Post From Safety 2013 Guest Blogger Pam Walaski
Vendors on the Expo floor were showcasing numerous tablet and telephone applications to make the work of SH&E pros more streamlined and to increase the connection to remote workers. ISHN's Dave Johnson posted a great article summarizing them. Make sure you check out the list quickly. As Dave notes, they will be outdated as new ones are launched nearly every day.
Being socially connected both personally and professionally is something I have been doing for some time now. I started with a personal presence on My Space many years ago. Like many, I eventually migrated to Facebook attracted by the bells and whistles and speed of the two-way connectivity it offered.
Sometime later, I began to explore the opportunities social media presented for professional uses. My LinkedIn profile has been up for a while now and in the past year or so I have seen a tremendous increase in the amount of discussions in the various groups I belong to. I have also used my LinkedIn connections to get individual assistance with a question or just to connect with someone who lives far away–literally, as some of my connections are global colleagues in other countries. Some of them I had the privilege of meeting in person in Las Vegas this week.
The biggest increase in social media usage I observed was through Twitter. The hashtag #Safety2013 was established well in advance of the PDC and there were isolated postings starting as far back as May. As the PDC neared, the traffic heated up and if you are following the current chatter, hundreds of Tweets are being posted every day as many of us microblog on our experiences, share bits of wisdom from sessions we are attending and post photos of gatherings. In fact @fieldID posted a great list of their favorite Tweets that showcases the varied posters from attendees to vendors to ASSE staff and beyond.
My session on using social media for crisis communications highlighted recent disasters where social media was a prime method of obtaining information by those affected, everything from the Moore, OK, tornados to the West, TX, chemical explosion. Even government agencies such as CSB are using Facebook to communicate the status of its investigations and findings, and the U.S. Army’s Social Media Handbook details how soldiers and command staff can use social media to help them excel as an Army communicator. Finally, Professional Safety featured an article I wrote on the topic in April 2013.
I know that thousands of EHS pros are not yet socially connected beyond possibly a personal presence on Facebook (there are roughly 1 billion monthly account users on there so you have lots of company). I write this blog not to suggest anyone needs to jump on board as I know many will not. But for many of us who are and see the value in this form of communication, the uptick in social media usage during Safety 2013 makes us think that EHS pros are going social in a big way. It's exciting to be a part of it!