If you have met me personally or professionally, you have almost certainly heard me say that I love working in safety. I truly enjoy helping those around me stay healthy, avoid injury, and get home to their loved ones at the end of the day. My story with KCI didn’t start in safety, however; it took a few years to find my true calling.
After initially working in the shipping industry for several years, I decided it was time to shake things up and take a chance at something new. A friend from college introduced me to the engineering industry and helped me obtain a position with his firm as a technician performing industrial hygiene consulting. Despite having no previous knowledge of the job, I grew to really enjoy what I was learning. Though I was content in that role, I took a calculated risk and left for a six-month temp-to-perm position with KCI. Once I joined, I realized that if I had been exposed to the engineering industry earlier, I would have made it my career from the start.
In the months to follow, I spoke with a personal friend, and fellow safety professional, and decided to get serious about doing more than just the industrial hygiene side of occupational safety and began working toward obtaining my Certified Safety Professional (CSP) credential. While the process was rigorous – with extensive studying and an intensive exam – I am grateful to have had the support of my family, and I credit my success to them. After earning my CSP, I began driving a new revenue stream for KCI by doing expanded safety consulting for clients both onsite and within their organizations, all the while actively pursuing a specific career goal: eventually becoming a safety leader for KCI.
Once the opportunity came, I applied for and was appointed Director of Safety: a role I truly view as a position of service. I have been doing safety consulting for KCI’s clients for a long time. Now, my coworkers are my clients, and their safety is paramount. I still largely do the same things I did when I was client-facing, so the transition has been easy. However, I have been learning the administrative side of safety, which has been challenging at times. Fortunately, I am learning from the team that has been expertly managing those items internally.
Reflecting on the uncertainty of my early career, I can say that I am grateful for all the project opportunities I was able to be part of. Whenever someone needed help, I had an attitude of “I’ll do it,” even if it was only going to a site to hold a grade rod for surveying, I wanted to learn everything I could. While I still have much to learn about the details of the incredible work my fellow employee-owners do, being able to work with so many experts, visit so many sites, and contribute to hundreds of projects across my career has helped prepare me to take on the role of Director of Safety for KCI. I have always been happy and felt at home here, but now that feeling has reached new heights. If I could go back to the beginning, I’d tell myself, “You’re going to find something that intersects your passion and your skillset, and you will be happier than you could imagine.”