Episode 273 - Brian Owens

Episode 273 - Brian Owens

From The Geoholics by thegeoholics

February 25, 2026 · 1h 16m · Episode 329

About this episode

Brian Owens discusses the rethinking of safety culture in various industries, emphasizing perspective and connection over compliance.

This week, the crew sit down with Brian Owens, VP of Safety & Team Development at Buesing Corp., author, songwriter, and a leader whose philosophy challenges the industry to rethink what safety really means. Drawing from a career spanning combat engineering, mining, oil & gas, and heavy civil construction, Brian introduces listeners to the concept of “inversion” — the idea that true safety culture isn’t built through rules and enforcement, but through perspective, connection, and shared humanity. Rather than treating safety as compliance paperwork or a reaction to incidents, Brian explains why behavior only changes when people understand why safety matters to each other — not just to policy. The discussion dives into the tension many organizations face between production and protection, revealing why separating safety from productivity may actually create more risk instead of less. Throughout the episode, storytelling takes center stage. Brian shares lessons learned from high-risk environments where leadership presence, vulnerability, and trust made the difference between near-misses and tragedies. The conversation explores how leaders can recognize performative safety…

People in this episode

Guest: Brian Owens

Topics covered

  • safety culture
  • leadership
  • risk awareness
  • behavior change
  • construction industry

Keywords

  • safety
  • leadership
  • risk
  • behavior change
  • construction

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Buesing Corp.

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