Leading and Learning Through Safety

In this episode of Leading and Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French explores the concept of the Dark Triad of personality—narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy—and examines how these destructive personality traits can undermine leadership effectiveness and workplace safety. Drawing from organizational psychology research, Dr. French explains that while these traits may occasionally pr...

In this episode of Leading and Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French reflects on a recent verbal de-escalation training experience and shares key lessons that extend far beyond conflict management. The training focused on how workers who interact with the public can safely navigate tense situations, recognize potential dangers, and communicate in ways that reduce rather than increase conflict....

In this episode of the Leading and Learning Through Safety Podcast , Dr. Mark French examines two tragic workplace fatalities that highlight the critical importance of hazard recognition, machine guarding, emergency preparedness, and personal accountability in safety leadership. The first case involves a bakery employee who was fatally pinned between a malfunctioning conveyor and a stainless-steel...

In this episode of the Leading and Learning Through Safety podcast, host Dr. Mark French explores the nuances of organizational risk management and seasonal workplace dangers . Balancing Public vs. Employee Safety Dr. French begins by discussing two uncommon, nearly identical workplace fatalities occurring within the same week at typical lumber and home goods stores across the United States, where...

In this episode of Leading and Learning through Safety , Dr. Mark French reflects on his recent experience at the Tennessee Safety Conference in Nashville, a premiere event he has attended for numerous years. As a multi-time speaker, he emphasizes the high caliber of research and expertise shared at the conference, noting the value of learning from those who live these safety experiences daily.  L...

In this episode of the Leading and Learning Through Safety Podcast , Dr. Mark French explores how leaders can turn good intentions into real behavioral change in the workplace. Drawing on research from the December 2025 issue of the Consulting Psychology Journal , the discussion focuses on practical, evidence-based strategies for helping people move beyond simply understanding safety practices to...

In this episode of Leading and Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French examines a tragic news story out of Michigan involving two young workers who lost their lives due to hydrogen sulfide exposure while performing well maintenance. What initially appears to be a confined space incident reveals something deeper: a failure of basic training, hazard recognition, and rescue preparedness. The worker...

In this episode of Leading & Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French explores new research from the February 2026 Journal of Applied Psychology examining how safety training contributes to workplace safety. The featured meta-analysis reviews numerous studies to evaluate the true impact of safety training on knowledge, skills, attitudes (KSA), and overall safety outcomes. Dr. French reflects...

This episode explores storytelling as a powerful driver of safety, learning, and meaning at work. Drawing on academic research and real-world examples, the discussion explains how personal stories—especially near-misses and close calls—can overcome the “it won’t happen to me” mindset that undermines risk awareness. Key themes include: The difference between storytelling for entertainment vs. story...

In the first episode of Leading & Learning Through Safety for 2026, Dr. Mark French explores a challenging but critical topic: organizational dehumanization and its direct impact on leadership, safety, and human dignity at work. Drawing from a December 2025 Journal of Applied Psychology article titled “Seeing the Good in the Bad: A Self-Affirmation Model for Organizational Dehumanization,” the...

In this end-of-year episode of the Leading & Learning Through Safety Podcast , Dr. Mark French reflects on seasonal safety challenges and why December consistently brings unique risks to the workplace. While safe driving remains a recurring concern due to holiday scheduling, distracted motorists, and increased roadside work, Mark places special emphasis on a rising and more troubling trend: wo...

In this episode of the Leading & Learning Through Safety Podcast , Dr. Mark French explores the psychological importance of the home-to-work transition (HWT) — the intentional process of mentally and physically unwinding after a workday. Drawing from a recent article in the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology , Mark examines how continuous activation of stress systems throughout the work...

In this episode of the Leading & Learning Through Safety Podcast , Dr. Mark French continues his exploration of how organizational culture is built through both action and inaction. Drawing from research published in the Consulting Psychology Journal (APA, Sept. 2025), he highlights that while values are abstract, culture becomes real through observable practices—what people actually do every...

In this episode of Leading & Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French dives deep into one of his favorite topics— organizational culture —and how emotional intelligence shapes the environment where people truly thrive. Drawing from research published in the Consulting Psychology Journal , Mark explores the concept of an EI-supportive organizational culture and unpacks what it really means to...

In this episode of the Leading and Learning Through Safety Podcast , Dr. Mark French takes a deep and heartfelt look at lone worker safety —a topic that tragically resurfaces too often in today’s workplaces. Inspired by a recent real-world incident where a lone distribution worker lost their life after a stack of boxes collapsed, Mark explores how training, resource constraints, and unrealistic pr...

In this episode of Leading and Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French explores the timeless leadership principle of “inspect what you expect,” rooted in the lean concept of gemba—going to where the work is actually done. Safety and lean thinking should be natural partners, but too often leaders set expectations without validating them through presence and follow-up. Mark recounts observing a co...

In this episode of the Leading and Learning Through Safety Podcast , Dr. Mark French explores how occupational fatalities and serious injuries are often underreported—or poorly reported—by the media. He emphasizes that every worker who leaves for the day but does not return home deserves more than a passing mention in the news. Instead, incidents are too frequently summarized through obituaries or...

In this episode of Leading and Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French shifts focus from technical safety to the broader issues of mental health, organizational justice, and fairness in the workplace. September marks International Suicide Prevention Month, and Mark emphasizes the importance of recognizing that mental health is real, even if invisible, and that everyone’s story matters. He critiq...

In this episode of Leading & Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French explores the intersection of meaning, leadership, and generational diversity in the workplace. Drawing from his leadership training experiences, Mark reflects on the importance of making safety training meaningful to individuals. He explains that without personal relevance, training often fails to influence behavior. A powe...

In this episode of Leading and Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French highlights the moral imperative of safety as a foundation for leadership. He emphasizes that prioritizing people’s well-being opens the door to empathy, innovation, and stronger organizational culture. Recent safety incidents underscore persistent risks. Roadway accidents—particularly during summer travel—remain frequent, rem...

This episode of Leading and Learning Through Safety shares a rare and inspiring safety success story from rural Kentucky. A 68-year-old farmer became trapped in soybeans inside a grain bin — a dangerous, permit-required confined space. Such incidents, often unreported in family farming, have historically caused fatalities, especially among youth. In this case, the local volunteer fire department,...

In this episode of Leading and Learning Through Safety , Dr. Mark French explores the tragic consequences of neglecting workplace safety through the lens of a devastating explosion at a biofuels plant in Nebraska. The explosion killed a 32-year-old employee and his two young daughters, who were waiting at the site to go to a doctor’s appointment. The incident highlights the very real and human cos...

In this episode of the Leading and Learning Through Safety podcast, Dr. Mark French revisits the foundational topic of adult learning in the workplace, particularly in the context of safety training. He reflects on his own journey from nervous novice to experienced trainer, emphasizing how repetitive safety topics must still be delivered meaningfully to engage a diverse audience. Mark discusses th...

In this episode of the Leading and Learning Through Safety podcast, Dr. Mark French explores the increasingly blurred lines between safety and security, especially for field teams working in unpredictable public environments. Reflecting on a recent visit to a street lighting crew in a high-risk urban area, he shares his concern for worker safety amid uncertain external threats. Traditional safety...

In this episode of the Leading and Learning Through Safety podcast, Dr. Mark French explores the critical link between psychological safety, rest, and physical safety in the workplace. Traditionally, safety professionals begin with physical safety as a foundation, but Mark challenges that order by highlighting emerging research suggesting psychological safety—particularly the ability to truly rest...