Two Bald Guys Talking Safety Podcast

In this episode of "Two Bald Guys Talking Safety," former construction worker turned life coach, Steven Kirby, shares his riveting story of surviving a near-fatal workplace accident. Kirby discusses the crucial lapses in safety procedures and training that led to the incident and how it profoundly impacted his physical and mental health. Julian, Langdon and Steven delve into the construction industry's detrimental culture of under-reporting accidents and the importance of proper incident reporting and training. Through Kirby's experience, listeners can gain insights into the significant difference between confidence and competence in high-risk jobs, the dangers of complacency and the urgent need for change in industry safety practices.

Join us in our first episode of 2024 as your favorite bald duo discusses transforming EHS&S resolutions into lasting habits for 2024. In this episode, Julian and Langdon explore practical awareness training, group responsibility in safety, and the importance of speaking up. As a bonus, they share tips for making EHS&S documentation accessible and meaningful. Learn how to tackle common challenges like fatigue and hazard recognition, making this year your workplace's safest!

Join Julian and Langdon as they revisit the Bhopal disaster, delving into its critical lessons and significant impact on safety practices. The bald duo intertwines personal health and workplace safety, emphasizing how everyday experiences inform overall safety awareness. Listen in as they explore innovative ways to enhance safety training and highlight the importance of a proactive culture in organizations. It's an insightful journey into the heart of safety, where history and personal narratives converge to shape a safer future.

Changing the conversation from having a "safety culture" to embedding “safe operations" throughout your organiszation is an important shift to integrating health and safety practices more deeply among your workforce. We often hear organizations claiming to have a "safety culture," however this implies a separate and isolated aspect of operations. Emphasizing "safe operations" conveys that health and safety are integral to the organization's functioning. You won't want to miss this week's episode as Julian and Langdon share how to transition the mindset from safety culture to safe operations.

Join Julian and Langdon in this episode of "Two Bald Guys Talking Safety" as they explore strategies to empower health and safety professionals to make a BIGGER impact in 2024. They discuss shifting the perception of safety from a checkbox exercise to a proactive force by building relationships, focusing on mental health and preventing serious injuries and fatalities. Discover practical insights to elevate your health and safety efforts, create a positive culture and drive safer operations for the year ahead. Take advantage of this episode for valuable tips on making 2024 a year of transformative change in health and safety.

In their annual Halloween special, "Spooktacular Safety," the Two Bald Guys delve into the eerie realm of workplace safety, sharing common ghoulish mistakes, from convoluted old-fashioned processes to lone wolves of safety and the haunting specter of burnout. Join them for a Halloween treat of hair-raising insights into the spooky world of workplace safety!

As we strive to ensure safety on the job, it's important to shift our JHA mindset to focus on the job, task, and crucial elements that could lead to a serious incident. Let's take a "safe to start" approach and think of controls in the hierarchy of hazard mitigation. Join the conversation on #JHASafety to learn more about how to create a safe and successful work environment!

In this episode, Langdon and Julian delve into the often misunderstood world of safety audits and inspections, particularly through the lens of ISO 45001 standards. They explore why an audit should be more than just a 'tick-box exercise,' contrasting it with the more immediate, focused nature of inspections. The duo discusses the pitfalls of sprucing up just for audit day and emphasizes the importance of transparency in sharing audit reports within an organization. Don't miss their insights on how to drive value and accountability in safety practices.

This week Julian and Langdon are joined by Karen J. Hewitt who shares her fascinating journey in the health and safety industry and how her background in communications has been a key driver in getting to where she is today! ​

Starting as an interpreter for the UN and moving into health and safety, this episode is jam-packed with advice on how we can better communicate and engage with those around us, as well as insights on how to create meaning for people when it comes to health and safety. 💡​

In this episode of the Two Bald Guys Talking Safety podcast, Julian and Langdon bring on two special guests, Ray and Mavis Nye, to share their powerful story on the impact of real-life hazards in and out of the workplace.

From age 15, Ray started an Apprenticeship at the Royal Naval Shipyard in Chatham. During every workday, he was consistently exposed to asbestos – an everyday hazard. As Ray says, “it was impossible to avoid.” Although Ray was the one working at the job site, health and safety doesn't just stop when someone leaves work. As we all know what we do inside of work, can impact us outside of work which is where Ray's wife, Mavis comes in.

You won’t want to miss this episode to hear Ray and Mavis’ story, raising awareness of asbestos and the real-life dangers to health and safety today.

In this episode of the Two Bald Guys Talking Safety podcast, Julian and Langdon continue their conversation with Todd Hohn, VP of EHS&Q at ONE Gas! ​
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With 30+ years' experience in workplace safety, Todd broadens our perspectives beyond just preventing SIFs (serious injury & fatalities) and explores the increasing emphasis on operational learning as a method to improve safety performance. It's truly eye-opening! ​
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The Bald Guys and Todd also dig into the importance of mental health, engaging your workforce and how the adoption of new methods can help positively shift perspectives on safety in the workplace. ​

Are we focusing too much on our systems and not enough on our workers? 🤔​

In this episode of the Two Bald Guys Talking Safety podcast, Julian and Langdon are joined by Todd Hohn, VP of EHS&Q at ONE Gas and the man who gave Langdon one of his first roles in EHS! ​
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With 30+ years' experience in workplace safety, Todd broadens our perspectives beyond just preventing SIFs (serious injury & fatalities) and explores the increasing emphasis on operational learning as a method to improve safety performance. It's truly eye-opening! ​
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The Bald Guys and Todd also dig into the importance of mental health, engaging your workforce and how the adoption of new methods can help positively shift perspectives on safety in the workplace. ​

In this special anniversary edition of 'Two Bald Guys Talking Safety,' we take a moment to reflect on the past year of safety-centric dialogue. Julian and Langdon reflect on their journey from the podcast's inception, celebrating their most resonant moments, pivotal discussions, and insightful guest appearances. Join your favorite hairless duo as they delve into the impactful lessons we've learned and shared over the past year.

Join our two favorite bald guys in their latest podcast episode as they dive into the topic of National Safety Month! National Safety Council has designated June as a month to celebrate safety. Our hosts ponder the idea of making safety a year-round extravaganza, jokingly suggesting a "National Safety Year" with 52 weeks of drills and precautions. They challenge the need for special safety days and ask the question: why can't we just embrace safety all the time? Tune in for their witty banter and insightful thoughts on keeping safety at the forefront, even without a designated month of celebration.

In this episode of "Two Bald Guys Talking Safety," we dive into the depths of "How To Create Engaging Safety Training for the Goldfish Attention Span." Reflecting on the evolution of e-learning since 1998, our hosts recount Julian's personal horror story of once sitting through a 97-slide, sleep-inducing risk assessment training course. Julian and Langdon tackle the daunting reality of how only 5% of session content is typically retained and challenge the outdated 'lecture' style methods. Instead, they explore more effective, engaging approaches to teaching frontline workers and consider the different ways in which people learn best. From blended learning to practical application and coaching, join us as we swim against the current, revolutionize safety training and consider how to truly engage the workforce in a world where attention spans are often shorter than that of a goldfish.

Join our hosts and special guest, Brandon Witz - a mining industry veteran since 19, now North American Head of Health and Safety at thyssenkrupp, as they discuss the importance of keeping safety simple and relatable for everyone in an organization. 🛠️👷 In this episode, we cover the critical role of engagement at every level and how a good safety culture prevents workplace injuries and enhances productivity. We all contribute to health and safety. Tune in to learn how to manage health and safety effectively and prioritize it - because your safety matters!

Join Julian and Langdon as they chat with the Head of Safety for Freightliner Group, Phillip Roberts. In this episode, the trio dives into how to leverage safety as a catalyst for industry change instead of solely looking at safety from a compliance perspective. While Julian, Langdon and Phillip appreciate the progress made in compliance and legislation to reduce accidents over the past decades, they share their insights into where we can break new ground in safety practices.

In this episode, hosts Julian and Langdon share insights from recent conversations with their fellow safety professionals about transforming entrenched, traditional safety cultures into proactive ones. Listen as they share their top three practical tips on transforming these cultures into more proactive ones. You won't want to miss this minisode if you're aiming to create safer workplaces and modernize your organization's safety approach.

In this episode, we discuss the importance of moving away from a blame culture in organizations with Diane Chadwick-Jones, former Director of Human Performance at bp. Julian, Langdon and Diane shed light on how blame often shifts attention away from understanding the practical aspects of a task and what made sense to employees at the time. Tune in for a thought-provoking conversation on modernizing your approach to blame, safety and human performance.

In this episode, we explore the value of the maturity curve for EHS professionals and discuss how it can guide organizations toward safety excellence. We delve into the significance of each stage, share insights on incremental steps for progress, and discuss how to use the maturity curve as an educational tool to engage employees. Join us as we discuss the challenges of aligning organizational and employee safety levels, and learn how the maturity curve can be integrated into your daily organizational strategy to foster continuous improvement in workplace safety.

In this episode of Two Bald Guys Talking Safety, we dive into the heaping pile of safety paperwork and explore ways to make it more manageable for everyone. Julian and Langdon share their experiences with lengthy forms and unwieldy processes, comparing safety management practices in both the UK and US. Listen now to learn how you can strike the right balance between simplicity and thoroughness to ensure safety procedures are followed and embraced by everyone in the workplace. 

In this episode, our favorite bald duo, Langdon and Julian, invite James MacPherson, host of "Rebranding Safety," for a lively discussion. The trio tackle the evolution of contractor management and contractor safety, bringing James' fresh insights to the table. But that's not all! They also dive into strategies for approaching leadership about revamping outdated safety practices, ultimately transforming the perception of safety and boosting staff engagement. Tune in for an enlightening conversation that you won't want to miss!

In this episode, Julian shares a real-life incident he saw while in Manchester. Listen in as Julian and Langdon discuss how sometimes stuff happens and share how an organization should move forward in making the workplace safer for the future.

In this episode, Julian and Langdon are joined by Simon Jones, Author of "The Safety Salesman," to discuss the next generation of health and safety professionals. Listen to this episode to hear Simon, Julian and Langdon share advice for anyone looking to enter the health and safety field early in their careers. 

How do you define failure? In this episode, Julian and Langdon discuss how safety needs to broaden their thinking regarding safety failures to better understand what is going on in the organization.

In this episode, the bald guys are joined by Chief Product Officer, Joe Harmon. Julian, Langdon and Joe discuss what health and safety professionals can learn from the mass cancellations of Southwest flights.

In this episode, the bald guys are joined by three-time Olympic gold medalist for cycling, Ed Clancy. Julian, Langdon and Ed discuss how marginal gains helped the British Olympic team pursuit squad break world records. Not sure how the experience of a professional sporting team can be applied to the world of health and safety? Then, be sure to listen in to part 1 of this two-part series.

In this episode, the bald guys are joined by three-time Olympic gold medalist for cycling, Ed Clancy. Julian, Langdon and Ed discuss how marginal gains helped the British Olympic team pursuit squad break world records. Not sure how the experience of a professional sporting team can be applied to the world of health and safety? Then, be sure to listen in to part 1 of this two-part series.

In this episode, the bald guys continue their favorite trend of relating workplace safety to well-known analogies. This time...what comes first, the chicken or the egg? But within the world of health and safety, the analogy is more about where we focus our time - incident management or risk prevention? Listen to this episode to hear Julian and Langdon answer the question, "should risk be the first thing you talk about?"

It's that time of year when every EHS-related business identifies its top safety trends for 2023. Over the last few years, we've seen the same trends fail to paint an accurate picture for how the health and safety industry is evolving. In this episode, Julian and Langdon take a different approach when looking ahead to 2023. Instead of discussing trends, we are talking about the top FIVE safety tips of 2023 to help you make a difference in the day-to-day safety of your organization's employees.

Can you change what happened yesterday? You can't unless you are Marty McFly and have a DeLorean at the ready. But, as an EHS professional, it is easy to have an obsession looking at lagging indicators to understand your EHS performance. Listen to this episode to hear Langdon and Julian discuss how you can step INTO THE FUTURE at your organization by focusing on their suggested leading indicators.

Let's face it, you spend a lot of time collating EHS data from your health and safety processes. But are you gaining enough VALUE from that data to implement change and make improvements? It's no longer enough to focus on lagging indicators – it's time to shift toward USING predictive indicators to drive continuous improvement. Langdon and Julian as they reflect on the questions you should be asking about your EHS data and how you can start gaining real value that impacts business performance.

Often when we talk about safety, the first thing people talk about is incident management which ends up becoming a blame game. Let's start to change the narrative of health and safety to be more positive. To create a more positive culture, your organization should want to proactively get better and be preventative. Listen into this episode to hear, Langdon and Julian share how action management can provide opportunities to be utilized in helping you and your organization get ahead of the game.

Most health and safety professionals have a very methodical approach to their incident management processes. However, when it comes to hazard spotting, they don’t put enough focus on hazard spotting, they don’t have a structure in place to continuously improve their hazard spotting process. Typically they just launch hazard spotting then move on. In this podcast, Julian and Langdon talk about hazard spotting and how it is the first level of the incident management lifecycle. Be sure to listen to this episode as they share their actionable tips on how to make your hazard spotting process successful. 

If incident management is such a crucial, simple task, why do we complicate the process and still lack the reporting and insights from our incidents to truly understand what’s happening within our organizations? In this episode, Julian and Langdon look at what an incident management process should look like. They discuss common barriers to reporting and how to overcome those challenges. If you have low engagement or are looking to refine your incident management processes, then you won't want to miss this episode!

If you ask your frontline workers, “why does health and safety matter?” the answer is almost always going to be that it’s a business priority. Or, even worse, they may not have an answer. But why is that? In this episode, Julian and Langdon discuss what engagement means for the frontline. They share four practical tips on how to create and improve employee engagement. Safety Directors, this isn't one you're going to want to miss!

How often have you heard that safety is an organization’s number one priority? In this episode, Julian and Langdon discuss why it’s time to start calling out the BS with your senior leadership. They share how to challenge your senior leadership to be as invested in health and safety as the safety team and make safety operations the business's number one priority.

In this episode, Langdon and Julian sit down and explain how health and safety professionals can use the same concept as Wordle to help put checks in place to achieve ‘good’ EHS. Great EHS is something many organizations aspire to achieve, but many struggle to get the basics of 'good' right. During their chat, you’ll hear how connecting with everybody at your workplace will help build a ‘good’ EHS program in the long term.