IOSH
Safety leadership in practice
A health and safety manager’s story
Tayyeb Ayyashi explains how IOSH Leading Safely® shifted his focus from procedures to visible leadership. His story shows what changes when leaders set priorities, lead by example and engage their teams.
Tayyeb works on fast-moving projects in Saudi Arabia. His organisation had strong systems and procedures in place but these alone did not change how people behaved in practice.
The question was: how could leaders make safety a visible, shared priority?
Tayyeb chose to take the Leading Safely training course for its practical focus. Rather than theory, the programme looked at the everyday choices that shape safety.
He took the course at JOD Academy, an IOSH-licensed training provider offering Leading Safely across the Gulf region.
Tayyeb Ayyashi
- Job role
- Health and Safety Manager
- Company
- Saudi Entertainment Ventures
“Effective safety leadership goes beyond systems and procedures; it requires visible commitment, open communication and consistent action.”
A shift in thinking
Tayyeb came away from his Leading Safely training course with an improved understanding of how leadership behaviours and decisions influence safety culture across the organisation. He wanted to focus his next steps on two practical impacts.
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Better team engagement
Listen to safety concerns and share responsibility as part of daily work.
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Sharper decisions
Safety shaping everyday leadership decisions, priorities and actions, rather than being added afterwards.
Action plan
Tayyeb built his ideas into a clear, practical plan.
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Increase leadership involvement
Regular site inspections and walk throughs, with project leaders visibly identifying risks.
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Regular management meetings
Review safety performance, health and safety key performance indicators, trends and required improvements.
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Endorse safety objectives
Project leaders review and approve safety objectives to make them a shared responsibility.
“IOSH Leading Safely offers leaders across all business functions, including safety leaders, a focused opportunity to develop their safety leadership. JOD Academy believes that a mature safety culture starts with capable, accountable leaders — and that investing in their development is an investment in protecting people.”
Dr Eng Maged Elkassaby CMIOSH
- Job role
- Training Director
- Company
- JOD Academy
The wider impact
The aim is for these these measures to strengthen safety culture and leadership accountability. They help identify and control risks earlier.
Regular leadership involvement and performance reviews should help close issues faster.
Engaging your workforce in this way can reduce incidents and protect business continuity.
Ready to lead differently?
If you are responsible for safety, Leading Safely shows how everyday leadership choices shape outcomes.
