Starting out...

How did you get your start doing safety manager work, and what career moves did you make to get to your current position?

Do you need a particular educational background?

first i earned a B.S in safety. second, it took more than 10years to learn enough to be considered for a manager position. however, i would recommend that if you plan on investing in an education choose some other field. the safety field not all that. we are looked on as just a cost.

I started in safety by working in Human Resources. In many small companies, Safety is an HR responsibility. I took the standard OSHA training courses (10 hr and 30 hr). I studied safety manuals to learn all that I could about the field. After a couple of years, I accepted a Safety Engineering Position within the same company.
At that point I decided that further education was in order and I got a Master's degree in Occupational Safety and Health. I continued to attend several different training sessions through the years and have earned a few other certifications. I am currently working on my CSP certification. I hope to have it next year. I now work for a very large firm as a Safety Analyst. I enjoy the work that I do and I think that the Safety Field is my natural calling. But, having worked in the safety field for 8 years now, I can honestly say that 8 years ago I would not have chosen safety if it had not chosen me.

[QUOTE] I enjoy the work that I do and I think that the Safety Field is my natural calling. But, having worked in the safety field for 8 years now, I can honestly say that 8 years ago I would not have chosen safety if it had not chosen me.

Hi Tim,

If you believe this is your natural calling would you mind me asking what would cause you to have done something else?

Cheers,

Dave

Dave Bridgend in United Kingdom said: [QUOTE] I enjoy the work that I do and I think that the Safety Field is my natural calling. But, having worked in the safety field for 8 years now, I can honestly say that 8 years ago I would not have chosen safety if it had not chosen me.

Hi Tim,

If you believe this is your natural calling would you mind me asking what would cause you to have done something else?

Cheers,

Dave

Dave, Until I started working in Safety, I had never really considered it. I worked in Quality for many years then HR. After I started in Safety it seemed like a natural progression from Quality. Everything clicked. It was only then that I realized that this was where I belonged. It takes some people (like me)a while to find what they should have been doing all along.

Great to hear you've found your calling Tim :o), as a newbie it seems to me to be a great job too - what do you like best about it and are the biggest challenges?

Dave.

Dave Bridgend in United Kingdom said: Great to hear you've found your calling Tim :o), as a newbie it seems to me to be a great job too - what do you like best about it and are the biggest challenges?

Dave.

Dave, The great thing about the job is that there is always something new. Something that you may not have seen before, something to devise a solution for.
The biggest challenge is getting "buy in" from everyone, Management and workers.
Nobody wants to change. You will hear the age old expression "we've always done it that way" over and over. The challenges are many and the rewards are few. The safety guy is never the most popular person in the company. But, that sense of knowing that you're doing the right thing and that you may save someone's life by your actions make it worth coming back again tomorrow.

Tim, That's great i too was responsible for quality and to be honest found it a bit of a turn off, I know it's important and irt just didn't get my fires going - Safety as you describe it does - so thanks foor taking the time to reply

Thanks mate,

Dave.

Host said: How did you get your start doing safety manager work, and what career moves did you make to get to your current position?

Do you need a particular educational background?

Hi Host,

not sure where you're based but in the UK the basic qualification is the IOSH managing safety - for line managers, NEBOSH certificate for safety managers and follwed up with NEBOSH diploma for safety managers and professionals.

Dave Bridgend in United Kingdom said: Tim, That's great i too was responsible for quality and to be honest found it a bit of a turn off, I know it's important and irt just didn't get my fires going - Safety as you describe it does - so thanks foor taking the time to reply

Thanks mate,

Dave.

Dave, Good luck with your chosen career!!

Host said: How did you get your start doing safety manager work, and what career moves did you make to get to your current position?

Do you need a particular educational background?

As I got older I found it was harder to lug the tools and equipment up those ladders and I would see a guy on the ground with a clip board. He would be pointing up at the guys climbing telling them..."no over here...yes now run the line through the assembly right next to your foot". I thought...I wnat to be that guy on the ground with a clip board.
Funny thing I still find my self climbing the tower or shimmying into a tank to take air samples.
The tools are not as heavy and I stay a little cleaner but you never ask some one to do something you would not do yourself.

I went into the Navy to be a welder. Six years after I entered the Navy they split my rate up and I went to the Damage Control side to be a firefighter, more for advancement then anything. As a Damage Controlman I worked my way up through the ranks untill i was the senior Damage Control, firefighting and safety instructor in New Orleans. I left the Navy after that and after a short period in the oil field found myself welding on an Industrial Construction job. While on that job I got to discussing regulations with the Safety Professional on the job, and the next thing I knew was hired for the firm he worked for. That was several years ago and have been managing my own departments in Safety every since and now have my own safety consulting firm. I love what I do... but can not stand the ideal of doing it in any thing but Industrial Construction. I love the changing environment and the location changes every 3 to 6 months.

Doyle in Windsor, Connecticut said: I went into the Navy to be a welder. Six years after I entered the Navy they split my rate up and I went to the Damage Control side to be a firefighter, more for advancement then anything. As a Damage Controlman I worked my way up through the ranks untill i was the senior Damage Control, firefighting and safety instructor in New Orleans. I left the Navy after that and after a short period in the oil field found myself welding on an Industrial Construction job. While on that job I got to discussing regulations with the Safety Professional on the job, and the next thing I knew was hired for the firm he worked for. That was several years ago and have been managing my own departments in Safety every since and now have my own safety consulting firm. I love what I do... but can not stand the ideal of doing it in any thing but Industrial Construction. I love the changing environment and the location changes every 3 to 6 months.

I am a trade school grad in welding and considering the navy as the next step for my career as it seems it has the most prestige as far as finding a good welding job when getting out. also i have considered underwater welding but still havent decided how "out of reach" a goal that may be. im curious as to how certain i can be that i will get a welding position if i sign up being that welding would be the only reason for me signing in the first place.

I'm currently in the Navy and will be retiring in two years. I'm an electrician and was thinking of what to do once retired. Speaking with the Safety guys at my job I decided to try the Safety field as my career change. I'm working on my masters in Occupational Safety and health right now and hopefully will be done prior to retirement. Is there any advise someone can give me to get stated in this field prior to retirement.

Willie in Jacksonville, Florida said: I'm currently in the Navy and will be retiring in two years. I'm an electrician and was thinking of what to do once retired. Speaking with the Safety guys at my job I decided to try the Safety field as my career change. I'm working on my masters in Occupational Safety and health right now and hopefully will be done prior to retirement. Is there any advise someone can give me to get stated in this field prior to retirement.

Willie, My advice, at this point, would be training. Take the OSHA 30 hour general industry and construction courses. While the Master's Degree is good it will not provide you with all of the hands on information that you get from interaction with a room full of Safety professionals. learn all you can, keeping in mind that there are differences between military life and what OSHA permits in the industrial and construction world. Talk to all of the Safety PROs that you can find. Also be patient, gain experience. People skills are very inportant too. Your electrical experience should come in handy from an Electrical Safety training standpoint. Good luck.