Podcasts to Improve the Workplace

Good employers and safety managers are always looking for ways to improve their workplaces. New equipment such as innovative PPE and new methods for organizing the workplace such as 5S can help create improvements in both safety and efficiency.

When you’re always looking at the same workplace day in and day out, coming up with new ideas can grow difficult, though. Luckily, plenty of helpful resources exist that can provide you with news, updates and unique ideas that you can apply to your industry. Podcasts are one type of resource that you ought to consider. These downloadable—and streamable, in many cases—audio files vary widely in content, but many offer health, safety and process improvement tips for the workplace.

We’ve put together a short list of noteworthy podcasts that you might want to make a part of your daily routine. Some are short and could fit into your commute, while others are longer and could entertain you during the time you spend at the gym or doing yard work. Take a look (and have a listen!).

Shorter Workplace Podcasts

These podcasts are 20 minutes or less, great for a short bus ride or break at work. 

The Safety Brief

Looking for quick pieces of safety information? Each episode of The Safety Brief, produced by Creative Safety Supply, is two to four minutes long and provides a short overview of a safety topic or offers safety tips. The podcast covers all sorts of safety issues faced by workers and safety managers at industrial and construction worksites. Recent episode subjects include how to use personal fall arrest systems, eye injury first aid, indoor air quality and tips for how to falling more safely if you slip or trip.

The show’s 80+ episodes, which are published twice a week, can all be found at its website, as well as at Stitcher Radio and SoundCloud. 

Health and Safety To Go!

This monthly podcast from the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) ranges from two to 20 minutes and offers insights and tips into health and safety for workers. Some episodes offer general information such as how employees can travel more safely on business trips, while others are more specific and include interviews with experts. A recent episode from this past summer, for example, included an interview with a doctor about how the health risks of shift work can be minimized.

The show has been produced since 2009, and its episodes are available at the CCOHS website. For any French speakers out there, the episodes are also available in French!

EHS This Week

Each episode of the new EHS This Week podcast from Intelex is under 10 minutes and provides a recap of the week’s safety news. Stories include accidents, reports and information about new regulations, so this podcast is good for the safety professional who wants to stay tuned in to what’s going on in the safety world.

Episodes of the show can be found at the Intelex blog.

Longer Workplace Podcasts

These podcasts range from 20 to 90 minutes and go into greater depth about workplace topics. They often involve interviews with industry experts or panels of more than one safety professional.

Safety Experts Talk

Safety Experts Talk, the podcast from Creative Safety Publishing, provides conversations with experts in safety, 5S, lean six sigma and lean manufacturing. These experts offer information about current issues in their fields and advice for implementing new practices in your own workplace. Recent topics include how to start a continuous improvement program, ladder safety and preparing the workplace for earthquakes.

These 30 to 60-minute episodes can be found at the Creative Safety Publishing website.

ASSP Virtual Classroom

The American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) hosts monthly webinars with safety experts that they then turn into podcasts. These sessions are 60 to 90 minutes long and feature an expert or panel of experts who present on a safety topic. You can also hear the Q&A from the end of the session where some of your own questions about the topic may be answered. Recent topics include safety research models, the importance of human relationships in safety and arc flash hazards.

The podcast, which has been produced for the past year, is available at ASSP’s Virtual Classroom. The episodes are also available through iTunes. 

Lean Blog Podcast

If you’re looking for ways to improve the workplace that don’t necessarily relate to safety, check out the Lean Blog Podcast from Mark Graban’s Lean Blog. Mark Graban has two podcast series, one in audio and one in video form, and they feature conversations with lean experts who discuss topics ranging from Toyota culture and kaizen to visual management and useful lean books.

The episodes, which go all the way back to 2006, can be found at Lean Blog, iTunes and Stitcher Radio.

Improve the Workplace with Technology

Podcasts can help you come up with ways to improve your workplace while on the go. They’re also a great way to keep up with news related to safety regulations, accidents and improvements. Do you listen to any other workplace podcasts that we haven’t listed here? Let us know in the comments.

If you’re looking for other simple ways to improve the workplace using just your smartphone, read A Dozen Ways to Improve Workplace Safety…with Apps.

Additional Resources

• Workplace Safety Inspections & Audits– creativesafetysupply.com
• Using Drones to Improve Workplace Safety– blog.creativesafetysupply.com
• The Top 5 Ways To Implement & Improve Lean Efforts in the Workplace– blog.5stoday.com
• 10 Safety Signs to Improve Your Workplace– lean-news.com
• How can Technology Improve Workplace Safety?– aislemarking.com
• Safety Experts Talk – Overview– creativesafetypublishing.com
• Using Kaizen…to Eat Sushi?– iecieeechallenge.org
• These Are The Best Ways To Improve Your Lean Efforts– 5snews.com
• How To Improve The Effectiveness Of Your Kaizen Efforts– kaizen-news.com