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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for HSE Advisor

💰 $ - $

🎯 Role Definition

The HSE Advisor (Health, Safety & Environment Advisor) leads the development, implementation and continuous improvement of site-level safety and environmental programs. This role ensures legal compliance, reduces operational risk, drives incident prevention, and fosters a positive safety culture through coaching, audits, training, and data-driven risk management. Ideal candidates demonstrate field experience, regulatory knowledge (e.g., OSHA, local environmental regulations), strong communication skills, and professional certifications (NEBOSH, IOSH, ISO 45001).

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • HSE Coordinator / Safety Officer
  • Site Supervisor with safety responsibilities
  • Environmental Technician or Compliance Specialist

Advancement To:

  • Senior HSE Advisor / HSE Team Lead
  • HSE Manager / Regional HSE Manager
  • Director of Health, Safety & Environment / Head of HSE

Lateral Moves:

  • Operations Manager with HSE portfolio
  • Quality, Safety & Environment (QSE) Specialist
  • Risk Management or Compliance roles

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Develop, implement and maintain the site HSE management system aligned with corporate policies and standards (e.g., ISO 45001, ISO 14001), ensuring documented procedures, safe work permits, and routine review cycles to sustain compliance and continuous improvement.
  • Lead hazard identification and formal risk assessments (JSA/JHA, HIRA) for daily operations, projects and change management activities, producing actionable mitigation plans and tracking closure of controls.
  • Conduct proactive site safety inspections, audits and behavioral-based safety observations; prepare audit reports with corrective/preventive actions, timelines and verification of effectiveness.
  • Manage incident response and investigation processes for injuries, near misses and environmental releases, conducting root cause analysis (e.g., 5 Whys, RCA) and producing investigation reports and lessons learned to prevent recurrence.
  • Drive contractor and supplier HSE pre-qualification, onboarding, monitoring and performance evaluation to ensure contractors comply with site-specific HSE requirements and permit-to-work systems.
  • Design, deliver and evaluate targeted HSE training programs (induction, task-specific, emergency response, permit-to-work) and competency assessments to ensure workforce capability and regulatory compliance.
  • Monitor HSE performance through development and reporting of KPIs (TRIR, LTIFR, near miss reporting rates, observation rates, corrective action closure), using data to prioritize interventions and report to senior management.
  • Maintain regulatory compliance by monitoring local and national health, safety and environmental legislation; coordinate with legal and external authorities on inspections, reporting, and corrective actions.
  • Develop and maintain emergency preparedness and business continuity plans, coordinate drills and full-scale exercises, and liaise with on-site emergency teams and local emergency services.
  • Implement and manage permit-to-work, confined space, hot work, and lockout/tagout programs to control high-risk activities and ensure procedural adherence and authorization.
  • Oversee occupational health programs including exposure monitoring, medical surveillance, ergonomics assessments, and fatigue management to protect worker health and minimize occupational illness.
  • Lead environmental management activities including waste management, spill prevention and response, emissions monitoring, permits, and pollution prevention projects to minimize environmental footprint and maintain regulatory compliance.
  • Facilitate management of change (MOC) processes for process, equipment and organizational changes, ensuring HSE risk assessments are completed and controls implemented prior to change execution.
  • Provide HSE support to project planning and execution teams, integrating safety risk mitigation into project schedules, cost estimates, and contractor management strategies.
  • Champion safety culture initiatives such as toolbox talks, leadership walkarounds, HSE campaigns and recognition programs to increase engagement, reporting and ownership across all levels of the organization.
  • Review and approve operational procedures, work instructions and safety critical maintenance plans to ensure safe design and execution of tasks and to reduce human and equipment risk.
  • Coordinate and manage personal protective equipment (PPE) programs, including selection, fit-testing, training and inventory management to ensure appropriate protection for workers.
  • Monitor and report on energy, resource use and sustainability metrics as they relate to HSE, and lead improvement initiatives to reduce environmental impact and operational risk.
  • Support occupational hygiene programs by coordinating environmental and industrial hygiene monitoring (noise, air, dust, chemical exposures), interpreting results, and recommending controls.
  • Liaise with insurance, legal and regulatory bodies during claims, regulatory inspections and audits; prepare and present HSE documentation for external audits and certification renewals.
  • Provide coaching, mentoring and technical HSE support to frontline supervisors and team leaders to embed safe work practices and to improve leadership visibility and accountability for safety outcomes.
  • Maintain HSE documentation, records and registers (incidents, permits, permits to work, training, audits) ensuring accuracy, traceability and availability for internal and external stakeholders.
  • Participate in capital expenditure and procurement reviews to ensure HSE considerations are integrated into equipment selection, process design and contractor scopes.
  • Support continuous improvement initiatives by analyzing incident trends, near miss data and performance metrics to identify systemic issues and implement sustainable corrective actions.
  • Manage budgeted HSE programs and projects, monitor expenditures, and justify investment in safety initiatives with clear ROI or risk mitigation rationale.
  • Support the integration of digital HSE tools (incident management systems, digital checklists, mobile observation apps) to improve reporting, analysis and corrective action closure rates.

Secondary Functions

  • Provide subject matter expertise during pre-bid and tender stages to evaluate HSE impacts and to embed safety requirements into contract terms and conditions.
  • Support occupational health providers and ergonomic specialists in workplace assessments and medical surveillance logistics.
  • Assist HR with return-to-work programs, light duty assignments and fitness-for-duty evaluations to facilitate safe and compliant workforce reintegration.
  • Act as the HSE focal point for cross-functional committees (environmental permits, emergency response, process safety) and coordinate multi-disciplinary risk workshops.
  • Contribute to corporate HSE reporting, sustainability disclosures and internal communications to elevate HSE performance and transparency across the organization.
  • Support onboarding of new sites, facilities or operations including HSE baseline assessments and readiness checks prior to start-up.
  • Maintain and improve HSE digital systems and databases; support data exports and dashboards for senior leadership decision-making.
  • Support community and stakeholder engagement on environmental incidents, community safety concerns and public-facing HSE communications.
  • Assist in benchmarking HSE performance against industry standards and implement best practices to raise operational safety performance.
  • Provide backup support during after-hours incidents or major events and participate in on-call rotations if required.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • NEBOSH General Certificate or Diploma, IOSH Membership, or equivalent professional safety qualification.
  • Strong knowledge of local and national occupational health and safety legislation (e.g., OSHA equivalents), environmental regulations and permit requirements.
  • Experience implementing and auditing management systems (ISO 45001, ISO 14001) and preparing documentation for certification/recertification audits.
  • Proficiency in incident investigation methodologies and tools (Root Cause Analysis, 5 Whys, Bow-Tie analysis) and corrective action management.
  • Risk assessment and hazard analysis expertise (JSA/JHA, HIRA, FMEA) applied in operational and project environments.
  • Practical knowledge of permit-to-work, confined space entry, lockout/tagout, hot work and fall protection programs.
  • Competence in occupational hygiene monitoring and interpreting exposure data (airborne contaminants, noise, chemical exposures).
  • Ability to design and deliver effective safety training, toolbox talks, and competency assessment programs for diverse workforces.
  • Experience with contractor management systems, pre-qualification, onboarding and performance monitoring.
  • Strong data literacy: ability to produce and interpret HSE KPIs, dashboards and trend analysis using MS Excel, Power BI, or HSE information systems.
  • Emergency preparedness and response planning experience, including running drills and coordinating with external emergency services.
  • Knowledge of environmental management practices: waste management, spill response, air/water discharge controls and sustainability metrics.
  • Familiarity with construction, manufacturing, oil & gas, mining, or utilities industry-specific hazards and control measures.

Soft Skills

  • Strong verbal and written communication skills—able to influence leaders, deliver clear toolbox talks and write concise incident reports.
  • Leadership presence and coaching ability—capable of engaging frontline workers and supervisors to drive behavior change and accountability.
  • Analytical thinking and problem-solving—translates incident data into prioritized actions and sustainable solutions.
  • Time management and organizational skills—able to balance audits, training, investigations and ongoing advisory work.
  • Stakeholder management—builds collaborative relationships with operations, HR, contractors, regulators and external vendors.
  • Resilience and calm under pressure—effective in emergency situations and when leading incident investigations.
  • Cultural sensitivity and adaptability—experience working in multicultural and multi-site operations.
  • Attention to detail—ensures compliance documents, permits and records are accurate and auditable.
  • Continuous improvement mindset—proactively seeks efficiencies and applies lessons learned across sites.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Bachelor's degree in Occupational Health & Safety, Environmental Science, Engineering, or a related technical discipline, OR equivalent professional HSE certifications with demonstrable experience.

Preferred Education:

  • Master's degree in Occupational Safety, Environmental Management, or Industrial Hygiene, OR NEBOSH Diploma/Certified Safety Professional (CSP) or equivalent advanced certificates.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Occupational Health & Safety
  • Environmental Science / Engineering
  • Industrial / Mechanical / Chemical Engineering
  • Public Health or Industrial Hygiene

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 3–7 years of progressive HSE experience for a standard HSE Advisor role; 7+ years for senior/technical advisor positions.

Preferred:

  • Prior field or site-based experience in construction, manufacturing, oil & gas, mining, utilities or heavy industry.
  • Proven track record in incident investigation, HSE system implementation, contractor management and regulatory compliance.
  • Demonstrated experience with ISO 45001/14001 implementation, emergency response planning and HSE digital tools.
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