MATTHEW WHITEHEAD

Matt is a qualified Safety, Human Factors and Aeronautical Engineer, with over 30 years’ experience working with safety critical industries. As well his qualifications as an engineer, Matt has a BSc in Psychology and MSc in Human Factors from Loughborough University. He completed his Doctorate with Loughborough University in 2019 after a ten year longitudinal study of culture change and organisational learning within Military Aviation, the Rail Industry and the NHS.

Matt has had a diverse career, spanning all aspects of the aviation industry from front-line operations to base-support and product-development, with experience in Engineering Investigation, Design Modification, Quality Management, Continuous Improvement, Error Management and Safety Risk Management Systems.

He has practical experience of establishing and subsequently running Error Management Systems, driving Safety Culture change programmes and facilitating Human Factors and Incident Investigation training, at all levels from shop floor to senior management. He is particularly passionate about encouraging organisations to take a holistic view of safety risk management by bringing disparate safety activity into an overarching management system.

Matt is a member of the Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors and combines his practical experience with academic research interests in Human Performance, Safety Culture and Organisational Learning in safety-critical industries.