Sarah Thomas has 20 years in health and safety and a coaching background alongside it. Her line that you can't break a business in the name of safety sums up this conversation about the real role of the health and safety professional.
We get into why so many of us fall into the rescuer trap, riding in to fix things for people who may not want rescuing. Sarah explains how she changes gear depending on who's in front of her: fifth gear for the board, fourth for the senior leadership team and first or second with the frontline. She's open about setting boundaries too.
What we cover in this episode
- The rescuer trap and why health and safety people fall into it
- Minding the gap between what's written down and what happens in the real world
- Speaking in the right gear for boards, senior leaders and frontline teams
- Running workshops where people share their own stories
- Slowing down and using micro experiments with a team
- Boundaries and setting up a consultancy on your own terms
- Where AI is taking the profession
- Sarah's challenge: share one good thing another safety professional is doing
Episode chapters
- 0:00 Meet Sarah Thomas
- 1:02 From surf lifeguard to coaching
- 5:08 The rescuer trap
- 12:17 You can't break a business in the name of safety
- 15:21 Mind the gap
- 17:22 Running workshops people remember
- 24:35 Reading the room and slowing down
- 28:42 Triage and critical risk
- 29:44 Speaking in the right gear
- 33:50 Boundaries
- 37:52 AI and the profession
- 45:04 Sarah's challenge
Connect with Sarah Thomas
Connect with Sarah on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sarahthomasneebond
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This episode sits in the Leading people and culture collection. Browse every episode or follow the show on Spotify so you don't miss the next one.
About the host
Matt Jones is the founder of Advanced Safety and a HASANZ-registered health and safety consultant. He's a Professional Member of NZISM, holds a Graduate Diploma in Occupational Safety and Health and founded the New Zealand Health and Safety Professionals community. His book is Raise the Standard: Why Good Organisations Go Blind and How Leaders Restore Visibility.
Guests share their own views and experience. This page is general information, not legal advice. Latest update: 13 November 2026
