Kristina Wischnowsky is the Business Excellence Manager at Corbel Construction. She has over 20 years of experience in human resources, communications, and change management across various industries. While safety was never her primary focus, responsibilities in that area became part of her role in previous jobs. She has received on-the-job training and participated in numerous safety-related events and training sessions. Wischnowsky finds it most satisfying to see positive change and transformation in the businesses and staff she works with. The hardest part of her role has been transforming safety cultures, which often requires persistence to change the status quo.

1. JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2016 SAFEGUARD 39
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
What is your background?
I’ve specialised in people, communications and
change management over the course of my
career. I started in HR, which involved health
and safety, and have been lucky enough to
work in consulting and across a number of
industries.
Describe your current employment
Fabulous! Corbel Construction is a progressive
company, with a desire to challenge the
status quo and become a really special place
to work. I currently manage the operational
delivery of our residential and light commercial
divisions and our business excellence team,
which consists of safety, HR, IT and office
administration.
Why did you become involved in
health & safety?
One of my first projects as a young graduate
was to overhaul and improve the safety system
for my first employer. My boss made me do
it! In all my roles it’s been something that
became my responsibility as a result of work
I’d done in the role I’d been employed to do. I
never planned for a career in safety and it has
never been the 100% focus of any of my roles.
What training have you had for the role?
Mostly my training has been on the job.
I’ve been fortunate to have worked with
some talented safety professionals and for
organisations who have been committed
to safety. Through the Canterbury Rebuild
Safety Charter, I have been very lucky to have
participated in numerous Safety Charter,
WorkSafe and ACC-sponsored events and
training sessions. The great thing about
safety is that everyone is genuinely interested
in working together to keep people safe.
What has been your most satisfying
achievement so far?
Seeing the transformation, growth and
achievement of staff and the businesses
I’ve been involved in working with. It’s
always satisfying to see positive change and
transformation. It was an honour to receive
the NIWAC Construction Administration
Excellence, Safeguard H&S Practitioner of
the Year and Site Safe Safety Contribution
awards last year. But there was an army of
people at the Canterbury Rebuild Safety
Charter and Corbel Construction who were
as passionate and inspired about safety as
I have been – all members of the broader
teams deserved those awards as much
as I did.
What’s the hardest thing you’ve had
to do in OHS?
Transform a culture. It’s surprising how hard
people will fight to keep the status quo,
even if it is dangerous. But working with me,
resistance is futile!
What has surprised you about the role?
The commitment, teamwork and
collaboration from other senior leaders and
safety professionals in the construction
industry. All signatories of the Canterbury
Rebuild Safety Charter walk the ‘working
together to leave a legacy we can be proud
of’ and ‘not competing on safety’ vision
statement. I’ve made some good friends
through the safety charter and been
honoured to work with impressive senior
leaders and safety professionals who are all
making a difference in Christchurch and to
their organisations.
How has being in OHS changed you?
I see the world through a different lens now.
I now know more about what is safe and so
I see unsafe acts all over the place. It’s also
taught me patience, and that small wins are
sometimes the bigger wins than the big ones.
What advice would you give anyone
thinking of entering the field?
You need to be passionate, able to influence
and speak your mind so others will listen. It’s
also something that requires a lot of patience
and persistence. People aren’t always going
to do safety willingly or easily, so you need to
repeat, repeat, repeat. It’s a rewarding field;
if you value people and making a positive
difference you’ll do well.
What is the most risky thing you’ve done?
A bungy jump. But we all take risks during
the course of our day and we only get through
the day intact due to the collective trust that
we have in all the other people who cross our
paths, especially on the road.
Kristina Wischnowsky
BUSINESS EXCELLENCE MANAGER, CORBEL CONSTRUCTION