained in the organization's daily operations. The solution lies in shifting our perspective: safety isn't merely a compliance task but a leadership standard that must be modeled, reinforced, and celebrated at every level of the organization.
When Safety Only Exist on Paper
Many companies have high-quality safety policies that align perfectly with OSHA requirements. When reviewed on paper, these policies may appear comprehensive and sufficient. However, without leadership ownership and engagement, even the most well-written safety documentation becomes ineffective.
A common issue arises when safety policies exist primarily to fulfill compliance requirements. Even with the best intentions, leadership teams can sometimes be disconnected from the specifics of these policies or may not have systems in place to enforce standards consistently. This gap between documentation and practice can leave workers without clear direction or motivation to follow safety protocols.
Another obstacle emerges when there's a difference between verbal commitment and actual investment. Leaders often genuinely believe in prioritizing safety when they say, “safety comes first,” while simultaneously making resource allocation decisions that don't always align with that stated priority. Despite competing business demands, when safety investments in PPE or dedicated time are compromised, it reveals a disconnect between verbal commitments and operational reality.
These situations can result in a disconnect where safety becomes something discussed rather than practiced, creating vulnerability for workers and the organization despite everyone's best intentions.
Safety as a Leadership Standard
Creating a sustainable safety culture requires operational leadership that actively owns safety outcomes. This isn't about transferring responsibility from safety professionals—their expertise remains invaluable. Rather, it's about integrating safety into operational leadership's core responsibilities through several key practices.
Safety culture begins with leaders who model expected behaviors. This means more than occasional walkthrough safety inspections. It requires leaders to wear appropriate PPE consistently, even when performing quick tasks. It involves participating in basic housekeeping activities alongside team members and using observed unsafe behaviors as immediate coaching opportunities rather than disciplinary moments. When workers see leaders "walking the line" and following the same rules they're expected to follow, it reinforces the message that safety truly matters—not just as a policy, but as a practice. For example:
- Wearing PPE every time, even for a five-minute task
- Addressing unsafe conditions immediately and respectfully
- Walking job-sites with curiosity, not just a clipboard
- Promoting and celebrating moments of courage, calling out unsafe situations in weekly meetings
These acts send a louder message than any policy: “I take your safety seriously, and I hold myself to the same standards.” Teams watch what leaders do far more than what they say.
Embedding Safety Through Conversations
Leaders also shape culture through conversation. Toolbox talks are an overlooked opportunity - not just to review hazards, but to foster open dialogue and reinforce shared accountability.
When managers lead these discussions personally, ask real questions and invite field input, safety becomes a living breathing topic, especially as the team engages and leads these conversations themselves. Ask questions to spark peer learning and make space for sharing - not just compliance.
The content should reinforce existing knowledge while introducing new scenarios or addressing recent incidents. Team members should be encouraged to share their experiences and solutions, with the format encouraging dialogue rather than one-way instruction.
Just as important are what we call “moments of courage”: when someone speaks up about a safety concern, points out a shortcut, or pauses work due to risk. These moments should be recognized and celebrated, not quietly brushed aside. They’re the clearest signal that the culture is working.
Consider how this plays out in practice: When a junior technician stops work because they identify a potential hazard that others have overlooked, leadership's response shapes future behavior across the team. If met with frustration about delays, team members learn to stay silent about their concerns. If met with genuine appreciation and recognition, the entire team becomes more vigilant and responsive to potential risks.
By celebrating these "moments of courage" during toolbox talks and other venues, organizations create a culture where safety becomes everyone's responsibility, not just something enforced from above. This shared ownership of safety outcomes strengthens the overall system, creating multiple layers of protection rather than relying solely on formal inspection processes.
Measure What Prevents, Not just What Happens
Many organizations focus primarily on lagging indicators—injuries, incident rates, violations. These are important but reactive. A people-first culture focuses on leading indicators—the behaviors and systems that prevent harm in the first place.
Examples include:
- Field observations with feedback loops
- Pre-job safety checklists are built into every work order
- Near-miss reporting where people feel safe sharing close calls
- Monthly facility inspections led by supervisors, not just safety teams
Where these are done consistently, incidents drop—often dramatically. Not because of a policy, but because leadership attention shifts behavior.
Put Safety Before the Scorecard
Perhaps the most powerful leadership signal comes through organizational reporting structures. When operational leaders begin every business performance review with safety results, before discussing financial performance, it sends an unmistakable message about priorities: people come first. This approach positions safety as a core value rather than a shifting priority. When leaders consistently place safety metrics ahead of financial results in discussions with executives, it demonstrates that safety is non-negotiable, regardless of other business pressures.
Budgets reflect values. When safety remains funded—even during lean times—it shows that it’s non-negotiable, not conditional.
Six Ways Leaders Can Build Safety Culture (Without Needing to Be the Expert)
Based on these principles and practices, here are essential actions that leaders can take to create a safety culture that truly protects workers:
- Model the standard, every time. Leaders must demonstrate safety practices in their daily activities, wearing proper PPE and following all protocols even for routine tasks.
- Lead the conversation. Own weekly toolbox talks and treat them as moments to connect, not just instruct.
- Celebrate "moments of courage." Recognize and praise team members who speak up about safety concerns, reinforcing that safety responsibility belongs to everyone.
- Standardize job safety assessments. Use checklists for every work order to ensure technicians proactively identify risks before beginning work.
- Track leading indicators, not just incidents. Monitor field observations, safety checklists, near-miss reports, and facility inspections to prevent problems before they occur.
- Put safety before financials. Begin all operational reviews with safety performance, demonstrating that safety takes precedence over other business metrics.
- Invest appropriately in both time and resources. Commit the necessary time and budget to make safety initiatives successful, recognizing that this investment protects both people and the business.
True safety culture is not about what’s on the wall—it’s about what’s in the routine. When operational leaders take real ownership, safety becomes embedded in how work gets done, not just how it gets documented.
So, ask yourself: Are we managing safety on paper, or leading it in practice?
The answer won’t just show up in reports. It’ll show up in how your people work—and whether they go home safe every day.