Safety didn’t stop evolving in 1984. Jean-Christophe Le Coze explains what changed — and how leaders should adapt.

Malcolm Staves, co-founder of Safety on the Edge and Global VP of H&S at L’Oréal, talks with Jean-Christophe “JC” Le Coze, safety scientist and Research Director at INERIS, about how the lessons of Charles Perrow’s Normal Accidents still guide us—and how they’re being re-imagined for a more connected and complex world.

JC unpacks his books Safety Science Research: Evolution, Challenges and New Directions and Post Normal Accidents, showing how globalization, interconnectivity, control rooms, and rising cognitive workload reshape risk. He also makes the case for closing the gap between researchers and practitioners.

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Be sure to check out JC's Book 👇

https://www.amazon.com/Post-Normal-Accident-Revisiting-Perrows/dp/0367483998

You’ll learn:

✅ How Charles Perrow’s Normal Accidents laid the foundation for understanding complex systems—and how JC Le Coze extends that thinking to today’s interconnected world

✅ How Karl Weick’s concept of collective mindfulness continues to inspire safer decision-making in modern, digital control rooms

✅ Why James Reason’s classic models of human reliability remain central—and how they evolve in a global, data-driven environment

✅ How insights from Nick Pidgeon, Andrew Hopkins, and Diane Vaughan deepen our understanding of organizational culture and accountability

✅ What globalization, financialization, and interconnectivity mean for safety leadership and risk decisions across modern value chains

✅ How bridging researchers and practitioners helps translate decades of theory into practical tools for today’s safety professionals

Chapters:

00:00 – Introduction and JC’s role at INERIS

10:06 – Safety Science Research: connecting new and pioneering generations

22:38 – Revisiting Charles Perrow’s Normal Accidents

29:37 – From “normal” to “postnormal”: evolving ideas for modern complexity

33:35 – Globalization, digitalization, and the new face of risk

36:46 – Cognitive workload and control rooms: the human side of system safety

48:13 – Bridging researchers and practitioners: where theory meets practice

55:20 – Metaphors and visuals in safety with James Pomeroy (preview of upcoming workshop)

58:30 – Reflections on collaboration, legacy, and the future of safety science

In this episode of Safety on the Edge Podcast ‘Edge Talks’, host Corrie Pitzer speaks with Lorraine Martin, President and CEO of the National Safety Council (NSC), about the evolution and future of safety leadership. A former U.S. Air Force officer and Lockheed Martin executive, Martin brings a service-oriented ethos - “I have your six”—to her work at the NSC, emphasizing collective responsibility for ensuring everyone goes home safe.

Reflecting on the inaugural Safety on the Edge event at UC Berkeley, Martin praised the collaboration between researchers, practitioners, and industry leaders for pushing safety thinking beyond traditional boundaries. She highlighted discussions on language, culture, and the need to move from lagging to leading indicators—focusing on risks that cause serious injuries and fatalities rather than simply counting incidents.

Martin emphasized that modern safety requires a multidisciplinary approach integrating engineering, psychology, human resources, and technology. With increasing automation and AI, safety must now account for complex interactions between people and machines. She also underscored the importance of psychological safety and inclusion—recognizing that people bring their full selves and life challenges to work. “You can’t be safe if you don’t feel safe,” she noted, linking safety culture to broader organizational culture.

Looking ahead, Martin envisions the next major leap in safety as industry-led, risk-focused, and human-centered—identifying and controlling critical risks before harm occurs. She advocates for businesses and safety organizations to lead progress even before regulations catch up.

The episode concludes with a look to the upcoming 2025 Safety on the Edge and NSC Safety Summit in Baltimore, where academic and industry leaders will join forces again. Martin’s closing advice to young professionals: stay curious, challenge existing norms, and seek out those shaping the next wave of change in safety.

In this episode of Safety on the Edge, host Corrie Pitzer sits down with David Myers (Vice President of Safety & Training, Southern Company) and Chris Hutzler (Director of Safety & Health, Southern Company Services)

Southern Company was recently honored with the Safety on the Edge Excellence Award for their pioneering approach to safety—an award voted on by peers across industries. David and Chris share what the recognition means to them, how their leadership team drives cultural change, and the bold steps they’ve taken to move beyond traditional compliance-based safety.

Key themes in this conversation include:

• Why focusing only on injury rates misses the bigger picture
• The critical role of leadership in shaping culture and trust
• How Southern Company stopped outdated practices and doubled down on frontline engagement
• Lessons learned from serious injury and fatality (SIF) prevention efforts
• Preparing for the future: new technologies, a changing workforce, and the importance of continuous learning

This episode is an inspiring look at how one of the largest utilities in the U.S. is rethinking safety, engaging its people, and setting a new standard for the industry.