Safety Manager - Columbus, OH

Kokosing Industrial•Westerville, OH

2d•Hybrid

About The Position

Kokosing is seeking a Safety Manager to work directly with management, supervision, and trade personnel to implement the company’s Safety and Health Management System. This position provides leadership to guide operations managers in setting and achieving strategic safety objectives, ensuring regulatory compliance and continuous improvement aligned with the company’s core values. The role involves leading and monitoring safety programs, providing operational leadership, supervising safety staff, conducting audits and inspections, leading incident investigations, developing mitigation strategies, analyzing safety data, coordinating training, developing policies, coordinating safety programs with subcontractors, and serving as a point of contact for safety authorities and clients.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in safety and health or equivalent combinations of technical training and experience.
9+ years of experience with safety and health in the construction industry preferred.
Demonstrates understanding of OSHA, MSHA, DOT, and EPA regulations as well as other state/federal safety regulations and company safety policies/procedures.
Knowledge and experience supporting highway, bridges, utility, and mass earthwork projects.
Ability to manage one or more project/facility locations, lead, and prioritize tasks to manage safety programs effectively.
Knowledge and experience to coach, conduct, and document safety and health audits, inspections, and/or behavioral observations and conversations.
Exceptional personal computer skills (MS Suite, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint, Phone Apps, Power BI, etc.).
Strong organization and administrative recording skills to manage one or more project/facility locations.
Demonstrates advanced written and verbal communication skills, effectively conveying complex safety information to various stakeholders at assigned project or facility.
Demonstrated ability to coach safety staff to apply business unit operational means and methods, including leading and lagging indicators; uses this understanding to achieve results.
Competent in identifying trends, needs for training, and root cause analysis to support proactive interventions that enhance safety culture.
Competency in risk mitigation strategies and policy/procedure development.
Ability to work in high production environment (50+ hours/week, including nights and weekends) and respond quickly and effectively under pressure and deadlines.
Demonstrated leadership skills and ability to proactively coach and guide safety staff.
Ability to explain information, convey performance expectations and handle sensitive issues with safety staff, with positivity and professionalism.
Ability to set priorities for the safety staff to ensure timely and effective completion of safety assignments.
Ability to think independently, coach safety staff and influence operations managers on the implementation of the appropriate corrective and preventative actions.
Applies good judgment to identify, troubleshoot and resolve day-to-day technical and operational problems for safety staff.
Ability to positively interact and influence safety staff and operations management to create a safe work environment.
Ability to provide guidance, coaching, and support to help safety staff enhance their skills and achieve their professional goals.
Fosters an environment of growth by identifying opportunities for learning and development.
Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
Ability to convey safety concepts effectively to diverse audiences, promoting a shared understanding of safety goals and practices.
Demonstrates a proactive approach to own development by seeking out new knowledge, skills, and experiences, focusing on continuous improvement.
Stays updated with industry trends and actively pursues opportunities for growth and improvement.
Role model to safety staff and operate with honesty and integrity.
Valid Driver’s License, good driving record required.

Nice To Haves

CPR/First Aid certification preferred.
OSHA 30-Hour and 10-Hour Trainer certification preferred.
GSP, ASP, CSP or CHST Designation preferred.

Responsibilities

Coach, implement, and monitor the Company Safety and Health Program at assigned location or locations.
Lead and manage the company’s efforts to meet regulatory compliance as outlined in the Company’s Safety and Health Management System.
Champion the implementation of the Company’s behavioral based program – Safety 24/7.
Serve as both a hands-on contributor and a leader, actively engaging in daily operations while guiding and supporting safety staff.
Balance technical expertise with strong interpersonal skills to promote teamwork and collaboration, ensuring that safety practices are effectively and consistently integrated.
Drive continuous improvement initiatives across their area of influence.
Supervise, mentor, and manage safety staff to ensure the effective application of the Safety and Health Management System.
Build a collaborative and supportive environment that encourages continuous learning, development, and leadership among safety staff.
Provide clear direction, set expectations, and ensure accountability, empowering the safety staff to take ownership of their roles while driving overall safety performance.
Ensure safety staff initiates, performs, and documents safety and health audits, inspections and safety conversations.
Provide coaching to safety staff and operations managers to communicate and support the implementation of corrective and preventative actions.
Facilitate operations’ involvement with the safety and health audit, inspection, and conversation processes.
Lead in investigating injury, illness, and general liability incidents, and is involved with the creation of strategies to reduce future occurrences.
Coach safety staff and ensure quality and timely investigation, analysis and coding of workers’ compensation and general liability incidents into the company’s data management system.
Work closely with safety staff to ensure there is partnership with operations managers that has a positive impact on future results.
Partner with operations managers to develop and execute strategies targeted at reducing injuries, illnesses, and incidents, ensuring the achievement of business objectives.
Propose and support the implementation of process improvements based on analysis of safety performance data to enhance the effectiveness of our safety and health management system and provide leadership to safety staff to do the same.
Analyze safety data from audits, inspections, conversations, incidents, and training to provide insights to operations management to support continuous improvement.
Based on upcoming operations, ensure safety staff identifies, initiates, coordinates and leads safety meetings and training programs to communicate company policies and distribute safety correspondence.
Provide guidance to safety staff to examine incident trends and inspection data to recommend training solutions.
Work with the operations managers at the projects, facilities, or regions to share knowledge and leverage best practices.
Collaborate with Safety Director or Company Safety Manager, and VP of Safety to assist with the development, organization, and implementation of safety policies, procedures, and trainings that facilitate the advancement of the Company’s Safety and Health Management System.
Coach safety staff and provide leadership of project safety programs with subcontractors, vendors, and third-party personnel to verify adherence to regulatory, owner, and site-specific safety policies and procedures.
Participate in subcontract/vendor pre-construction and coordination meetings.
Under the guidance of a Company Safety Manager, Director or VP of Safety, at times serve as a point of contact for any federal, state, or municipal safety or risk management authority and/or personnel, (i.e. OSHA, MSHA, EPA, etc.).
Serve as the point of contact with the client.
Assist corporate insurance personnel in investigating and managing incidents to minimize loss.