The future of the safety professional: how will the role look in 2035?
Release Date: 06/06/2025
Tired Minds, Higher Risks: Mastering Fatigue Management, With Dan Wakerley
Safety And Risk Success
Fatigue hides in plain sight. It silently chips away at judgement, coordination, reaction time and even emotional stability, long before someone reaches the point of nodding off. Yet many workplaces still treat tiredness as nothing more than part of the job. In this conversation with Dan Wakerley, founder of Pillar, we lift the lid on the true impact of fatigue, why it’s entirely predictable, and how using real-time readiness data can transform safety, performance and well-being. If you want to prevent incidents rather than explain them, this is a must-listen. Highlights Fatigue as...
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Building Trust and Engagement on the Frontline, With Jonathan Hall
Safety And Risk Success
How do you get frontline teams not just to hear your safety messages, but to believe them, talk about them and act on them? Jonathan Hall, founder of SMARTbrief, has spent over two decades helping organisations bridge the gap between the boardroom and the people doing the work. We explore how tone, trust and technology come together to make communication truly land, from creative campaigns in the rail industry to tools that empower genuine two-way dialogue. This one’s packed with practical ideas to turn policies into real-world engagement. Highlights: From photographer to safety comms...
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Remember, Remember Fire Safety This November, with John Field & Bernie Higgins
Safety And Risk Success
Bonfire Night might light up the skies, but it’s also the perfect spark to reignite our focus on fire safety. Joined by fire safety leaders John Field (Chair of the IOSH Fire Risk Management Group) and Bernie Higgins (former Principal Officer at London Fire Brigade and Board Member at the Fire Industry Association), we dive into what it truly takes to build resilient, fire-aware organisations, from lessons written in tragedy to leadership that keeps people, property and purpose safe. Expect stories from the frontline, sharp insights on emerging risks like lithium-ion batteries, and...
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Safety Through Conversations, With Stuart Farquharson
Safety And Risk Success
What if the key to improving safety wasn’t more paperwork, but more genuine dialogue? Stuart Farquharson, founder of RiskTalk, shares how listening to workers and replacing forms with real conversations has changed the way leading organisations manage risk, engage teams and strengthen safety culture. It’s a story of innovation, courage and the power of simply talking things through, backed by technology that captures the human side of safety. Highlights From forms to voices: How frustration on the ground led to a global shift in safety thinking The value of dialogue: Why open...
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From courtroom to boardroom: what legal lessons teach us about prevention with Emma Bowens
Safety And Risk Success
When tragedy strikes in the workplace, few moments are more sobering than standing in court to defend what went wrong. But what if you could experience those lessons without the pain of a real incident? In this powerful conversation, I sit down with regulatory lawyer and trainer Emma Bowens, who has spent two decades defending organisations in some of the most serious health and safety cases imaginable. Emma reveals the eye-opening realities of what happens after an incident, why legal insight can transform prevention strategies, and how the smallest decisions, made in the heat of crisis, can...
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From Boring to Brilliant: Transforming Safety Through Better Communication with Jon Fry
Safety And Risk Success
Ever felt that health and safety can be, well… a bit dull? Jon Fry thinks so too, and he’s on a mission to change it. From sawmills in mid-Wales to safety consultancy and copywriting, Jon shares how small shifts in tone, humour and empathy can turn safety from a chore into a culture people actually care about. We explore how to communicate with impact, borrow lessons from marketing, and use data, pragmatism and a dash of humanity to make work genuinely safer, and more enjoyable. Highlights: Reframing safety: Making it relevant, engaging and human to boost buy-in and culture The power of...
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High profile hacks, human risks, with Jane Frankland
Safety And Risk Success
Cyber threats are no longer confined to IT teams, they’re everyone’s business. In this powerful conversation with cybersecurity leader, author and founder of the Insecurity Movement, Jane Frankland, we explore the human side of cyber risk and what leaders can do to protect their organisations, people, and reputations. From high-profile hacks at Marks & Spencer and Jaguar Land Rover to the rise of AI-driven attacks and insider threats, Jane reveals why resilience beats perfection and how to prepare for when, not if, a breach happens. Highlights Behind the Bond: How Jane’s journey...
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Practical Risk Assessment, with Phil Clarke
Safety And Risk Success
How do you take risk assessment from being a paperwork burden to a living, useful tool that actually helps people on the ground? That’s exactly what Phil Clarke has been exploring throughout his diverse career, from military intelligence, through environmental health, to leading safety across complex, multi-site organisations. In this conversation, Phil unpacks his philosophy of making risk assessments dynamic, local, and owned by operational leaders rather than just the safety team. He also shares his “Safety Six” model, insights from his doctoral research, and some practical steps you...
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Walking & Working Surfaces - From Behavioural Insights To Action, with Daryl Wake
Safety And Risk Success
Why do slips, trips and falls stubbornly remain the number one cause of workplace accidents, even in high-risk industries that are otherwise strong on safety? The answer lies in both human behaviour and practical action, and that’s exactly what Daryl Wake of Dekra and I explore together. Daryl brings fresh behavioural data gathered across industries, showing how and why people really slip, trip and fall, and the critical role of leadership and culture. I then take the baton to share a roadmap of proven, practical steps you can implement immediately to cut incidents, defend claims, and...
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Stop the Slip: Why Falls Are a Hidden Epidemic, with Thom Disch
Safety And Risk Success
Slips, trips and falls may sound like minor mishaps, but they are a silent epidemic causing devastating injuries, financial losses and even deaths every single day. Entrepreneur and author Thom Disch joins me to expose why falls are one of the most underestimated risks in our lives and workplaces – and what we can do to change that. From psychology to products, from boardroom buy-in to bedtime stories, this conversation unpacks practical ways to stop the slip. Highlights include: Falls are a hidden epidemic: 14% of deaths in the USA Why we underestimate risk: “that’s not me”...
info_outlineWhat does the safety profession look like ten years from now? Picture a world of automation, AI-driven decision making, and rapidly shifting expectations, then place yourself right in the middle of it. That’s where we’re heading, and this podcast was a chance to look ahead, spark debate, and challenge ourselves to be ready.
We explored the changing demands on the safety professional, what we’ll need to let go of, what skills will come to the fore, and how our ability to connect, influence and adapt will matter more than ever. From mental health and ESG, to data storytelling and the impact of AI, we didn’t hold back in imagining what 2035 might bring.
💬 Topics covered in this episode:
- The Evolving Role of the Safety Professional: From compliance focus to ESG integration and strategic influence
- AI, Automation & the Safety Tech Revolution: How routine tasks will shift and why digital confidence is vital
- Mental Health as a Core Safety Pillar: Why wellbeing needs to move from the sidelines to the centre
- Data Storytelling & Predictive Insight: Using data to drive proactive decisions and win investment
- Collaboration Across Disciplines: Working in sync with HR, tech and leadership teams to deliver real results
- Skills for 2035: New priorities like systems thinking, emotional intelligence, and tech fluency
- Letting Go of Old Habits: Paper forms, one-size-fits-all training, and blame culture—what needs to go
- Bold Predictions for the Future: From AI-enabled teams to the idea of safety teams without safety professionals
Actions:
- Sign up for a future Safety Roundtable: https://safetyroundtable.co.uk/
- Connect with Christian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-harris-slip-safety/