Safety Labs by Slice

Leading From the Middle To Enhance Workplace Safety

Feb 20, 2023

Mikel Bowman, a consultant with extensive experience in the mining industry, emphasizes leading from the middle to enhance workplace safety. He discusses the importance of balancing data and relationships, advocating for a shift away from perfectionism. Bowman believes safety practitioners have the power to revolutionize workplace safety through integrity and compassion.

51:20

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Episode guests

Mikel Bowman

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Episode notes

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Quick takeaways

Leading from the middle promotes empathy and empowerment in safety leadership.

Encouraging strengths over weaknesses fosters growth and positive change in individuals.

Balancing data-driven decisions with compassion creates effective safety leadership.

Deep dives

Safety Leadership Through Empathy and Influence

Leading from the middle is an effective leadership style advocated by the guest, Michael Bowman, a consultant specializing in leadership development and organizational culture. He underscores the importance of empathy, influence, trust, and rapport in safety leadership. By focusing on nurturing relationships and understanding individual greatness, leaders can inspire others to progress in both work and life.

Intro

2min

Encouraging People Towards Transformation

8min

Navigating Challenges and Isolation in the Safety Field

2min

Finding Balance in Safety Leadership

4min

Leading from the Middle for Better Workplace Culture and Safety

10min

Embracing Imperfections and Leading with Transparency

23min

Building a Supportive and Constructive Safety Community

3min

In this episode, Mary Conquest speaks with Mikel Bowman, a consultant who focuses on leadership development and organizational culture. He’s a former senior Safety Director with over 20 years experience in the mining industry, who also has a background in counseling.

Mikel applies his in-depth experience of human relationships to the safety arena and helps HSE professionals overcome polarization, improve safety and change cultures by ‘leading from the middle’.

He explains how and why you can lead from the middle at any level within your organization. Loving, nurturing and encouraging your co-workers can help engage and empower them to start taking ownership of their own safety and the safety of others.

Using many real-life stories from his safety career, Mikel discusses the importance of balance between data and relationships for EHS professionals and how they can become facilitators rather than dictators.

He believes you can improve both production and safety at the same time and urges the profession to abandon its pursuit of perfection that creates mission statements, such as ‘zero harm’.

In a rousing call to action, Mikel declares that safety practitioners have the opportunity to change mindsets and cultures by leading with integrity and compassion. He describes them as superheroes with the power to inspire worker engagement and empowerment, improving workplace safety and revolutionizing people’s lives!

Find out more about Mikel’s work:

Bowman Legacy University

Mikel recommends any leadership books by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin:

Books - Jocko

He also suggested two books on leadership by John C. Maxwell:

21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership Workbook 25th Anniversary Edition

The 360 Degree Leader: Developing Your Influence from Anywhere in the Organization

Follow Mikel on Instagram:

Mikel Bowman (@mikelbowman243)

Mikel Bowman on LinkedIn:

Mikel Bowman | LinkedIn

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