THE “I” CAN LEAD

Good morning, leaders! Wasn’t Lucia excellent yesterday? What a way to start our leadership conference!

Thank you for the warm reception and for making the time and effort to join us at this year’s ASSE Leadership Conference.

Like so many professional societies, we set aside time each year to promote the idea of leadership while at the same time enhancing leadership skills for those moving up through our Society as well as through their individual careers.

Leadership is a central part of everything we do as a Society and everything you do as a professional.

And so, ASSE encourages each of us to hone the unique skills we find in strong leaders.

In fact, organizational or operational success depends upon sound leadership.

So a natural question to ask is what makes a strong leader?

John Quincy Adams, America’s sixth president and one many regarded as being among our brightest presidents said:

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more…you are a leader.

1 More recently, Apple co-founder Steve Jobs said

Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.

And, Andrew Carnegie the great American industrialist who amassed his fortune in the steel industry before becoming one of nation’s greatest philanthropist, said:

No one will make a great leader who wants to do it all herself (himself) or get all the credit for doing it.

Inspiration, Influence, innovation, inclusion-- it would be hard for one to argue against these four ideals as being important qualities in the character of a strong leader.

We also know successful leaders must always be willing to adapt to surrounding circumstances and to some degree master the unique interaction of people, personalities, challenges and other nuances that make each situation at least a little different from anything anyone has ever faced before.

(Is Sue Trebswether in the audience?) Sue is the Editor of Professional Safety Journal. In last month’s issue of Professional Safety Journal, I opened my President’s Message with a quote from Peter Sheahan, author of “Flip: How to Turn Everything You Know on its Head—and Succeed Beyond Your Wildest Imaginings.”

2 Speaking on the rapid pace of today’s dynamic global marketplace, Sheahan said:

“Things are changing faster and faster, new opportunities and new markets are opening up every day…it is important to understand exactly what is changing and what impact this is having on your existing business.”

What Sheahan is talking about here is intuition - the ability to see the opportunity out of change.

This is what Steve Jobs would call—innovation. Not just adapting but creating the “Next Big Thing.”

So inspiration, intuition, innovation and inclusion are all characteristics of a strong leader.

But just as important—is knowing what does not constitute a strong leader.

General Dwight D. Eisenhower was both humorous and instructive when he said:

You don’t lead by hitting people over the head—that’s assault, not leadership.

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He raises a good point here, too, because there are many things that are the antithesis of being a strong leader, but are often

3 mistaken for the qualities or privileges of one who successfully leads.

For instance, being a strong leader is not about always being right.

Strong leadership is not about having the biggest title, the corner office or the largest salary. (all potential accoutrements, but if this is the focus—you are “missing the plot” of good leadership!

Opportunities and the absolute need for us to serve business as strong leaders are right in front of you.

So how do we get from here to there?

How do we, as a professional community and as individual professionals, bridge the leadership gap?

Well, for us, leadership starts with knowing the business environment in which we operate; and by that I mean knowing the what, why and how of the corporate entities we serve so that we may clearly and effectively contribute to the organization’s profitability, productivity, sustainability, governance, supply chain accountability, brand identity and so on.

If we can make the business case for our value then everyone— you, our profession, the business world—other stakeholder groups will benefit. And for us that translates for safe and health workplaces with no environmental impacts.

4 Our value is in Assuring Safety, Health and environmental risk is managed within our organizations. That knowledge—our knowledge—fits into the overall strategy of any business.

CEOs, CFOs, BODs, investors, the operations side of our organizations all understand risk. It is the language of business.

But Business often does not get our connection to the viability of the organization That is where your leadership comes in.

We need to be relentless in our quest to understand the business environment in which we operate and to identify, assess, and communicate Safety, health and environmental risks to our organizational leaders.

Knowledge is powerful.

That knowledge—our expertise—creates value when we are able to communicate how OSH & environmental risks could affect the business: its workforce, its brand and its reputation.

And in doing this, we assure we are ahead of the curve as we collaboratively develop strategies to manage those risks.

That’s leadership!

It may go without saying—But it must be said—WE are all about…

…leading within our organizations and within ASSE.

5 …understanding and integrating OSH & E into the business

…, identifying, assessing and communicating OSH&E risk internally and sometimes externally

… and about knowledge, value and being an asset to our organizations.

I mentioned earlier the great steel magnate Andrew Carnegie’s support for inclusion as a tenet of strong leadership.

Building strong partnerships within your organization, with all stakeholders along your career journey, is essential to your success. Partnerships and collaboration provide mutual benefit.

Collaboration is the name of the game if we are to move workplace safety into its position of optimal return on investment for businesses and, just as important, for ourselves.

Too often leadership is wrongly viewed and valued from the perspective of individuality.

Often we think of the great individual leaders who have helped write the chapters of our human history—great women and men whose names are as indelibly etched in our collective conscious.

But in truth, real leadership and the strong leaders who embody it have always done so in partnership and as a collaborative effort. After all—Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. did not march on Washington by himself; nor did he, himself, sign the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

6 And yet, the unparalleled greatness of his heroic leadership is beyond question.

The late great, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher worked with the British Parliament, not in exile of it, in reviving England’s economy and saving the Falkland Islands from Argentine takeover.

But by virtue of her leadership, she will forever be remembered as Great Britain’s Iron Lady – who in the face of doubt, SUCEEDED.

Great leadership is always a joint effort and never a solo performance.

Great leaders know how and when to use all the instruments at their disposal, not orchestrating success by playing it alone.

We are here today because ASSE is a partner in your leadership development

So please, use these two days to absorb everything you can about becoming a great leader and a successful workplace professional in today’s ever-changing, rapidly expanding, highly complex and competitive business world.

John F. Kennedy once said:

Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.

This Leadership Conference exemplifies this quote. You see, ours is a Society and a profession that is wholly dedicated to the idea of lifelong learning.

7 And know that as you learn, as you develop and hone your skills as a leader, you are simultaneously helping to create more strong leaders by modeling the very leadership characteristics you are looking to hone.

Modeling and mentoring are a big part of strong leadership.

As Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook wrote in her book, “Lean In:”

I feel grateful to the people who encouraged and helped me develop. Nobody can succeed on their own.

I began today by talking about four “Is” of strong leadership: Inspiration, Intuition, Innovation and Inclusion.

There is a fifth —the one Eisenhower called, “leadership’s supreme quality.”

And that last “I”…the supreme quality…is integrity.

Integrity is the one element of leadership we, as professionals, tend to have in great abundance.

We need only to extend the application of professional integrity as we pursue strong leadership.

I want to leave you with just one more insight on leadership.

8 It comes from a 20th century leader despite her never having held public office, run a successful company or win an athletic championship.

What I like about this thought - is that in its honesty is the inspiration to understand and accept that like most everything else, your leadership and the success you enjoy as a leader…is a choice you make every day. And I quote:

A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.

This insightful quote is from Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter. .

ASSE wants to take you where you ought to be and where we need to be.

ASSE has led you here; but it is you, all of you, who will lead ASSE into our future.

So today and tomorrow, think about Connecting the dots with each other as part of ASSE’s leadership Community.

I am here, as is the rest of your ASSE board of directors. Come find us, and let’s share our leadership successes and challenges, whether it is in a chapter, section, CIG or Practice specialty. I look forward to speaking with you.

We are glad you are here!

9 Enjoy the conference.

I would like to introduce Fred Fortman, our ASSE Executive Director.

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