Leading an organization through major change is hard. Leading an organization through major change during a worldwide pandemic is even harder.
Lawrence Sloan, CEO of AIHA, found himself in this position when the 8,500-member association unveiled its brand evolution in June. The coronavirus pandemic only served to reinforce the reasoning behind the evolution of the brand.
"One of the most important things we should be doing is help folks understand the role we play -- especially now," Sloan said. "The 'black swan' event of the COVID-19 pandemic has only heightened the importance of worker health, and our profession is uniquely qualified to fit this role."
He also noted that "amidst the pandemic, AIHA members have and continue to be sought after as experts with the media and general public."
One of the most significant changes to the AIHA brand was transitioning from its affiliation with the term "industrial hygiene," and reorienting itself instead as the association for "occupational health and safety" (OHS) professionals, to be better aligned with how college programs now describe the profession. While AIHA is still legally known as "American Industrial Hygiene Association," the acronym and pivot to OHS is meant to better convey the meaning and value of the profession to those starting out their careers interested in STEM.
In addition to increasing general public awareness of AIHA and its members' value to workplaces and employers, Sloan said the AIHA has tasked itself to "recruit and educate the next generation of occupational health and safety scientists."
"Like other technical careers, we have a pipeline issue that we need to tackle head-on by encouraging students interested in STEM that OHS careers are financially rewarding, exciting, offer various career paths and are truly altruistic," he stated.
Sloan has good reason to believe OHS outreach is one of the biggest challenges AIHA faces. He gained this insight through firsthand experience.
Sloan holds an undergraduate degree in chemical engineering and an MBA. At first, he started out working in a "variety of engineering capacities" in his career. During that time, he discovered he was drawn to positions "that enabled [him] to interface with the customer." He moved into the nonprofit sector in 2000, where he married his engineering background with his customer service orientation.
When he arrived at AIHA in 2016, he gained new perspectives on what OHS is and why it's so critical to industry.
"AIHA represents members from all facets of the economy," Sloan said. "I have learned about the practice of occupational health/industrial hygiene and, unfortunately, how hidden this profession is even within an organization."
To combat this lack of visibility of OHS professionals, the brand evolution initiative is also focused on continuing and improving its rich history as an educational resource to its members.
AIHA University (AIHA U) offers science- based education online and in face-to-face training sessions, as well as professional certificate programs. The Certified Industrial Hygienist certificate is a qualification held by more than 5,100 AIHA members.
Among Sloan's proudest achievements at AIHA was the recent conversion of its live annual conference, AIHce EXP 2020, into an exclusively virtual event within two short months. Additionally, a taskforce of 24 AIHA members created 21 guidance documents for helping small businesses reopen and other topics related to the pandemic that have collectively been downloaded more than a million times.
While leading an organization during a pandemic raises new and difficult challenges, in the case of AIHA, it has also produced some of Sloan's most rewarding experiences.
"I am so proud of our volunteers for their invaluable input and action to help make the world a healthier place during this uncertain time," he said.
Sloan believes the future is bright for AIHA members, which means a bright future for everyone's health and safety.
For more information, visit www.aiha.org or call (703) 849-8888.
