Senior Safety Manager

Senior Safety Manager

The Senior Safety Manager serves as Columbia Construction's senior field safety resource, providing technical expertise, operational oversight, and strategic leadership across multiple projects. This role is responsible for ensuring consistent execution of Columbia's safety programs, regulatory compliance, risk management initiatives, and project-specific safety requirements.

Reporting to the Vice President of Safety, the Senior Safety Manager works closely with Project Executives, Superintendents, Project Managers, and Safety Managers to identify risks, improve field performance, strengthen safety planning, and ensure operational consistency across all projects.

The ideal candidate possesses extensive commercial construction safety experience, strong knowledge of OSHA regulations and high-risk construction activities, exceptional investigative and auditing capabilities, and the ability to translate safety requirements into practical field solutions.

Key Responsibilities

Safety Operations & Risk Management

• Serve as the senior technical safety resource for project teams across multiple active projects.
• Evaluate project-specific hazards and develop risk mitigation strategies.
• Review and approve site-specific safety plans, Activity Hazard Analyses (AHAs), Job Hazard Analyses (JHAs), and high-risk work procedures.
• Ensure consistent implementation of company safety standards, client requirements, and regulatory obligations.
• Support project teams in planning complex or high-risk operations.
• Provide guidance on construction means and methods as they relate to safety performance.

Regulatory Compliance & Program Execution

• Ensure compliance with OSHA regulations, state requirements, client standards, and company policies.
• Maintain working knowledge of evolving regulatory requirements and industry best practices.
• Lead preparation for OSHA inspections, third-party audits, and insurance reviews.
• Support development and implementation of company-wide safety procedures and standards.
• Evaluate project compliance through field assessments and documentation reviews.

Field Auditing & Performance Assessment

• Conduct comprehensive field audits of active projects.
• Evaluate:
  • Fall protection systems
  • Excavation and trenching operations
  • Crane and rigging activities
  • Electrical safety practices
  • Confined space operations
  • Silica and hazardous material controls
  • Housekeeping and site logistics
  • Trade partner compliance
• Identify systemic deficiencies and develop corrective action plans.
• Track trends across projects and recommend operational improvements.

Incident Investigation & Corrective Action

• Lead investigations involving:
  • OSHA-recordable injuries
  • Near misses
  • Property damage incidents
  • Utility strikes
  • Environmental events
  • Significant safety violations
• Conduct root cause analysis and identify contributing factors.
• Develop corrective and preventive actions.
• Prepare executive summaries and lessons learned reports.
• Monitor implementation and effectiveness of corrective actions.

High-Risk Construction Operations

Provide direct oversight and technical support for:

• Cranes and rigging
• Steel erection
• Excavation and trenching
• Demolition
• Confined space entry
• Energized electrical work
• Hot work operations
• Work at heights
• Pressure testing and gas purging
• Hazardous material abatement
• Critical lifts and engineered picks

Responsibilities include:

• Reviewing work plans and permits
• Validating competent person assignments
• Verifying rescue and emergency response planning
• Participating in pre-task planning activities
• Conducting field verification of control measures

Safety Performance Monitoring

Track and analyze:

• TRIR
• DART Rate
• Near Miss Reporting
• Corrective Action Closure Rates
• Inspection Completion Rates
• Training Compliance
• Subcontractor Safety Performance

Develop monthly and quarterly reports identifying trends, emerging risks, and opportunities for improvement.

Project Support & Client Interface

• Support project teams during owner meetings, safety reviews, and audits.
• Participate in preconstruction planning and risk assessments.
• Assist with project pursuits requiring safety presentations or safety program reviews.
• Serve as a subject matter expert during client safety discussions and regulatory interactions.

Requirements

Required

• Bachelor's degree in occupational safety, Construction Management, Engineering, or related field, or equivalent experience.
• 5-10 years of commercial construction safety experience.
• Experience supporting large-scale commercial, academic, healthcare, life science, or complex construction projects.
• Expert knowledge of OSHA 1926 standards.
• Extensive experience with incident investigation, auditing, and regulatory compliance.
• Strong understanding of high-risk construction operations.

Preferred

• CSP (Certified Safety Professional)
• CHST, ASP, or equivalent certification
• OSHA 500
• First Aid/CPR Instructor Certification
• Experience working for a large CM/GC or ENR-ranked contractor.

What Success Looks Like

• Consistent execution of safety programs across all projects.
• Strong audit performance and regulatory compliance.
• Reduced incident frequency and severity.
• Effective management of high-risk operations.
• High-quality investigations and corrective action implementation.
• Recognition as Columbia's technical authority on construction safety and risk management.

Columbia Construction is an Equal Opportunity Employer