David Lynn Articles

Integrated Safety Filters

PSJ | David G. Lynn, CSP | June 2021

One of the biggest challenges in the safety world is that company leaders treat safety as an activity separate from the actual work task. Leaders fail to realize that safety is a measure of work efficiency that requires problem-solving filters that are integrated into every individual’s choice.

 

Safety Creates Memories

PSJ | David G. Lynn, CSP | May 2020

I value those recollections, but there is one family memory that I have lost. I never had the opportunity to meet or talk to my grandfather, Elbert Collins Lynn, better known as E.C. I have heard interesting stories that describe him. I have seen pictures of my grandfather, but unfortunately, every recollection of him is at best secondhand
and watered down by years of his absence. E.C. is a memory that I wish I had firsthand, but unfortunately, the
memory is lost.

 

Safety Leadership Training (9 Safe Habit Tools)

PSJ | David G. Lynn, CSP | January 2020

Does your company put people in roles with inadequate preparation to lead safety? Sometimes great
employees are promoted to a supervisor role, then struggle to lead the safety aspect of the job. They may
understand the technical nature of the supervisor role but not know how to lead people to work safely.

 

The Power of Structure – The Strategic Safety Plan

PSJ | David G. Lynn, CSP | March 2019

I love football season. Stadium lights and freshly cut grass in the fall make me think about football. Growing
up, my friends and I participated in organized leagues and we played in the backyard. No matter which venue,
our competitive nature was evident in both settings.

 

Prevention Begins with a Conversation

Without management commitment to safety, a company cannot achieve best-in-class results.
EHS Today | David G. Lynn, CSP | Jan 15, 2019

Have you ever asked the question, “What else can I do to improve our safety culture?” The answer may be in your next conversation. One of the most common safety weaknesses I see in organizations is a lack of management engagement with employees. As a general rule, leaders support safety wholeheartedly from behind a computer but they fail to gain the value of personal interaction with employees in a safety context. The result is that workers develop a lack of trust and frustration in management’s commitment to safety. At the same time we ask, “What else can I do?” The remarkable solution is that we need to talk to people.

 

CONTEXT Root Cause Analysis

PSJ | David G. Lynn, CSP | August 2018

I know what it is like to get injured on the job. When I was 18 years old, I worked as summer help for a small
contractor in industrial environments. I did what I was told. During this particular summer, we worked at a
textile mill in South Carolina and my supervisor asked me to move some platform grating from inside the plant
to the back of it.

 

Walk the Walk

The Leader | David G. Lynn, CSP

Put your passion for safety into practice with visible commitment. The secret to building a winning culture begins with you! When individuals model a passion and conviction to achieve zero injuries, organizations excel in safety. No matter where you fit into an organizational chart, you influence those around you, and this translates to a winning culture.

 

Incident Investigation; 4 Critical Stages

PSJ | David G. Lynn, CSP | September 2014

When I was an OSHA compliance officer, I performed several fatality investigations. One of my early investigations involved a fatality in a grain silo. The silo’s bottom part had an auger that transported corn. The corn had formed a crust over the auger and prevented the flow of corn. Two teenage cousins entered the silo to shovel the corn to another opening in the side of the silo. They had to walk on top of the 15-ft pile of corn to do so.

 

Principle-to-Practice Safety Transformation

May 27, 2015 – Trying to change a safety culture from bad to good is like trying to break a bad habit. No matter how much you know you need to end that habit, you can’t escape the draw it has on your behavior…

 

Seven on Seven Behavior Modification

“Employees could see and hear lockout in their dreams!”

Change does not happen overnight. Several years ago, I conducted a series of annual lockout/tagout training classes for a previous employer. We reviewed our requirements in detail and the expectations to follow our lockout procedures were clear. One week after the training concluded, an employee that attended one of the classes injured himself because he bypassed our
procedures!

 

Making a Hands-On Connection

Oct. 13, 2014 – Every scar on your hand has a story. The key to improving workplace hand safety is helping others see and feel the same lesson that you learned from your hand injury – without the pain…

 

Safety 2014: Zero Excuses for Workplace Hand Injuries

Jun. 16, 2014 – Hand injuries – like the vast majority of workplace injuries – are preventable. Still, year after year, hand injuries are among the leading causes of missed workdays and emergency-room visits, costing employers millions of dollars in workers’ compensation costs and lost productivity…

 

How to Make Your Safety Training Talks Effective

SHRM | June 2014

*Make the talk vivid. Avoid generic topics and general statements such as “do better.” Pin down specifics, and layout exactly what is expected. “Your job is to get people to imagine, think and feel the value of the talking points,” said Lynn. He advised helping employees visualize the content of the training through pictures and video and through sharing personal examples. Humor is another great device to engage workers. In addition, “telling stories makes the problem a lot more real for people and helps them understand the seriousness of the hazard,” said Schneider. “Many trainers will comb the local papers for stories of fatalities, injuries or accidents or relate stories of problems they have run up against or witnessed,” he said.

 

Old School versus the New Generation — Technology Transforms Safety

Mar. 14, 2014 – My teenage kids think I worked in the dark ages when I started my career in the early 1990s, and when I look back on how technology has changed the work environment, I have to agree. How did we function…

 

Setting Your Sights on Results-Based Safety Leadership

Jul. 9, 2012 – Most corporations claim to have safety as a value, but few companies deliver world-class safety performance. When I worked with OSHA as a compliance officer, company representatives would share what they “believed” about safety. I heard common values such as “Safety is a condition of employment.”…

 

Managing Safety: Three Steps to Build Character in Safety

Oct. 28, 2011 – Every wrong choice is preceded by a series of unwise choices.” – Andy Stanley, from his book, The Best Question Ever…

 

Three keys to forging a winning safety culture

ISHN | David G. Lynn, CSP | August 2007

The secret to building a winning safety culture begins with you. When individuals model a passion and conviction to achieve zero injuries, organizations excel in safety. No matter where you fit in an organizational chart, you influence those around you and your positive influence will translate into a winning safety culture.

 

Play to Win

Occupational Hazard Magazine  | David G. Lynn, CSP | January 2007

What separates the good from the great in safety?  How do you connect all of the dots so that your organization works injury-free?  Conscientious leaders across industries struggle with the challenge of maintaining an injury-free work environment because they have a sincere desire to send everyone home in one piece.  But, people still get hurt.  What do you do?