Occupational health and safety inspector to health safety and environmental manager
An occupational health and safety inspector already meets 36% of what the health safety and environmental manager role asks for. The move turns on 24 required skills not yet in the profile.
73.3/ 100
1 How much of what a health safety and environmental manager is expected to do is already part of an occupational health and safety inspector’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the health safety and environmental manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A health safety and environmental manager role treats 16 of its required skills as things an occupational health and safety inspector already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- audit techniques
- communicate health and safety measures
- educate employees on occupational hazards
- environmental legislation
- framework for a safety management system
- health and safety in the workplace
What stands in the way is 24 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 21 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A health safety and environmental manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an occupational health and safety inspector background worth leading with.
- already held framework for a safety management system services
- already held make health, safety and environment assessments information skills
- already held educate employees on occupational hazards communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held incidents and accidents recording services
- already held communicate health and safety measures communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held monitor employee's health information skills
All 21 carried skills, including the 16 the health safety and environmental manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 46 missing skills fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn advise on government policy compliance required
- still to learn advise on sustainability solutions required
- still to learn implement strategic planning required
- still to learn liaise with government officials required
- still to learn liaise with industry experts required
- still to learn liaise with managers required
- still to learn promote sustainability required
- optional, not held advise on environmental remediation optional
- optional, not held conduct public presentations optional
- optional, not held provide advice on breaches of regulation optional
- still to learn develop contingency plans for emergencies required
- still to learn develop training programmes required
- still to learn evaluate employees work required
- still to learn monitor contractor performance required
- still to learn shape corporate culture required
- optional, not held encourage teambuilding optional
- optional, not held apply change management optional
- still to learn organisational resilience required
- still to learn business analysis required
- still to learn strategic planning required
- optional, not held consultation methods optional
- optional, not held project management optional
- optional, not held corporate law optional
- optional, not held public relations optional
- still to learn energy conservation required
- still to learn pollution prevention required
- still to learn production processes required
- optional, not held wind energy optional
- optional, not held safety engineering optional
- optional, not held sustainable manufacturing optional
- still to learn abide by business ethical code of conducts required
- still to learn coordinate environmental efforts required
- still to learn manage environmental impact of operations required
- optional, not held carry out environmental audits optional
- still to learn evaluate company needs required
- still to learn perform risk analysis required
- optional, not held evaluate industrial hygiene optional
- optional, not held perform internal investigations optional
- optional, not held track key performance indicators optional
5 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a health safety and environmental manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 evaluate company needs practise this
- 02 abide by business ethical code of conducts practise this
- 03 develop contingency plans for emergencies practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 21 skills that carry over
- already held audit techniques knowledge
- already held communicate health and safety measures skill
- already held educate employees on occupational hazards skill
- already held environmental legislation knowledge
- already held framework for a safety management system knowledge
- already held health and safety in the workplace knowledge
- already held health and safety regulations knowledge
- already held health, safety and hygiene legislation knowledge
- already held make health, safety and environment assessments skill
- already held manage health and safety standards skill
- already held monitor employee's health skill
- already held monitor legislation developments skill
- already held plan health and safety procedures skill
- already held pollution legislation knowledge
- already held promote health and safety skill
- already held risk management knowledge
- already held conduct workplace audits skill
- already held identify hazards in the workplace skill
- already held incidents and accidents recording knowledge
- already held labour legislation knowledge
- already held provide improvement strategies skill
The 5 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn assessment of risks and threats required
- optional, not held asbestos removal regulations optional
- optional, not held fire prevention procedures optional
- optional, not held waste management optional
- optional, not held public health optional
- optional, not held environmental threats optional
- optional, not held manage quantitative data optional
22 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held consultation methods optional
- optional, not held encourage teambuilding optional
- optional, not held environmental threats optional
- optional, not held project management optional
- optional, not held wind energy optional
- optional, not held advise on environmental remediation optional
- optional, not held apply change management optional
- optional, not held asbestos removal regulations optional
- optional, not held carry out environmental audits optional
- optional, not held conduct public presentations optional
- optional, not held corporate law optional
- optional, not held evaluate industrial hygiene optional
- optional, not held fire prevention procedures optional
- optional, not held manage quantitative data optional
- optional, not held perform internal investigations optional
- optional, not held provide advice on breaches of regulation optional
- optional, not held public health optional
- optional, not held public relations optional
- optional, not held safety engineering optional
- optional, not held sustainable manufacturing optional
- optional, not held track key performance indicators optional
- optional, not held waste management optional
40 held skills the health safety and environmental manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role act with a high level of safety awareness skill
- not needed by the target role adhere to OHSAS 18001 skill
- not needed by the target role advise on risk management skill
- not needed by the target role apply health and safety standards skill
- not needed by the target role apply safety management skill
- not needed by the target role assess ergonomics of the workplace skill
- not needed by the target role assist employee health programmes skill
- not needed by the target role balance the project requirements with health and safety concerns skill
- not needed by the target role cleaning industry health and safety measures knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct research interview skill
- not needed by the target role document safety actions skill
- not needed by the target role draw up risk assessment skill
- not needed by the target role employment law knowledge
- not needed by the target role ensure annual safety inspections skill
- not needed by the target role ensure compliance with environmental legislation skill
- not needed by the target role ensure health and safety in manufacturing skill
- not needed by the target role ensure health and safety of staff skill
- not needed by the target role ensure safety in hospitality establishment skill
- not needed by the target role first aid knowledge
- not needed by the target role follow health and safety procedures in construction skill
- not needed by the target role follow safety precautions in work practices skill
- not needed by the target role follow safety procedures when working at heights skill
- not needed by the target role follow up on safety breaches skill
- not needed by the target role foster compliance with health and safety rules by setting an example skill
- not needed by the target role identify policy breach skill
- not needed by the target role inform on workplace safety standards skill
- not needed by the target role instruct on safety measures skill
- not needed by the target role interview techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role investigate occupational injuries skill
- not needed by the target role issue licences skill
- not needed by the target role lead inspections skill
- not needed by the target role manage health and safety skill
- not needed by the target role occupational health knowledge
- not needed by the target role prepare audit activities skill
- not needed by the target role prevent health and safety problems skill
- not needed by the target role prevent work accidents skill
- not needed by the target role promote health and safety policies in health services skill
- not needed by the target role provide on-board safety training skill
- not needed by the target role safety regulations for warehouses knowledge
- not needed by the target role train staff in safety procedures skill
19 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn organisational resilience required
- still to learn assessment of risks and threats required
- still to learn business analysis required
- still to learn energy conservation required
- still to learn pollution prevention required
- still to learn production processes required
- still to learn strategic planning required
- optional, not held consultation methods optional
- optional, not held environmental threats optional
- optional, not held project management optional
- optional, not held wind energy optional
- optional, not held asbestos removal regulations optional
- optional, not held corporate law optional
- optional, not held fire prevention procedures optional
- optional, not held public health optional
- optional, not held public relations optional
- optional, not held safety engineering optional
- optional, not held sustainable manufacturing optional
- optional, not held waste management optional
Other moves recorded from occupational health and safety inspector
- health and safety officer 51% covered · moderate
- aftersales service manager 45% covered · moderate
- healthcare inspector 34% covered · substantial
- construction safety manager 34% covered · substantial
Full index of moves from occupational health and safety inspector
Common questions about this move
Can an occupational health and safety inspector become a health safety and environmental manager?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An occupational health and safety inspector already covers 36% of what a health safety and environmental manager is expected to do: 21 skills carry over, 16 of which the health safety and environmental manager role treats as required.
What skills does an occupational health and safety inspector need to become a health safety and environmental manager?
24 required skills are missing, plus 22 optional ones. They fall into 11 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is evaluate company needs.
How hard is the move from occupational health and safety inspector to health safety and environmental manager?
Its learning distance is 73.3 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.