How to Speak the Language of Value in Risk and Safety, With Ben Cooney
Release Date: 07/11/2025
The End of Safety as We Know It?
Safety And Risk Success
Is safety being absorbed, rebranded, or slowly phased out? As the world around us evolves, so too must the safety profession. We dive headfirst into the real tensions, questions, and opportunities facing modern safety practitioners. From the rise of ESG and AI to the shift in workplace culture, this wide-ranging podcast unpacks whether the traditional model of safety is still fit for purpose, or whether we’re seeing the start of something entirely new. Highlights: Blurred boundaries: Safety’s now showing up in HR, ESG, ops and finance, but who’s really in charge? Perception problem:...
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Thick Data, Complexity And Navigating Change, With Gary Wong
Safety And Risk Success
What if resistance to change wasn’t a hurdle, but valuable feedback? Gary Wong brings a refreshing take on how to navigate complexity and shift safety culture using insights from sensemaking, storytelling and system thinking. We covered how narrative data, landscape maps and frameworks like Cynefin can help make change more attractive and easier, not just for frontline teams, but for senior leaders too. It’s all about thinking differently, acting intentionally, and using real stories to shape safer outcomes. 🔍 Highlights Sensemaking in practice: Anthropology, neuroscience and...
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A blueprint for better risk decisions, with Alex Dali
Safety And Risk Success
Ever felt that risk management is too focused on boxes, forms, and fear? It doesn’t have to be that way. In this powerful conversation with internationally respected risk expert Alex Dali, we unpack a smarter, more dynamic approach, rooted in ISO 31000, that ties risk directly to your objectives. Whether you're in safety, operations, or leadership, if you're making decisions under uncertainty (and who isn’t?), this episode gives you a clear, actionable framework to create and protect value. With over 25 years in global risk leadership and founder of the G31000 Risk Institute,...
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How to Speak the Language of Value in Risk and Safety, With Ben Cooney
Safety And Risk Success
When you’re trying to influence at board level, it’s not enough to talk risk in your language, you’ve got to speak theirs. Ben Cooney joins me to unpack how risk professionals and safety leaders can get real traction by shifting their approach from technical to strategic, from problems to value. We get into the realities of insurance, bust some common myths, and explore how safety, risk, and finance can better collaborate to reduce harm and boost performance. Whether you’re new to risk or have been in the trenches for years, this conversation is full of useful perspective, insight,...
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Prevent Slip Accidents In 5 Scientific Steps
Safety And Risk Success
Slips aren't just annoying, they're costly, painful, and often completely avoidable. Despite everyone doing "the basics", we continue to see the same incidents occur, time and time again. But what if we shifted from assumptions to science? This episode reveals the five scientifically backed steps to dramatically reduce slip accidents and elevate your safety performance. Whether you're in charge of one building or one hundred, the insights here will challenge your perceptions and give you practical, proven tools to make your spaces safer, without the need for massive budgets or wholesale...
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Converging Safety and Security, with Richard Pendry
Safety And Risk Success
What if the biggest risk to your organisation wasn’t a trip hazard or faulty machinery, but someone on the inside, with intent to do harm? I sat down with internationally respected security risk management expert Richard Pendry to explore how the lines between safety and security are blurring fast, and what that means for us as safety professionals. From insider threats and emerging legislation to using AI and drones for protection, we dive into what you need to know now to stay ahead of the curve and keep your workplace truly resilient. Highlights: Safety vs Security: Why intention...
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SafetyTech & AI: 2025 Update
Safety And Risk Success
Is AI the silver bullet for safety, or a double-edged sword we need to handle with care? In this wide-ranging conversation, I’m joined by Martin Maran, a veteran safety professional turned AI practitioner, who offers a grounded, practical update on how AI is reshaping our world of safety and risk management. We dig into what’s working, what’s worrying, and where opportunity lies for those willing to engage with technology with intention, humility, and clarity. This isn’t just a theoretical debate, it’s a toolkit of insights for anyone looking to make smarter, more human...
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The Importance Of Emotional Safety, with Cara Cunniff
Safety And Risk Success
If you think “emotions” and “the workplace” don’t belong in the same sentence, think again. Emotional culture is influencing your safety culture, performance, and leadership impact, whether you realise it or not. I’m joined by Cara Cunniff, an expert in emotional culture and connection, to challenge the old-school mindset and explore how feelings drive behaviour, decision-making, and ultimately success. Cara shares why being “emotionally attuned” isn’t fluffy, it’s foundational. We also unpack her experience from military life to entrepreneurship, and how leaders...
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The future of the safety professional: how will the role look in 2035?
Safety And Risk Success
What 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...
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The Power of Psychological Safety: Building Trust and Preventing Harm, With Elizabeth Hyde
Safety And Risk Success
Great teams don’t just follow procedures, they speak up, challenge ideas, and learn from mistakes without fear. That’s the essence of psychological safety, and it’s fast becoming a cornerstone of high-performing, low-risk workplaces. Elizabeth Hyde joins me to share how her legal background and cutting-edge research are reshaping how leaders think about safety, not just as a compliance issue, but as a human one. If you lead people, manage risk, or care about culture, this conversation is packed with actionable insight you won’t want to miss. Highlights From law to...
info_outlineWhen you’re trying to influence at board level, it’s not enough to talk risk in your language, you’ve got to speak theirs. Ben Cooney joins me to unpack how risk professionals and safety leaders can get real traction by shifting their approach from technical to strategic, from problems to value. We get into the realities of insurance, bust some common myths, and explore how safety, risk, and finance can better collaborate to reduce harm and boost performance.
Whether you’re new to risk or have been in the trenches for years, this conversation is full of useful perspective, insight, and advice to help you step up your game.
Episode Highlights
- Senior leadership and risk: Perception is changing, awareness is rising
- Risk vs opportunity: Set clear guardrails, enable smarter decisions
- Making the case for investment: Lead with value, not fear
- Total cost of risk: It’s far more than just your insurance premium
- Safety + risk + insurance: Why collaboration beats working in silos
- Insurance misconceptions: Why policies don’t fail — but communication does
- Risk management bursaries: Useful tool or inefficient workaround?
- From fires to facial recognition: Real-world examples of risk done right
Actions:
- Sign up for a future Safety Roundtable: https://safetyroundtable.co.uk/
- Connect with Ben on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bencooney/
- Connect with Christian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-harris-slip-safety/