Greetings!

Did you know last month was National Safety Month? Thousands of organizations across the country worked to raise awareness of what it takes to keep each other safe. 

The 2017 American Society of Safety Engineers Conference was held in Denver, Colorado June 19th - 22nd. Temperatures blazed downtown as thousands of safety professionals participated in the annual expo and conference. Attendance broke record levels; more than 5,200 people took part in the conference and exhibition, a record and one for the history books. It was safety-palooza!

I spoke at the conference, introducing a three-dimensional safety model I created relating traditional safety concepts with safety culture. The session explored the building blocks of the model, the structure they support and the culture they affect. The model demonstrates the need for core foundational beliefs that everyone on the terminal, from the CEO to the new casual, internalizes and manifests in the workplace. Building upon those ideas promotes sustainable improvement in an environment with a reliable safety system. Click below to read my proceedings paper.

On the flight to Colorado, I was flipping through the pages of Southwest Airline's Magazine as I was on a Southwest flight. Like many travelers, I do not necessarily always fly one airline. I search the web for low fares, the least amount of delays and most direct flights. Reading the magazine, I came across Gary's Greeting. Gary's Greeting comes from Gary Kelly, Chairman, and CEO of Southwest Airlines. At Southwest, one of their trademark qualities is reliability. 

Let's compare industries: moving people vs. moving cargo. Although Southwest does not have a transient workforce, they have a transient customer base. They operate more than 4,000 flights a day, carrying about a half-million customers on more than 700 airplanes to more than 100 cities.  All done safely and with a smile. What can our industry learn from them regarding safety? How could that knowledge be applied to make our work environments safer and more reliable?

We all like free stuff, right? I am giving away five beautifully crafted writing journals to the first five people that respond directly to this email answering this question;

How can you make your safety program more reliable?

I look forward to your responses. 

Final thought; have you ever wanted to be part of a podcast? Starting in 2018, your wish just might come true. "Safety Talk on the Dock" a podcast devoted to fostering the communication of safety thoughts and ideas is in the development stages. Click below to find out more about this exciting project. Thank you to those who consistently read the Safety Journal.  Your support is greatly appreciated. 

Keep Thriving!