One hundred and thirty-six months ago, I made a pivotal career transition that would reshape my professional journey. After graduating as an engineer, my entire professional experience had been confined to operating companies. My career path had been relatively narrow — I had been recruited by only two companies, though corporate mergers and acquisitions meant I had technically worked for five different organizational entities.
Then, everything changed. I made the bold decision to resign from my current employer and accept a transformative role with an engineering institution — a charitable organization. This move represented a significant leap beyond my familiar professional landscape and into an uncharted but promising new realm. The opportunity before me was extraordinary: to establish and lead the Institution of Chemical Engineers Safety Centre (ISC).
Reflecting back on the early days of my career, I was a generalist, not a specific expert on anything. Indeed, during a pivotal job interview for a graduate position, a potential employer candidly declared that I would never become a specialist or expert. Their recruitment strategy was focused exclusively on hiring such top-tier talent — a criteria that ultimately led to my rejection from the position.
I let that shape my experiences in the early years. That was both positive and negative. It meant I was unsettled, always looking for something new to try. It also meant that I was fortunate to experience so many different types of roles and opportunities. I always said yes to a new opportunity.
A decade into my professional journey, I finally transitioned into a specialized domain: process safety. That was a pivotal moment that would define my career. The move was transformative, revealing not just a professional path but a genuine passion. I had discovered my true calling, embracing both the critical work of process safety and the remarkable community of professionals dedicated to this essential field.
Setting up the ISC was the opportunity to build my dream job, even though it was a world away from working within an operating company. I had the time to think about what the solutions could be without the distractions of day-to-day activities. I created world-leading programs and tools. I got to work with process safety professionals from around the world to create groundbreaking guidance for industry. Building the ISC from six founding members to over 120, with a strong reputation as one of the world’s leading safety centers, will always remain one of my proudest achievements.
The world is changing around us; we are looking to new and different energy sources, and technology is advancing at a lightning pace. To keep up, we need to change. If we want to excel, we need to grow beyond our traditional worlds.
As an engineer, it is always important to practice within our scope, but we also need to be willing to expand that scope. This adaptability becomes particularly crucial when contemplating career transitions across different roles and sectors.
Engineering equips professionals with a powerful problem-solving methodology rooted in logical analysis, enabling us to incorporate past experiences into innovative solutions seamlessly. Our accumulated knowledge is remarkably transferable — we unconsciously recognize patterns through our brain's intricate cognitive processes while also possessing the capacity for intentional, strategic knowledge transfer. In the context of process safety, this means deliberately exploring how our expertise can be reimagined and applied to create safer working environments across diverse professional landscapes.
So, it is time for me to reimagine again. Many of you are aware that I announced my resignation from the ISC late last year. It is time to embark on a new and exciting journey. Again, this promises to be a big change from what I am used to.
My change is not away from process safety but away from working for others. I have established my own business (Lead Like Kerin Pty. Ltd.) focused on helping people improve their process safety outcomes, leadership and communication. I am excited about the new challenge and a little daunted by all the new things I need to learn to run a successful business by myself. This is my next big growth and change era, where I become an entrepreneur.
While I am navigating my new direction, ask yourself, where is your next growth area going to be? What are you doing today to support the growth? How can that growth help improve process safety outcomes? We are all capable of great things, but we need to actively seek them.
