Breakfast Meeting – March 11, 2025

Human Resources Professionals –
Leveraging the Hidden Gem in Safety Management

Dan Hopwood, MPH, CSP, SMS, ARM, FASSP

The journey of success for Safety Professionals is rarely traveled alone. Mentors, technical advisors, academic partners and others all help the professional succeed. Some of the more important partners are those in the Human Resources arena.  In some cases, the Safety Professional resides within the HR Department; regardless, it is critical that HR and Safety are solid teammates, advocating for the same goals.

Whether an organization has a formal HR Department, is a co-lateral duty or in those situations where the Safety Manager and HR Manager may be the same person, it is essential to understand how to leverage the HR role toward safety success.  Advocacy, helping set safety and health goals, establishing performance standards are examples of that Safety-HR connectivity.  There are many others that can be capitalized upon.

This presentation will highlight 12 essential characteristics of HR’s role and how they can be leveraged to enhance safety outcomes and assist the Safety Professional in their day-to-day tasks and journey to safety success.

Dan is a career-long safety professional, having provided services throughout the US and internationally.  He currently is the Senior Vice President and Director of Risk Control Field Services for Sompo, a large, multi-national commercial insurance carrier.  He is a frequent speaker at ASSP’s Society PDC as well as various regional and local events.

Dan has published a safety text, co-authored another and has several chapters in various books as well.  He has articles published in more than 25 journals, periodicals, and papers.  He has made over 100 presentations and speeches, including keynote addresses, technical talks and a variety of safety management and future-thinking/looking forward presentations.  He will be a session speaker at Safety2025 in Orlando.

A proud professional member of ASSP and the San Diego Chapter, Dan has served in local, Regional and Society-wide roles.  Chapter President, Regional Vice President, and the Society Leadership Committee member are a few examples of the many positions he has held.

Dan taught at the college level for 25 years, including at San Diego State University at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.  He earned a BS and MPH in Industrial Safety/Public Health from San Diego State University and has earned the CSP, SMS (soon to be the SMP) and ARM.  In August 2024, Dan was named a Fellow of ASSP.