My Big Safety Challenge

Season 3 of My Big Safety Challenge is back! Host Merle Heckman is joined this season by Jason Kunz as co-host. This season will include more great guests who will share leadership challenges and lessons learned. Subscribe today so you don't miss an episode!

Since 2019 Steve Myers has been the Director, Risk & Safety at Amy’s Kitchen. Under Steve’s leadership, Amy’s has seen five straight years of improved safety performance. In 2023, the company attained its best safety record to date. Prior to specializing in safety, Steve was in private practice as a workers compensation defense attorney in California. His years of experience in workers compensation claims led to a deep understanding of the injuries that had the greatest impact on employees as well as the solutions required to mitigate risks. Steve is a safety champion and works to foster a positive safety culture that is at the core of improving safety. Steve works tirelessly to engage management and employees, and focuses his time on prevention, recognition and coaching.

The fourth episode of My Big Safety Challenge Season 2 features insight from Sim Kaur, Program Director for Global Environmental Health and Safety at Netflix. A fast riser in the profession, Kaur outlines leadership communication principles for concisely sharing your message to maximize effect and understanding employee behavior by asking questions. She advises new professionals to be adaptable when the real world isn't exactly like the textbook and to experience the front lines by getting out from behind the computer.To learn more about the safety leadership course from BCSP + Dale Carnegie, click here.

Montrese is the Vice President Human Resources for Global CBS News & Operations and is based in Washington, DC. She has worked in the media/news industry for over 20 years, providing support on all facets of human resources. In that role and others that she has held within the healthcare, cosmetics, and automotive industries, she has found herself at the intersection of HR, health, and safety. In her various roles and organizations, she’s helped lead the charge of creating comprehensive benefits and health and safety plans that evaluate and support the physical, mental, and emotional needs of the employee populations she serves, understanding that HR has to help support the full individual through the various stages of their career.Montrese and her team support 1200+ employees and freelancers across the globe. She has significant experience coaching managers and employees on a variety of employee related issues including performance management/evaluations, coaching & feedback, conflict resolution, and leadership development. She provides high quality HR consulting services in support of organizational goals and objectives.Montrese holds a Masters in Applied Behavioral Science from Johns Hopkins University. She also has a Bachelor’s from Virginia Commonwealth University with a specialty in Human Resources Management and Industrial Relations.She is from Severna Park, Maryland where she currently resides with her family. Montrese finds great joy in community service and spends her free time volunteering with various local and national organizations.

Jay is a value-based inspirational leader with a strong sense of purpose. His enthusiastic mindset fosters a collaborative culture of enablement. He serves as a role model, demonstrating the right behaviors to be successful as a business leader. Empathy is Jay's superpower and he is keen to mentor and coach other professionals. Jay considers everyone with kindness and his emotional intelligence endears him to all levels of organizations, from operations to executives. His sense of caring and "people first" attitudes are indisputable, which facilitates a high level of trust, engagement, empowerment, and performance.In this episode, Jay will share his insights on how to get past transactional leadership, finding your sweet spot, the importance of professional development, and much more.

Dr. Sharifa Batts currently serves as the Head of Environment & Sustainability at Ports America, the largest stevedore company in the U.S., operating in 33 ports in over 70 locations. She is an expert in risk mitigation and resiliency planning and oversees the company’s Environment & Sustainability programs. With almost 24 years at Ports America, she is an inspirational leader who is respected as a credible voice as she prepares boardroom material and provides strategic guidance and professional expertise to various levels in the organization. She has extensive experience in project and people management and cross-enterprise collaboration to drive efficiency and compliance with Ports America’s goals and objectives.Sharifa completed her Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Political Science with a minor in Psychology and Spanish at San Diego State University (SDSU). She later attained an MBA at PepperdineGraziadio School of Business & Management in August 2018, and she successfully completed her dissertation for the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) degree at Pepperdine Graziadio Business School, in July 2021. Her research focuses on the significance of diversity on organizational boards and the unique human and social capital minorities and women contribute, which impacts the company’s overall success. Sharifa is an educator and continues research with a Postdoctoral Fellow at Pepperdine to further research on diversity and equity.Sharifa is a published author in the Group & Organization Management journal and a regular speaker at events that focus on diversity, inequality, systemic racism, and organizational leadership. She was appointed by the previous Mayor of Long Beach and serves on the Equity and Human Relations Commission. She serves as the President of Beta Pi Sigma Sorority, Tau Chapter, which is a nonprofit organization providing aid to the homeless and scholarships to the youth in the community of Long Beach. She is the Vice President of Athletics Fundraising on the Long Beach City College Foundation Executive Committee,Vice President of Programs on the American Association of University Women (AAUW) board, she is the Programs & Special Events Committee Vice-Chair on the Fairfield Family YMCA Board, in addition to participating on the Long Beach City College Foundation Boardand the St. Mary Medical Center Hospital Community Board. She also sits on the North America Terminal and Stevedoring Services LLC (NATSS) board and is a member of the National Maritime Safety Association (NMSA) Technical Committee.Sharifa believes the most significant asset for an organization is its people. This conviction springs from her deep corporate experience driving ESG initiatives fostering a safe, diverse, equitable, and inclusive work environment. As an All-American Olympic class athlete, Sharifa brings a high level of commitment and discipline to all her endeavors, as well as a dedication to team play.

Fresh off an enlightening and entertaining first season, the My Big Safety Challenge podcast is back for more. More leadership insight, more guidance for overcoming challenges, and more inspiration for the critical work you do each day. Season 2 of the joint venture from the Board of Certified Safety Professionals (BCSP) and Dale Carnegie (DC) features new guest host Tiffany Felix and another notable lineup of safety leaders. Representing industries ranging from entertainment to food manufacturing, they will each share their personal stories of navigating real-life obstacles. Felix, the Senior Vice President for Environmental Health and Safety at Paramount Global, joins DC Master Trainer Dr. Merle Heckman behind the microphone. Together they will lead conversations delving into fundamental subjects including communication, generational differences, the business of safety, and much more.If you haven't already, make sure to subscribe so you don't miss the new episodes. If you have not yet listened to Season 1, make sure to go back and check it out.

“Identify what people are good at; find opportunities for them to engage and grow.”Eli Friedman, EHS leader for a worldwide technology company, offers insight from a sustainability and safety journey that has taken him from offshore rigs to the apparel industry and now high tech, with a law school stop along the way. He shares his passion for psychological safety and his experience with overcoming cultural barriers by emphasizing principles like empathy, trust, finding common ground, and taking an interest in others.

Mr. Sams joined SBA Communications Corporation in September of 2000. He currently has over thirty years of experience as a Safety and Health Professional in the recognition, evaluation and control of workplace risks and hazards, both domestically and internationally. He is a graduate of the University of Tennessee with a BS in Public Health and MS in Safety Education. His qualifications include a thorough knowledge of industry (both domestic and international) regulations, consensus safety and health standards as well as risk management and insurance best practices and guidance.David has spent the last 23 years in the tower industry where he developed and implemented a complete risk assessment and a safety policy and procedure program, specifically designed for the telecommunications industry. He has had the privilege of speaking at many conferences, participating in round table discussions with industry leaders, setting on the boards of several different industry organizations, and serving as co-founder and Chairperson of the Telecommunications Industry Registered Apprenticeship (TIRAP) program. In addition, he is a member of many other organizations, NATE, NWSA, WIA, TIA, and ASSP.

Hannah Sesay is the Vice President of Health and Safety for Ferguson. She has over 30 years of progressive experience managing Global Health, Safety, and Environmental Programs. Twenty of which, as a member of executive leadership teams responsible for setting and executing global HSE strategies. Her experience spans multiple industries such as Insurance, food, and beverage; financial; manufacturing, retail, mining; Energy; construction; Aerospace, Defense, Oil, and gas; transportation; and wholesale distribution. Hannah is accomplished in the use of Loss Control and Risk Management skills to eliminate, control, or reduce HSE exposure. She has proven leadership skills acquired through directing cross-functional global teams to design and deploy safe-best practices. As an accomplished leader, Hannah has demonstrated expertise in the following areas: Systems improvement, auditing, Risk mitigation, Integration, due diligence, and performance metrics. Hannah's strength is empowering others to succeed while doing what they do best. She is most passionate about leading cross-functional global teams to execute a vision and inspire them to deliver outstanding performance. Hannah's value to the organization is her drive to lead, win as a team, and deliver exceptional results. Hannah receives her undergraduate degree in Safety Sciences and Environmental Health from the Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) and her graduate degree in Environmental Sciences from the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) and Rutgers University.

Michael is the Director, Health, Safety and Security for RYAM in Jacksonville, Florida. Drawing on more than 25 years of safety and health experience, he has helped lead his company’s operations on a new journey to achieve world class safety performance. By establishing management systems and instilling progressive leading metrics he has consistently transformed company safety cultures.Michael spent most of his career as an environmental, health and safety leader and has helped more than 20 facilities enter the US OSHA’s prestigious Voluntary Protection Program. Michael has worked in the glass and steel industries and with RYAM he rejoins the pulp and paper industry having worked for International Paper for 14 years.Mr. Dupont earned his bachelor’s degrees in Fire Science, and Safety Engineering from Eastern Kentucky University. He also holds the CSP certification from the Board of Certified Safety Professionals.

Preston Wood is a passionate EHS professional and Eastern Kentucky University grad where he received a master’s degree in Safety, Security, and Emergency Management. He began his career as an EHS consultant at EnSafe Inc., where he excelled in developing custom safety solutions for a diverse set of clients in industries across North America.Currently, Preston is the Director of EHS at Relativity Space, overseeing workforce well-being and driving safety advancements in additive manufacturing and aerospace. He played a key role in establishing a world-class EHS organization and culture, aiming to safeguard Relativity's talented aerospace technicians and engineers in the manufacturing of 3D printed reusable rockets.

Chris began his safety career in 1990 working as a Safety Technician for a large construction company. During his time in the construction industry Chris was able to grow his career to where he became an E, S & H Manager who led safety teams on major construction sites. This time also exposed him to a variety of industries like petro-chemical, fossil power, nuclear power, as well as administrative functions of the corporate office. Chris then transitioned to the power industry where he supported multiple generation facilities, as well as leading a number of corporate teams. After his time in the power industry, Chris spent several years in the entertainment industry providing safety leadership to teams who supported many different business units. Chris is now a Senior Regional Safety Manager for a large organization. In this role he provides strategic leadership to effective positive safety changes within the operations.Chris has a Bachelor's degree in Occupational Safety and Health and a Master's degree in Organizational Leadership, both from Columbia Southern University. Chris has been a CSP since 2008, and has also held the SMS and CHST certifications (both of which are not currently active).Chris and his wife will be married for 34 years this July, and they have two children who have both now graduated college. In his free time Chris enjoys time at the beach, being outdoors, working out and participating in martial arts.

Emily Gamblin is the Senior Environmental Health and Safety Manager for Advance Auto Parts. Emily specializes in positive safety culture development to create impactful, safe and sustainable work environments. Through innovative people-focused management initiatives, Emily has a proven track record to reduce work-place injuries. She graduated from the University of Alabama with a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Public Health (MPH) from the University of Tennessee. Emily also holds her ASP and CSP certifications.

Season 3 of My Big Safety Challenge is back! Host Merle Heckman is joined this season by Jason Kunz as co-host. This season will include more great guests who will share leadership challenges and lessons learned. Subscribe today so you don't miss an episode!

Steve began his career in occupational safety and health in 1986 as an Occupational Safety Specialist with the Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration. In 1999, he was appointed to the assistant administrator position. In 2012, he was appointed as the administrator of the agency. In his position as administrator, he managed the day-to-day operations of Tennessee OSHA, supervising eight managers with various program responsibilities. He led both the compliance and consultation programs. He also served as the liaison between the state's OSHA program and federal OSHA. He served five terms on the Federal Advisory Committee for Construction Safety and Health. In 2020, after serving 16 months as deputy commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Steve left the department to join FDRsafety. Steve leads a team of safety and health professionals who consult with employers and labor organizations on workplace safety and health issues, compliance challenges, and safety culture improvement. He frequently serves as an expert witness and presents topics at regional and national conferences.