By Benita Mehta,
ISHN Chief Editor
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EDITORIAL

By Benita Mehta,
ISHN Chief Editor
New Book Offers Blueprint for Lasting Safety Culture
A
re you tired of safety programs that feel like a "flavor of the month"? Does your organization scramble to check boxes when an inspector shows up, only to see engagement and real protection dwindle the next day?
Randy DeVaul, safety professional and industry veteran, says that for decades, the standard approach to workplace safety has been built on fear, punishment, and punitive compliance. Safety is often treated as a separate, burdensome program.
In his new book “Integrated Safety Solutions: Building World-Class Safety with Real-World Leadership,” DeVaul says it's time to stop the cycle of failure. DeVaul has been a contributor to ISHN, writing articles on everything from PPE decisions to advice on workers’ compensation programs:
DeVaul offers a blueprint to move beyond reactive compliance and build a resilient, high-performance culture where safety is simply how you do business.
Photo: SolStock / E+ / Getty Images
Introducing Performance Safety: The Integrated Approach
Integrated Safety Solutions introduces and fully outlines Performance Safety, a powerful, time-tested model that integrates safety into every process, procedure, and practice across the organization.
DeVaul states, “Safety isn't a program. It's a principle.”
This book is a direct challenge to the common but ineffective approach of force-fitting imported solutions (like generic Behavior-Based Safety programs) onto a culture they weren't designed for. Instead, DeVaul shows leaders at every level — from the CEO to the front-line supervisor — how to align safety with the company's core mission, values, and vision.
What You'll Learn
Integration, Not Isolation: Discover how to weave safety into the fabric of your organization so it enhances, rather than competes with, production and quality.
A Focus on Principles, Not Programs: Move away from rule-based systems to a culture driven by evergreen values, genuine conviction, and accountability that rewards and transforms.
Real-World Leadership: Learn practical strategies for managers and supervisors to become safety coaches, leading with recognition rather than relying on incentives or punishment.
The book is divided into three parts:
• Part I: Integrated Safety Solutions The foundational principles that define Performance Safety and how to build a culture that works.
• Part II: Lessons from the Field Case studies, published articles, and safety talks that show Performance Safety in action.
• Part III: Leadership in Action Practical strategies for executives, managers, supervisors, and employees to lead safety from wherever they stand.
Integrated Safety Solutions is not just for safety professionals. It's a guide for anyone who carries the responsibility of keeping people safe and equipment operational such as executives, managers, supervisors and front-line workers who want to understand the why behind procedures and own their role in safety culture.
Excerpt
The following is a brief excerpt from DeVaul’s book, published with permission, detailing culture, not compliance:
“The first mistake many organizations make is starting with regulation. They ask, “What does OSHA require?” and build their safety efforts around avoiding citations. While compliance is necessary, it’s not sufficient. It doesn’t build culture. It doesn’t inspire ownership. And it doesn’t create lasting change.
Instead, begin with your organization’s mission, values, and vision. These are the driving statements that define who you are, what you believe, and how you operate. Safety must be aligned with these—not bolted on as a separate initiative.
Ask yourself:
• Does our safety approach reflect our values?
• Is safety part of how we define success?
• Do our leaders talk about safety in the same breath as quality, productivity, and teamwork?
When safety is embedded in the culture—when it’s part of the language, the leadership, and the daily decisions—it becomes sustainable. It becomes natural. And it becomes something people believe in, not just comply with.”
If you’d like to learn more and purchase DeVaul’s book here.

