By Chuck
Easterly, Loss Control Manager, SAIF Corporation - Oregon
 Influence.
Creating Change. In my mind, the ability to influence people to
change the status quo is the key element in the work of the safety
and health professional. All of our technical knowledge and our
years of experience are of no value if we cannot influence others
to make the changes we believe are necessary to better protect
the people we serve.
The world of the safety and health professional is one of influence.
We have very limited authority to force the types of changes we
would like to see from our policyholders, so we live a world where
our ability to serve as influencers and change agents is the key
to our success. I refer to our safety and health professionals
as “change agents” all the time. It’s even a
core element of our loss control mission statement. So, when I
was recently asked to better define what “change agent” really
meant, I went looking for a definition that could help explain
what I felt in my heart.
The dictionary didn’t do it for me, so, I went further and
found some great insights regarding our role as change agents from
Dennis Stevenson, Director, Software as a Service. His words resonated
with me and I think they clearly define the role of the safety
professional as a change agent.
“A change agent lives in the future, not the present. Regardless
of what is going on today, a change agent has a vision of what
could or should be and uses that as the governing sense of action.
To a certain extent, a change agent is dissatisfied with what they
see around them, in favor of a much better vision of the future.
Without this future drive, the change agent can lose their way.”
“A change agent is fueled by passion, and inspires passion
in others. Change is hard work. It takes a lot of energy. Don't
underestimate this. Think about the amount of energy it takes to
boil water. The change from 212 degree water to 212 degree steam
takes a lot more energy than heating water from 211 degrees to
212 degrees. In my experience, without passion, it is very difficult
indeed to muster up enough energy to assault the fortress of status
quo that seems to otherwise carry the day.”
“A change agent has a strong ability to self-motivate. There
will be many days where everyone around does not understand and
will not offer help. The change agent needs to find it within themselves
to get up every day and come to work and risk being misunderstood
and unappreciated, knowing that the real validation may be far
in the future and may be claimed by someone else.”
“A change agent must understand people. At the end of the
day, change is about people. If you change everything but the people,
I doubt you'll be effective as a change agent. Change will really "stick" when
people embrace it. Therefore, change is part sales, part counseling,
and part encouragement. It's all about people.”
That’s the role and the characteristics of a change agent
in a nutshell. A great safety and health professional is not satisfied
with the current state; they’re passionate people who have
the ability to inspire others, but they’re not in it for
their own glory. Much of the true work they do goes unnoticed and
may not come to full fruition until long after they’ve moved
on, but they do it anyway knowing others may receive the credit
because it’s not about getting credit - - it’s about
protecting people. And, as Dennis Stevenson says, “it’s
all about people.” We aren’t just solid technical experts.
To be successful, we must also be “part sales, part counselor,
and part encourager.” That’s how we become an influencer
and that’s how true change takes place.
|
