Skip to main content
IOSH Magazine: Safety, Health and Wellbeing in the world of work - return to the homepage IOSH Magaazine logo
  • Visit IOSH Magazine on Facebook
  • Visit @ioshmagazine on Twitter
  • Visit IOSH Magazine on LinkedIn
Gender equality
Practice meets perfect
May/June 2023 issue

Main navigation

  • Home
    • Browse previous issues
    • Member accolades
    • Member tributes
  • Health
    • Mental health and wellbeing
      • Bullying
      • Drugs and alcohol
      • Mental health
      • Stress
      • Wellbeing
    • Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
      • Ergonomics
      • Manual handling
      • Vibration
    • Occupational cancer
      • Asbestos
      • Hazardous substances
      • Radiation
  • Safety
    • Incident management
      • Chemicals
      • Electricity
      • Fire
      • First aid
      • Slips and trips
    • Non-health related fatalities
      • Road safety
      • Work at height
    • Risk management
      • Confined spaces
      • Disability
      • Legionella
      • Lifting operations
      • Lone workers
      • Noise
      • Personal protective equipment
      • Violence at work
      • Work equipment
      • Workplace transport
  • Management
    • Human factors
      • Accident reduction
      • Behavioural safety
      • Control of contractors
      • Migrant workers
      • Older workers
      • Reporting
      • Safe systems of work
      • Sickness absence
      • Young workers
    • Leadership and management
      • Employee involvement
      • Management systems
    • Management standards
      • ISO 45001
      • ISO 45003
    • Planning
      • Assurance
      • Compliance
      • Emergency planning
      • Insurance
    • Rehabilitation
      • Personal injury
      • Return to work
    • Strategy
      • Corporate governance
      • Performance/results
      • Regulation/enforcement
      • Reputation
    • Sustainability
      • Human capital and Vision Zero
  • Skills
    • Communication
    • Personal performance
      • Achieving Fellowship
      • Career development
      • Competencies
      • Personal development
      • Professional skills
      • Qualifications
    • Stakeholder management
    • Working with others
      • Leadership
      • Future Leaders
  • Jobs
  • Covid-19
  • Knowledge Bank
    • Back to basics
    • Book club
    • Infographics
    • Podcast
    • Reports
    • Webinars
    • Videos
  • Products & Services
  • Management
    • Human factors
      • Sickness absence
      • Accident reduction
      • Behavioural safety
      • Control of contractors
      • Migrant workers
      • Older workers
      • Reporting
      • Safe systems of work
      • Young workers
    • Leadership and management
      • Employee involvement
      • Leadership
      • Management systems
    • Management standards
      • ISO 45001
      • ISO 45003
    • Planning
      • Assurance
      • Compliance
      • Emergency planning
      • Insurance
    • Strategy
      • Corporate governance
      • Performance/results
      • Regulation/enforcement
      • Reputation
    • Sustainability
      • Human capital and Vision Zero
  • Health
    • COVID-19
    • Mental health and wellbeing
      • Bullying
      • Drugs and alcohol
      • Mental health
      • Stress
      • Wellbeing
    • Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
      • Ergonomics
      • Manual handling
      • Vibration
    • Occupational cancer
      • Asbestos
      • Hazardous substances
      • Radiation
  • Safety
    • Incident management
      • Chemicals
      • Electricity
      • Fire
      • First aid
      • Slips and trips
    • Non-health related fatalities
      • Road safety
      • Work at height
    • Risk management
      • Confined spaces
      • Disability
      • Legionella
      • Lifting operations
      • Lone workers
      • Noise
      • Personal protective equipment
      • Violence at work
      • Work equipment
      • Workplace transport
  • Skills
    • Communication
    • Personal performance
      • Career development
      • Competencies
      • Personal development
      • Qualifications
      • Professional skills
      • Achieving Fellowship
    • Stakeholder management
    • Working with others
      • Leadership
      • Future Leaders
  • Transport and logistics
  • Third sector
  • Retail
  • Mining and quarrying
  • Rail
  • Rehabilitation
    • Personal injury
    • Return to work
  • Utilities
  • Manufacturing and engineering
  • Construction
  • Sector: IOSH Branch
    • Sector: Northern Ireland
    • Sector: Midland
    • Sector: Merseyside
    • Sector: Manchester and North West Districts
    • Sector: Ireland East
    • Sector: Ireland
    • Sector: Edinburgh
    • Sector: Desmond-South Munster
    • Sector: Qatar
    • Sector: Oman
    • Singapore
    • Sector: South Coast
    • Sector: South Wales
    • Sector: Thames Valley
    • Sector: Tyne and Wear
    • Sector: UAE
    • Sector: West of Scotland
    • Sector: Yorkshire
  • Healthcare
  • Sector: Fire
  • Sector: Financial/general services
  • Sector: Energy
  • Education
  • Sector: Communications and media
  • Chemicals
  • Sector: Central government
  • Catering and leisure
  • Agriculture and forestry
  • Sector: Local government
  • Sector: IOSH Group
    • Sector: Financial Services
    • Sector: Sports Grounds and Events
    • Rural industries
    • Sector: railway
    • Public Services
    • Sector: Offshore
    • Sector: Hazardous Industries
    • Sector: Food and Drink
    • Sector: Fire Risk Management
    • Education
    • Construction
    • Sector: Aviation and Aerospace
Quick links:
  • Home
  • IOSH Magazine Issues
  • Sept/Oct 2021
Features
Leadership
Career development
Future Leaders

From safety champion to future leader

Open-access content Wednesday 1st September 2021
From the archive:  Just so you know, this article is more than 1 year old.
web_p66-67_Future-Leader_Jessica-Sales_CREDIT_Stuart-Kinlough_IKON_00026716.png

IOSH Future Leader Jessica Sales explains her journey from lab quality control apprentice to QHSE manager with global commercial real estate services and investment company, CBRE. 

How did you get into the health and safety profession?

Jessica SalesMy career began on a chemical intermediate manufacturing site, where I worked in the quality control (QC) laboratories. I started my chemistry apprenticeship and became involved with their safety champion group. This was where my interest in health and safety initiatives began. My role grew from being part of the safety champion team to leading on accident incident reporting and control of substances hazardous to health (COSHH) for my teams. I knew then I wanted to follow a career in health and safety.

Is there something about QC, and especially lab-based QC, that lends itself to health and safety?

The environment is important. You are exposed to many quality, health, safety and environment (QHSE) management topics in the QC environment – you’re looking at COSHH in the sense of chemical management. I think a laboratory environment lends itself well to health and safety. 

Has starting with CBRE been a huge culture shock for you?

In a way, yes, because I began with CBRE working on the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) contract across its events and shows; it was a completely different environment from lab work. Then COVID-19 hit, so all events and shows stopped. However, I have been exposed to instances at the NEC similar to working in a lab, such as subcontractor management and permits to work. 

Have you been involved in the return to events post-COVID-19?

I’ve moved into a new role with CBRE, but one of the great aspects of being part of IOSH is that I still connect with people at the NEC who are IOSH members. They are busy putting measures in place for the return to events according to government requirements. My new role is as a QHSE manager for the logistics business unit within our UK national accounts division at CBRE.

What has working in a health and safety role in real estate taught you about the OSH profession?

I’m involved in lots of different contracts, and although they are all to do with real estate, each contract has very specific requirements. For example, one day I could be overseeing a cooling tower audit while the next I could be helping the technical team with a high voltage procedure for a client.

What have been the greatest challenges on your OSH career journey so far?

Probably balancing the needs between all departments, whether that is finance and cost management, or manufacturing and making sure that production still stays ahead. However, I really do like the fact that in QHSE we can work with lots of people in lots of different departments. 

What have been your greatest achievements or highlights?

With CBRE, it was being part of the Birmingham NEC Nightingale Hospital build. Although it was certainly a challenge trying to get many people through the door in a short space of time while maintaining both social distancing and our standard procedures for permits, walking through the halls was surreal but a fantastic achievement. Outside work, one of my greatest achievements was being nominated as one of the Royal Society of Chemistry’s 175 Faces of Chemistry for my work promoting apprenticeships in the chemical industry.

How important are apprenticeships?

Apprenticeships are a great way to get practical soft skills and theoretical knowledge. From my own experience, I couldn’t afford to go to university, so I had to find a way to get the career I wanted in a different way. That meant taking on an apprenticeship, and through that, I ended up doing my degree in chemical science at Manchester Metropolitan University while also working in the lab. People seem to understand apprenticeships in sectors like the construction industry, but there isn’t quite so much recognition for apprenticeships in areas such as chemistry. I did a presentation at the Think-tank Birmingham Science Museum to help spread the word about STEMM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine) subjects.

You mentioned earlier about staying in touch with IOSH members – what other value do you get from membership?

The main benefit that I have seen during lockdown has been attending all the webinars. I’ve attended a huge range, spanning from environmental waste to COVID-19. I also attended the Future Leaders virtual conference, which was great because I could connect to some of the speakers through LinkedIn and grow my own network of people within my areas of interest and local region. 

What lies ahead for Future Leaders in OSH?

I still don’t think OSH or QHSE are necessarily seen as ‘go to’ professions for aspiring young leaders. I think many young people still initially follow a different career path – like I did – before getting into QHSE. So, rather like the value of apprenticeships, I feel that, as Future Leaders, we need to lead the conversation that says health and safety are valid and worthwhile career paths right from the start. 

Image Credit | Stuart Kinlough IKON

Wellbeing champion

Jessica has also taken on voluntary roles around mental health and wellbeing at CBRE. With World Mental Health Day taking place on 10 October, Jessica explains how she got involved.

I asked to become a wellbeing champion for my business unit. We look at physical, occupational, intellectual, social and environmental wellbeing and we’re trying to roll out an initiative that will promote wellbeing and good mental health among the entire workforce, whether they’re working at home or are engineers on the road. 

CBRE also has a team of mental health first aiders, so I did the training and became one myself. For World Mental Health Day last year, I suggested we follow the Mind ‘Do One Thing’ campaign. We had employees doing really small things, such as changing their Zoom backgrounds to show support, to people doing Pilates.

IOSH SepOct21_Full LR.jpg
This article appeared in our Sept/Oct 2021 issue of IOSH Magazine .
Click here to view this issue

You may also be interested in...

CPD

 The importance of CPD

Wednesday 15th September 2021
Long before COVID-19 struck, change was sweeping through work practices. OSH professionals must keep themselves up to date and ensure they have the right skill-set to be able to advise businesses.
Open-access content
web_Cover_Do-the-numbers-add-up_CREDIT_iStock-1029093612

 OSH statistics: how robust are they?

Even robust data-gathering systems can be subject to sampling bias or other margins of error – while interpretation can add a second layer of distortion. So how secure are the available OSH statistics, and the decisions resting on them?
Open-access content
web_p69_Behavious-patterns_Comp-1_CREDIT_Shutterstock.png

 Strengthen your safety culture

Wednesday 1st September 2021
Oliver Williams CMIOSH, regional health and safety manager at Ellis Whittam, takes a deeper look at safety culture in the next of our series of articles on managing core OSH risks.
Open-access content
web_p38-39_Bad-Vibrations_CREDIT_iStock-1147249539.png

 Risks of whole-body vibrations

Wednesday 1st September 2021
Ignoring the risks of whole-body vibration exposure can lead to misery for vehicle operators, and hefty sickness bills for their employers. As industry ramps up after extended shutdowns, the risks could be more present than ever.
Open-access content
web_p30-31_Destination-Unknown_CREDIT_iStock-1262906228.png

 Destination unknown: the future of the travel and tourism industry

Wednesday 1st September 2021
The travel and tourism industry has been hit harder than most by the pandemic, writes Steve Smethurst. How is IOSH supporting the sector as it plans for an uncertain future?
Open-access content
web_p47_Blending-the-Rules_CREDIT_Alice Mollon_Ikon_00027105.png

 Is blended learning the future?

Wednesday 1st September 2021
Lockdown forced us to learn remotely. So is blended learning the future for OSH training and CPD?
Open-access content
Topics
Features
Leadership
Career development
Future Leaders
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Linked in
  • Mail
  • Print

Latest Jobs

Health and Safety Improvement Manager

Leeds
£35000 - £50000 per annum
Reference
5452992

SHEQ Systems Advisor

Up to £40000.00 per annum + Car Allowance
Reference
5452988

Senior Health and Safety Manager

Reading
Up to £65000.00 per annum + Great Car Allowance & Benefits
Reference
5452983
See all jobs »

Sign up for regular e-alerts

Receive the latest news and features, free to your inbox

Sign up

Subscribe to IOSH magazine

Receive the print edition straight to your door

Subscribe
IOSH Covers
​
FOLLOW US
Twitter
LinkedIn
YouTube
CONTACT US
Contact us
Tel +44 (0)20 7880 6200
​

IOSH

About IOSH
Become a member
IOSH Events
MyIOSH

Information

Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
Cookie Policy

Get in touch

Contact us
Advertise with us
Subscribe to IOSH magazine
Write for IOSH magazine

IOSH Magazine

Health
Safety
Management
Skills
IOSH Jobs

© 2023 IOSH • IOSH is not responsible for the content of external sites

ioshmagazine.com and IOSH Magazine are published by Redactive Media Group. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any part is not allowed without written permission.

Redactive Media Group Ltd, 71-75 Shelton Street, London WC2H 9JQ