Safety Professional of the Year – Ryan Olsen – The Boldt Co.

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Being proactive and fostering open communication are Ryan Olsen’s keys to improving safety on construction sites.

It’s proving successful. Under his leadership as the regional safety director in Wisconsin and Illinois, The Boldt Co. saw its recordable injury rate fall from 3.42 in 2021 to 0.41 in 2023.

“It’s been a big team effort” to lower the recordable injury rate, Olsen said. “It’s a lot of communicating and being proactive about how we can approach safety as a group instead of being reactive after something happens.”

Olsen works closely with project teams to enhance the safety and culture audit and assessment process, update contract safety language and establish clear guidelines to improve consistent participation in a project’s safety culture.

“Ryan’s leadership has been instrumental in advancing the safety culture within our organization,” said Boldt’s Amalia Flatley. “He embodies the definition of a team player and demonstrates a true desire to improve the safety culture.”

Training plays a vital role in improving Boldt’s safety culture. For example, Olsen created “what good looks like” videos, providing employees with clear examples of best practices. He also shares his field experiences to reinforce positive behaviors during weekly Central Safety calls.

“Training and mentoring are essential. I enjoy making project visits and collaborating with people,” he said. “I take what I learn from one project and share it across other projects.”

Olsen is also a member of Boldt’s Gatekeeper program, a suicide awareness and prevention program. While on project sites, he emphasizes the importance of addressing mental well-being alongside physical safety.

“We do a lot of toolbox talks, bring in guest speakers … we want to make getting help as accessible as possible,” Olsen said. “We identify the concerns people might have, be their support and give them the right resources.”