A vital component of an effective environmental, health, and safety (EHS) program is the team of safety trainers who educate employees at every level in the company, from executives to team members in the field. Learn what you should expect from the best safety trainers. When selecting a safety trainer for your company, ensure they provide comprehensive support for the entire organization.The best trainers present interactive, engaging content that is job-specific and relevant to each employee’s work. When people aren’t engaged, critical material may be missed or ignored. When important safety instruction is missed, it puts everyone at risk.

Also, trainers must remember their audience – hands-on people who, in their daily work, are crafting, building, and creating. Trainers who account for different learning styles prioritize all types of content, including interactive, gamification, and demonstrations relating to the trainees’ workplace and job. Options include lecture material, micro-training, and proficiency evaluation.

Through feedback, training content should be refined to ensure that the information is understood by all participants, regardless of their educational background or position within the organization. In addition, curriculums should be updated regularly to address evolving regulations and requirements.

Specific content should be created for various training needs like new hire orientation, refresher safety training, and ongoing, routine updates. With the right course offering that is specific to audience needs, training can become a valued resource instead of a dreaded obligation. The best training also creates confidence and community within the organization.

Remember, safety protocols and OSHA training requirements can be documented, but if they are not communicated, they are as valuable as the paper they are printed on.

To build an EHS program into operations, organizations must find trainers who also believe that safety is a culture, an around-the-clock way of being, and not a requirement to be checked off the list.

Safety culture and the importance of safety training must be recognized and enforced at all levels of an organization.

Experienced safety trainers can make a marked difference in the quality of a safety program, but the culture will never take hold if the entire organization is not bought in. It is imperative to work with or hire safety trainers who are also of this mindset and are willing to do the work to get everyone on board. Safety trainers can facilitate the discussion and illustrate examples of positive safety culture at all levels.

While this may seem like a “nice-to-have,” an investment beyond short-term training requirements will ensure a sustainable and effective EHS program.

Qualifying trainers requires some knowledge of the specific certifications and knowledge specific to your organization’s needs. Not all certifications are created equal. A safe bet is always an authorized OSHA trainer or even a former OSHA official.

Certified Safety Professionals (CSP), Certified Industrial Hygienists (CIH), and Construction Health and Safety Technicians (CHST) have been through extensive training themselves and offer valuable knowledge from on-site experience. Trainers should be evaluated for their expertise on relevant local, state, and federal safety guidelines and specific industry requirements.

How content is delivered – in-person, virtual, live, or on-demand – is another important consideration when assessing safety trainers.

On-demand, virtual training has become widespread and is familiar to many in the workforce. It can be time-efficient and is also easily tracked. But, depending on the safety content, live and in-person training may still be the best channel to ensure a safe workplace. If you choose to go the route of a digital platform, an engaging online trainer is especially important to hold the attention of a virtual audience.

Online safety courses can be implemented to meet OSHA and other governmental requirements, so a safety trainer who is educated in a specific industry’s best safety practices is instrumental in creating a lasting safety culture.

No matter the content or method of delivery, proficiency checks should be part of your safety training program. The best trainers will ensure proficiency with a hands-on approach and personal interaction in addition to “checking boxes” for completion.

Many programs will provide basic completion tracking, but an effective EHS program includes routine proficiency tests conducted by trainers, ensuring that employees are only permitted to perform tasks after being properly trained and evaluated.

By tracking and testing, an organization ensures all personnel are trained on the hazards and specific procedures associated with their job assignment to prevent injury, illness, or other incidents.

Like other key elements in an effective safety training program, proficiency testing can make the difference between safety culture and obligatory training sessions. By tracking and testing for an understanding of safety protocols and guidelines and the ability to implement safety procedures in their job, an organization sets a standard of success where safety is the highest priority.

A safety culture requires an ongoing effort by everyone within an organization. Quality safety trainers continually evaluate and fine-tune the safety program to ensure all employees are aware of current regulations and updated safety protocols.

Their ability to coordinate with the stakeholders responsible for operations also ensures that all pertinent safety guidelines are communicated and followed to the highest standard. Also, by soliciting feedback after every training session, trainers can ensure they are presenting content in an engaging and effective way for all employees.

The most effective safety trainers should provide so much more than the information they impart in a classroom setting. The best educators will engage their audience and inspire their participation. They will also take care in qualifying their expertise following coursework.

And, last but not least, the best safety trainers will work with management to support an organization’s safety culture. The right trainer can serve as the backbone of an organization’s EHS program through tailored content, effective delivery, and their own expertise and experience. Most importantly, trainers are catalysts to a sustainable safety culture.

Safety Management Group (SMG) offers a complete safety training course catalog delivered through a wide variety of channels. To learn more about SMG’s safety training and certifications visit safetymanagmentgroup.com.