Improving safety in the global energy industry requires collaboration. The collective input of energy providers, supply chain companies, trade unions, regulators and the workforce plays a pivotal role in shaping best-practice guidelines. Step Change in Safety aims prevent incident and injury in the energy industry, and helping us to achieve that is our leadership team.
Step Change in Safety’s leadership team is responsible for planning and monitoring the organisation’s activities, and listening to the opinions and concerns of the workforce. This process helps to shape the future direction of the organisation to ensure it is always well placed to lead the way in improving safety and wellbeing for the entire energy industry workforce.
Made up of senior personnel from member companies, industry-related trade associations, trade unions and the Health & Safety Executive (HSE), the Step Change in Safety leadership team currently consists of:
The Team
- Craig Wiggins
- CEO
- Step Change in Safety
Craig Wiggins has nearly 40 years of experience in the energy industry. He has vast knowledge and experiences from front line operations to the board room. He is passionate about simplification and efficiency of processes due to strong experiences in lean manufacturing and is focused on making sure the people in the front line have the highest safety standards.
Craig started his career in 1985 as a Trainee Operations Technician and spent next 25 years at Shell in a variety of Operations and Business Improvement roles such as Offshore Installation Manger and finally as the St Fergus Gas Plant Manager.
Craig has also held senior operations leadership positions with Petrofac and BP. He joined Aker Solutions in 2015 as the Managing Director of their UK Maintenance, Modification and Operations Business which then developed into leading that business in the Middle East and Africa. In 2018 Craig became the Head of Health, Safety, Security and the Environment for Aker Solution’s global operations.
In 2022, Craig joined NEO Energy as their HSE & ESG Director.
Craig joined Step Change in Safety in October 2023 as Executive Director.
Craig has an MBA and is a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.
- Gillian Urquhart
- Energy Company Co-Chair
- BP Exploration
As Regional HSE & Carbon Manager for bp North Sea Gillian is part of the Business Leadership Team accountable for the delivery of HSE& Carbon activities across the business, supporting safe, compliant and reliable operations. Prior to joining bp, Gillian was head of Safety and Sustainability for Equinor in the UK working to establish Equinor’s first UK operatorship and overseeing Equinor UK’s low carbon and renewable activities.
Gillian spent 11 years working for the UK regulator (HSE) in a variety of roles including front line inspector for a wide range of high hazard industries including construction, nuclear and oil and gas. Working across these industries Gillian gained extensive knowledge and insight of safety management practices and experienced first-hand the impact incidents can have on people and their families. This has created a real drive and passion to improve and sustain high standards of safety.
Gillian has a Bachelor of Science degree in physics and a Master of Science degree in medical and radiation physics from the University of Aberdeen. Gillian is a chartered member of the Society of Radiation Protection and Institute of Physics, a STEM ambassador and an advocate for women in physics.
- Derek Mitchell
- Supply Chain Co-Chair
- nexos
- Bob Egan
- Workforce Engagement Specialist
- Health and Safety Executive
Bob Egan – a former safety rep of the year – was appointed to the role of Workforce Engagement Specialist within the Health and Safety Executive’s Energy Division in 2019.
His appointment followed a four-year secondment from global oilfield services company, Petrofac, as the HSE’s Head of Workforce Engagement where Bob worked alongside HSE Inspectors to help improve the link between the HSE and the on and offshore workforce.
Within the newly-created Workforce Engagement Specialist position, Bob focusses on workforce involvement in the Safety Cases for assets. He is also developing a guide on good practise which will comply with the workforce involvement section of corporate major accident prevention policies (CMAPPs) and will be continuing to make sure safety reps have everything they need to carry out their roles effectively and in full compliance with the regulations.
Dundee-born Bob has worked in the offshore oil and gas industry since 1992. Prior to that, he worked in the petrochemical and construction industries. His offshore career began as a pipefitter and has worked for the majority of contracting companies in the UKCS. Latterly, he was Petrofac Trade foreman, shutdown co-ordinator and Elected Safety Rep (ESR) on Maersk Oil’s GP3 FPSO.
As an ESR for over seven years, Bob won the ‘Safety Representative of the Year’ title at the 2014 Offshore Safety Awards and was praised for being “a role model for safety leadership… who earned the unwavering respect of his peers, constituents and managers.”
- Nicola Fry
- Assurance Director
- Worley
Nicola Fry is the Assurance Director for UK, Norway, Central Asia and Eastern Europe for Worley. With a career spanning over 30 years, across a number of different sectors; renewables, major Infrastructure construction as well as oil and gas, both in the UK and Overseas, Nicola has a proven track record of implementing successful HSEQ and transformational change management strategies as well as being involved in the delivery of complex, high quality projects and strategies. Prior to joining Worley, she was HSEQ Director on Europe’s largest Infrastructure Project, HS2
- Steve Hunt
- Regional Director, UK
- Altrad Integrity Services Ltd – formerly Stork Technical Services
With a career operating around the globe in the nuclear, thermal, petro-chemical, process, industrial and manufacturing industries spanning nearly 40 years, Steve has gained a wealth of knowledge and experience.
Steve started his career path on the tools by undergoing an ECITB Engineering Apprenticeship, with a global leader in advanced energy and environmental technologies. Steve progressed rapidly through increasingly senior management roles to senior executive level positions, with a number of major energy companies both within the UK and internationally.
Steve graduated from Dudley and Reid Kerr Technical Colleges, as well as The Welding Institute in Cambridge. Furthermore, he attended Cranfield University where he studied Project Management.
In his current role, Steve is responsible for overseeing Stork’s strategic business growth into new and existing markets, operational excellence and outstanding HSEQ performance in the UK.
- Mark Wilson
- HSE Director
- OEUK
Mark Wilson is the Health, Safety, Environment Director, including aviation, for Offshore Energies UK and supports HSE arrangements for the UK continental shelf offshore assets.
The first part of Mark’s career was in the British Army as a Mechanical Engineer. Upon leaving the military Mark moved into the energy industry in predominantly operational HSE roles with ConocoPhillips and EnQuest where he worked both on and offshore.
Mark’s current role also includes OEUK Resilience Support Group lead focussing on both COVID-19 and security of supply aspects in relation to the Ukraine crisis.
Mark holds an MBA and is a Chartered Engineer.
- Mhairi Finnie
- HSE Director
- Total Energies
Mhairi is currently HSE Director at TotalEnergies E&P UK Limited and VP for HSE in the UK
Mhairi started her career in 1998 working for BPB Paperboard Davidson Mill in Aberdeen. She joined TotalEnergies in 2004 as an Environmental Advisor working on Laggan pre-project and MCP_01 decommissioning. In 2008 Mhairi took a bit of a career change and moved into operational safety where she’s held a number of roles spending time onshore and offshore before being appointed as HSE Director on 1st June 2022.
Mhairi Finnie is a graduate of Robert Gordons University (BSc in Environmental Science and Technology) and Derby University (MSc in Environmental Management)
- Mark Piggott
- Vice President UK Operations, Aker Solutions Ltd
- Aker Solutions
As Vice President UK Operations and on the Board of Directors for Aker Solutions Ltd, Mark is part of the UK Leadership Team accountable for the delivery of the Life Cycle segment activities across the UK and Africa. Prior to this role, he was the Head of Engineering and Construction responsible for all E&C activities across the company`s UK portfolio.
Mark’s career spans over 26 years where he started his career as a trainee Electrical & Instrumentation Designer, progressing through the discipline grades to become the Technical Authority and Discipline Manager. Working on a variety of projects and contracts has given him the opportunity to work overseas including in Kazakhstan and Singapore.
Mark has a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electronic and Electrical Systems from the Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen. He is both a Chartered Engineer (Institute of Engineering and Technology) and a Chartered Manager (Chartered Managers Institute). In addition, Mark has also gained a Functional Safety Engineer (FSEng) qualification with TÜV Rheinland.
In addition to being a member of the Step Change in Safety Leadership Team, Mark was also recently appointed as a member of the Offshore Europe Executive Committee.
- Graeme Christie
- VP HSEEQ
- Dolphin Drilling Ltd
Graeme is currently VP of Health, Safety, Environment, Energy & Quality for Dolphin Drilling, and represents the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) North Sea Chapter on the SCiS Leadership Team.
Graeme joined the Army straight from school then spent 20 years in the Fire Service initially as a Firefighter then a Manager. A career change in 2014 took him into the Oil and Gas industry and he has worked in a variety of roles including a Safety Officer on an accommodation vessel in the UK and overseas as well as Operational HSE roles with Total and other contracting companies. Graeme latterly worked with Borr Drilling as their QHSE Manager for Europe and Africa.
- Samantha Peace
- Director of Energy Division
- Health and Safety Executive
Samantha Peace joined the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in 1995 as a Factory Inspector in London and the East dealing with a wide range of industry sectors including manufacturing, fairgrounds, ports, later moving to HSE’s Southern area with responsibility for operational policy and international standards development in the printing and paper industries.
Samantha moved to the Midlands in 2002, regulating the construction industry, obtained a Masters in Occupational Health, Safety and Environmental Law, and has since held a number of senior, managerial and leadership operational delivery posts.
Samantha was promoted to the Senior Civil Service in 2013 and in May 2016 took over as the Director of Field Operations.
In July 2023 Samantha took up the role of Director of Energy Division regulating high hazard industries including oil and gas installations and pipelines on and offshore, wind and marine renewable energies, mines, quarries and diving.
Samantha is an executive member of the International Association of Labour Inspection (IALI) with experience in conducting international assessment of labour inspection systems.
- Astrid Hoetmer
- General Manager, HSSE UK Upstream
- Shell UK Ltd
As General Manager HSSE, Astrid is member of the Shell UK Leadership Team, based in Aberdeen. She has a wide range of experience, from frontline operational leadership roles, to driving transformational change and joint venture asset management. She has worked both in Downstream and Upstream businesses and in different countries and cultures.
Astrid is passionate about people and change, with a strong belief that excellent (safety) performance can be achieved through the right culture, engagement of people & management of systems. She genuinely believes that a truly diverse workforce would benefit safety and business performance and she is a great sponsor of female talent in the industry.
- Scott Jackson
- Business Support Director
Scott joins the Leadership Team as Caterers Offshore Trade Association (COTA) representative.
Starting his career as a Chef and gaining extensive North Sea and International experience spanning 41 years in energy sector, Scott has played a key role in developing safety and operational standards at Entier since it was established in 2008. As a Founding Director, Scott has held many senior leadership roles, covering operations across the UK and globally, and ensuring a strong safety culture throughout the company.
Scott has been key in making safe working practices a priority for all employees. His dedication to safety is reflected in his leadership and efforts to achieving the highest accreditations and certifications Scott’s focus on compliance and sustainability has been crucial in building Entier's reputation for excellence.
In his current role as Business Support Director, Scott utilises his extensive experience to support the operations team, keeping safe working practices at the forefront always.
- Stuart Smith
- Vice President, Operated Assets
- Wood Plc
Stuart is responsible for Wood Operations and Maintenance, Duty Holder and Decommissioning businesses within the UK. Accountable for safe efficient delivery for Wood’s portfolio of clients in the UKCS. Prior to this role Stuart was O&M Director across UK assets, focusing on asset management the maintenance optimisation.
A skilled and driven senior professional whose career progression has encompassed Project Management, Operations, General Management and Director roles over 25 years both in the UK and Internationally. With significant experience in providing exceptional levels of customer care and developing business growth through focus on safe operations, building trusted working relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
Stuart has a BSc (Hons) from Glasgow Caledonian University and is also a Trustee of the Oil and Gas Chaplaincy since 2022.
- Harry Bos
- Operations Director, Accountable manager UK
- CHC
Harry brings over 35 years of experience in aviation and has accumulated more than 8,000 flight hours. His career began in the military, where he served for 19 years as a pilot, participating in operations around the world. His military experience includes leadership roles in flight safety, organizing exercises, and managing flight operations. During this time, he was involved in a range of complex operations, including aerial firefighting, search and rescue, medevac, underslung operations, night vision flying, and air assaults.
In 2013, Harry joined CHC as a Senior First Officer, progressively advancing through various leadership positions. His roles included Flight Safety Officer, Union Chair, Deputy Chief Pilot, Chief Pilot, and Manager of Flight Operations. In 2022, Harry was appointed Operations Director and Accountable Manager, where he is now responsible for ensuring the safe and efficient operation of CHC's UK division.
Harry has a strong passion for Human Factors and Safety, with a particular focus on understanding the relationship between the two in aviation operations.
- Martin Scargill
- Managing Director
- Centrica Energy Storage
Having started his career as an apprentice technician in the UK upstream oil and gas industry with BG Group, Martin has over 30 years of experience working in high hazard energy infrastructure operations.
With a 1st class honours degree in Mechanical and Electrical engineering and a post grad distinction master’s in business from Henley, Martin has combined an experience-based career with lifelong learning to become and well-grounded business leader in the energy sector.
Martin has extensive experience of operations and delivering major capital projects in upstream infrastructure, predominantly in gas production and storage and has held several influential operational and technical roles in his career including projects director, operations manager, and engineering manager.
Martin is the Managing Director of Centrica Energy Storage+, a wholly owned subsidiary of Centrica plc., based in the Humber region with operations at Easington and offshore with its head office in Hessle.
Centrica is the largest energy supplier in the UK through its British Gas brand and has businesses that cover all of the energy system, with a purpose of energising a greener, fairer future.
Martin is accountable for business performance and delivering a growth strategy in support of the energy transition and net zero, including Centrica’s Hydrogen infrastructure investment programme.
Since 2021, Martin has acted as non-executive director on the board of Spirit Energy and Martin is also the Vice Chairman of the Humber Energy Board.
- Simon Taylor
- EVP Health, Safety & Environment
- Ithaca Energy (UK) Limited
Simon started his career in 2000, providing HSE support in the energy, telecommunications and defence industries before joining Apache North Sea in 2003, progressing to the role of HSSE Manager. In 2020 Simon joined Neptune Energy as Head of HSEQ, Global Projects and Engineering, before also taking on the role as Head of HSEQ, UK, and, latterly, the role of Global HSEQ Director. In October 2024 Simon joined Ithaca Energy as EVP HSE.
Simon is a graduate of the University of Aberdeen, and is a Fellow of IIRSM, Chartered Member of IOSH, Chartered Energy Manager and Chartered Environmentalist via the Energy Institute.
- Mike Brady
- Director of Health, Safety & Environment
- NEO NEXT
Mike Brady is Director of Health, Safety & Environment at NEO NEXT, where he leads strategic safety initiatives and is dedicated to fostering a positive HSE culture throughout the organisation. He holds a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Strathclyde, including a year at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
Mike began his career with Talisman Energy in 2007 as a Mechanical Engineer, progressing through a variety of onshore technical and project roles across Engineering, Operations Management, and Project Delivery. He spent seven years offshore, serving on four assets in leadership roles including Production Team Lead and Offshore Installation Manager (OIM). Mike then advanced to Asset Manager for the Flotta Catchment Area, accountable for Piper B, Claymore, and the Flotta Terminal, delivering safe and efficient operations for four years.
- Chris Curson
- North Sea HSES VP
- Harbour Energy
Chris is the Vice President of Health, Safety, Environment and Security (HSES) for Harbour Energy’s UK Operations. In this role, he is accountable for leading and delivering the company’s HSES culture and performance, and for its energy and emissions reduction strategy across the UK Continental Shelf.
A member of Harbour Energy’s UK leadership team, Chris brings over 24 years of experience in the energy sector to his role, having worked in the both the North Sea, and overseas. Chris has spent time working both on and offshore for a range of companies across the sector and built extensive experience spanning the full asset lifecycle, now focussing on HSES.
Chris holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering, is a Chartered Engineer and a member of the IChemE. He has a passion to use his engineering and operational background to drive best-in-class safety performance at Harbour Energy, and across the oil and gas industry more broadly.
- Peter Hepburn
- Operations Director
- Spirit Energy
Peter joined Spirit Energy as Asset Director for the Morecambe Hub in July 2023. Two years later, Peter’s responsibilities were expanded, and he was appointed Operations Director for the company, encompassing operations in the UK and The Netherlands.
A Chartered Chemical Engineer with an MSc in Process Technology and Management, he has 18 years of experience in the upstream oil and gas industry. Prior to joining Spirit, Peter was with EnQuest where his final role was HSEA (Health, Safety, Environment and Assurance) Director. Throughout his career, he has demonstrated a successful track record of operational leadership and cultural change, earning recognition for delivering results and improving business performance.
Peter joined Maersk Oil UK in 2007 and, progressing to Offshore Installation Manager before moving onshore for various senior HSE and Operational leadership roles. Peter's final position with Maersk was as Operations Director where he was seconded to the Global Integration Team as part of the Total merger, where he undertook the role of HSE Workstream Lead, responsible - along with a Total counterpart - for defining Day 1 HSE readiness criteria and ensuing delivery by all business units.
After leaving Maersk, Peter joined EnQuest in June 2018, undertaking various operational leadership roles, ultimately being accountable for all of EnQuest's operated production as Upstream Asset Manager.
Before working in the upstream oil and gas industry, Peter held Health and Safety, Engineering and Operations positions in the onshore petrochemical, power generation and manufacturing industries.
