The Safety Spotlight

BIS Safety
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The Safety Spotlight Podcast brings workplace safety leaders, innovators, and change-makers into the conversation. Each episode dives into real stories, proven strategies, and fresh ideas for creating safer, healthier, and more productive work environments. The show explores topics ranging from safety culture and leadership to emerging technologies and industry trends. Guests share practical insights, lessons learned from the field, and the human side of safety that drives lasting impact.

  1. 3D AGO

    Trust Over Policy: Emotional Intelligence and Building Safer Teams with Joan McMillan

    Psychological safety is often treated like something you install with a policy. But is it really a systems issue, or a leadership one? In this episode of Safety Spotlight, we sit down with Joan McMillan, Canadian Registered Safety Professional and PhD candidate in developmental psychology, to explore the human side of safety culture. With more than 20 years in health and safety, Joan brings a perspective grounded in behavior, emotional intelligence, and organizational development. We discuss why fear quietly undermines psychological safety, how emotional intelligence shapes leadership effectiveness, and why checklists alone cannot build trust. Topics include: • The five components of emotional intelligence • Warning signs of low EQ in leaders • Why judgment and defensiveness damage culture • The limits of systemizing psychological safety • How trust and connection drive real performance If you’re responsible for safety, culture, or leading people, this episode challenges you to look beyond compliance and into behavior. See Joan’s story and many more at https://bissafety.ca/safety-spotlight-podcasts/

    48 min

  2. JAN 22

    Safety Without Slogans: What Actually Reduces Risk on the Job With Darren Varga

    A lot of companies say “safety first.” Darren Varga, Director of EHS at Aecon Group Inc., argues that misses the point. If people do not trust the system, they stop talking, and that is when risk quietly stacks up. In this episode of The Safety Spotlight, Darren shares how an ergonomics and biomechanics background, along with time as a Ministry of Labour inspector and global consultant, has shaped a practical approach to safety: quantify risk, design work that makes sense, and treat workers like the experts they are. We also get into what “safety culture” actually means in real life. Darren’s answer is blunt: there is no magic KPI or slogan that fixes it. Trust is the lever, and trust is built through listening, giving workers a voice, and following up every single time, even on “small” issues. We discuss: Why “layered skills” make safety pros more effective, and how Darren built that stack across industries and rolesHow to spot risk faster by walking the floor with workers and asking one question: “What’s the worst part of the job?”How ergonomic redesign becomes a business case when you quantify risk and tie it to efficiency gainsWhy change management gets easy when the tool is simple, useful, and worker-approvedThe one thing “safety culture” is really built on: trust, plus follow-throughA practical voice-of-worker system: QR codes on hard hats feeding safety and the Joint Health and Safety CommitteeWhat happens when workers have no voice, and why complaints, conflict, and cost explodeLeading on high-profile, first-of-a-kind projects: emergency readiness, clear communication, and relationships with real decision-makersMental health in construction, the Ambassador Program approach, and why “tough-guy culture” is a liabilityLeadership that actually works: servant leadership, Maxwell’s five levels, and treating dignity as a daily practiceLooking for an all-in-one compliance platform? See all that BIS Safety Software has to offer at https://bissafety.ca/

    50 min

  3. JAN 16

    Invisible Threats and Real Consequences: Silica and Worker Health with Nayab Sultan

    Silica exposure is one of the oldest known occupational hazards in the world, yet it remains widely misunderstood, under-prioritized, and routinely mismanaged across modern industries.   In this episode of The Safety Spotlight, we sit down with Nayab Sultan, an occupational and environmental health specialist with decades of international experience, to unpack why silica continues to pose such a serious and often invisible risk to workers today.   Drawing on real-world cases from construction, mining, infrastructure, and global health settings, Nayab explains how respirable crystalline silica behaves in the body, why there is effectively no safe level of exposure, and how silicosis can develop silently over years or, in extreme cases, within weeks. He also explores why silicosis is frequently misdiagnosed as tuberculosis, the long-term consequences of that failure, and how gaps in professional training and risk anticipation continue to put people at risk.   The conversation goes beyond compliance checklists to address deeper system issues, including inconsistent education standards for safety professionals, the lack of long-term exposure tracking for transient workers, and the false sense of safety created by familiarity and routine. We also discuss how emerging AI tools are beginning to change early detection and diagnosis, particularly in resource-limited environments, and what lessons Canada still needs to learn from global silica hotspots.   This episode is a clear reminder that silicosis and silica-related diseases are entirely preventable, but only if risk is recognized early, controls are taken seriously, and uncomfortable conversations are not avoided. What You’ll Learn   Why silica exposure is fundamentally different from many other workplace hazardsHow silicosis develops, including simple, accelerated, and acute formsWhy silica is often misdiagnosed as tuberculosis and why that mattersHow low-level exposure over time can be just as dangerous as short-term high exposureWhere current safety training and awareness fall shortWhy “getting the job done” culture quietly drives long-term health outcomesHow AI is starting to improve diagnosis and what that could mean for worker health

    1h 4m

  4. JAN 6

    Why "Common Sense" is Dangerous in Safety: Rick Sikora on Rigging, Competency & Culture

    "If I don't have room to improve, the system is broken." That is the philosophy that drives Rick Sikora, CEO of Cranemasters. In this episode of The Safety Spotlight, Rick shares why he questioned the validity of a 97% audit score - and why questioning what we do is the only way to fight complacency.Rick breaks down the critical difference between "common sense" and "common knowledge," especially for the new generation of workers entering the trades. He shares powerful stories from the field, including why he challenges his instructors to let students lead the conversation and why he believes "tickets" are just the beginning of the learning journey, not the end.Cranemasters Website: https://cranemasters.ca

    58 min

  5. 12/12/2025

    Failing Safely: Stuntman Lessons on Culture and Communication with Tyler Foley

    In this episode of Safety Spotlight, we sit down with Tyler Foley, a former stuntman turned safety consultant and the founder of Total Buy-In HSE Consulting. Tyler shares his unique backstory, moving from performing six-story high falls into cardboard boxes to managing safety in high-risk industries, revealing how the principles of stunt work - like engineering controls and redundancy - directly translate to the job site. Throughout the conversation, Tyler challenges the traditional "zero incident" mindset, arguing instead for "failing safely" - designing systems where human error is anticipated but the consequences are minimized. He discusses the dangers of siloed safety departments and explains why a true safety culture is just "culture," where everyone from the C-suite to the frontline is aligned and empowered. We also explore Tyler's practical strategies for identifying hidden influencers (the "nodes") in a workforce, transforming toolbox talks from rote reading into engaging dialogues, and the importance of the "Mentor, Peer, Student" framework for professional growth. Tyler shares a powerful story about transforming a rapidly growing construction company by making leadership personal, visible, and deeply invested in the "family" aspect of the team. Whether you are a safety professional, a supervisor, or a business leader, Tyler's perspective on human factors, authentic communication, and the reality of risk offers a fresh, practical approach to protecting your team. Tyler's Website: https://totalbuyin.com/ Tyler's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/seantylerfoley/

    1h 16m

  6. 12/09/2025

    Designing Safety Programs That Workers Trust: Near Miss Reporting, Recognition, and Continuous Improvement with Sarah Abdul-Rasoul

    In this episode, we sit down with Sarah Rasoul, a Top Woman in Safety and safety leader at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada. Sarah shares how an unexpected career path led her into occupational health and safety, and why proactive,prevention-focused work became her mission. She breaks down the power of a strong communication culture, the importance of worker engagement, and how tools like near miss analysis and the PDCA cycle drive meaningful improvements on the floor.   We also explore her experience with psychological health and safety, Toyota’s approach to continuous improvement, the value of recognition programs, and how competency and confidence grow when workers are empowered to speak up. Sarah offers candid advice for new safety professionals and the role mentorship has played in her own development.   See Sarah Rasoul story and many more at https:bissafety.ca/safety-spotlight-podcasts/

    33 min

  7. 10/19/2025

    Coming Full Circle: Safety Leadership with Jeff Mulligan

    Safety did not start as the headline for Jeff Mulligan, it became the mission. In this episode of Safety Spotlight, Jeff, COO of Astec Safety and an early catalyst behind Utility Safety Partners, explains how risk management evolved from a back-office function into a leadership priority. He also exposes the next big challenge facing safety leaders everywhere: aging, hidden infrastructure. How does a finance and public policy veteran become a champion for prevention and safety leadership in Alberta? Jeff connects boardroom strategy with field realities, drawing on his experience in politics, banking, and early fiber optic deployments to show how business discipline and on-site insight can coexist. Jeff’s message is clear: treating safety as compliance leaves value on the table, while treating it as strategy protects people, assets, and communities. The stakes are growing as experienced hands retire and institutional knowledge fades. If organizations fail to capture and share that expertise, preventable failures will follow. He reflects on a catastrophic explosion in Sherwood Park that galvanized Alberta’s damage prevention movement, as well as Astec’s turnaround from deep losses to durable performance. His perspective is grounded yet optimistic: tough problems yield to clear ownership, good data, and consistent follow-through. What You’ll Learn: Quiet risks in rural and legacy utilities where maps and markings lag the work Why safety leadership belongs at the executive table, not buried in HR or finance How AI and digital tools can amplify expert trainers rather than replace them The coming knowledge transfer crunch as veteran tradespeople and safety leaders retire For organizations ready to move beyond audits and slogans, Jeff offers a blueprint: make safety personal, elevate it to strategy, and stop underestimating what is underground. See Jeff’s story and many more at https://bissafety.ca/safety-spotlight-podcasts.

    45 min

  8. 10/19/2025

    Designed to Thrive: Linda Miller’s Ergonomic Quest

    Linda Miller never set out to transform how people move and work. Her early goal as a rehabilitation specialist was to help them recover. But after seeing how preventable injuries could derail entire careers, she started asking a powerful question: why are we treating the damage instead of preventing it? That question led her to ergonomics and a lifelong mission to design work that fits people, not the other way around. Her first major project—a series of repetitive strain injuries at a lumber facility—sparked a philosophy that has guided her work ever since. “Instead of forcing people to adapt to their work, design work to fit the people who do it.” From hospitals to construction sites, Linda’s company EWI Works has helped organizations rethink safety through a human-centered lens. Her approach goes beyond compliance to focus on well-being, concentration, and performance, proving that better design leads to healthier, more productive teams. This episode is a must-listen for leaders who want to prevent injuries before they happen and build workplaces where people can truly thrive. See Linda’s story and many more at https://bissafety.ca/safety-spotlight-podcasts.

    44 min
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About

The Safety Spotlight Podcast brings workplace safety leaders, innovators, and change-makers into the conversation. Each episode dives into real stories, proven strategies, and fresh ideas for creating safer, healthier, and more productive work environments. The show explores topics ranging from safety culture and leadership to emerging technologies and industry trends. Guests share practical insights, lessons learned from the field, and the human side of safety that drives lasting impact.

Information

  • Creator
    BIS Safety
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    26
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © BIS Safety
  • Show Website
    The Safety Spotlight