According to Allen, the aim of such symposiums is to share experiences and benefits as well as raise awareness about safety issues.

“If safety is important in your company you will find this within its strategy and it will be demonstrated in the workplace,” Allen said. “Part of safety is teamwork. We have 106,000 employees around the world, and they can come to work and go home in the same state they came in the morning … We want to be known as good practitioners in terms of safety and we want everyone to think similarly.”

Allen explained her fascination with everything that is different in Saudi Arabia, pointing out that this was her first visit, as she basically came for the symposium.

She had something extra to share about the concept of corporate social responsibility, which aims to raise social awareness and knowledge about different key issues.

“Corporate responsibility is not just making profit for business. It is looking at the impacts we have on safety, on the environment and in the communities where we work,” said Allen, adding that she cares about people’s lives and the things she might do in terms of pollution and wider issues.

It is not limited to workplaces, Allen explains. It is related to any impact the company might have.

“So, yes, there are things within our workplace we have to look at, but also wider issues. As we are a big engineering company, we have a responsibility to encourage people to go to school, to promote engineering and to help them understand why engineering is a good career.”

Allen said BAE operates in many places and work in different communities, and has responsibilities toward shareholders.

“It is quite huge and related to the life of every individual,” she said.

According to Allen, the safety standards symposium was the first of its kind held in Saudi Arabia, but BAE has been running them in United Kingdom and America for the last ten years.

“We bring the safety professionals together as well as the managers and mainly the people who should actually deliver safety in the workplace,” says Allen, adding that BAE systems is committed to the transfer of technology and knowledge to the Kingdom.

Internal auditors are tasked to come and check the standards at workplaces and confirm that they comply with the standards used in other parts of the world.

“We also bring our safety professionals to come and say what we are doing in other parts of the world,” said Allen.

Safety is not only regarding rules and regulations, she said, it’s both. One always needs the rules and regulations but still needs people to pick them up for themselves.

“I need to take responsibility for my own safety and for those around me,” said Allen. “Just because someone was not told to do something, that does not mean he should not do it.”

Allen cites wearing a seatbelt as an example.

“Putting on a seat belt in a car is a necessity. Nobody told me to do it but I know it makes sense to do it,” she said. “I have to take responsibility for my actions and that is the big picture.”