Page 40 - Occupational Health & Safety, June 2018

SAFETY 2018
Challenges and Opportunities
“It’s important for young and new safety professionals to remember that success in the safety field requires a commitment to continuous learning. Don’t ever reach a point where you think you know everything there is to know.”
BY JERRY LAWS
36 Occupational Health & Safety | JUNE 2018
www.ohsonline.com
Rixio Medina is the incoming president of ASSE, tak- ing over leadership of the society as it adopts its new name, the American Society of Safety Professionals, during the Safety 2018 Conference & Expo in San Antonio. In the following email interview conducted prior to the conference, Medina answered questions about his priorities as president, the significance of the name change, and how the society is involving the next generation of safety professionals.
“Occupational safety and health pro- fessionals [are] entering the field with more skills and education than industry veterans could have ever imagined.”
1. What are your priorities for your presiden- tial year?
It’s important to continue to focus on our Board’s four strategic pillars, which are member communi- ties, education, standards, and advocacy. I want to drive our Society to even greater success in each of these well-defined areas. In particular, I want to see us take significant steps forward on initiatives involv- ing the global capability framework for occupational safety and health professionals, our research agenda, human capital issues through the Center for Safety and Health Sustainability, and bringing more women, veterans, and Hispanics into the safety profession. The more diverse our profession, the more successful we are in relating to employees and gaining their buy-in to safety programs.
2. You’ll be the first president of the society with its new name, the American Society of Safety Pro- fessionals. What’s the significance of this for you?
It’s quite an honor to be the first president of the American Society of Safety Professionals. As an im- migrant safety professional with a proud Hispanic heritage, I’m humbled by this opportunity. Our name change is historic, given that we’ve been ASSE for more than 100 years. I think our members’ decision to support this change shows the importance of adapting to your changing environment in order to grow and prosper. Organizations that become stagnant are less effective, which causes membership to decline.
3. Are you enthusiastic about the name change? Why is it important for the society’s members?
I couldn’t be more excited about the shift from ASSE to ASSP. We are more clearly defining who we are as a society. We are not all engineers. Our members hold different qualifications and certifications, yet we collectively work to ensure a safer, stronger future for companies in every industry around the world. It’s important for potential members to know that if you have workplace responsibilities that involve safety and health, ASSP is the membership organization that can
ASSE