I was in a warehouse morning stand-up meeting years ago.
Like most stand-ups, the goal was to keep it under five minutes. Safety, staffing, priorities, goals for the shift…then get everyone to work.
That morning, someone mentioned there had been a safety incident the night before.
Our site leader was there, and it was the first she’d heard about it.
The notification process had failed.
The meeting immediately shifted into problem-solving mode.
What happened?
Who was notified?
Why wasn’t leadership informed?
How did the process break down?
Everyone focused on understanding the incident.
Then the meeting ended.
As we walked out, my boss turned to me and said something I’ve never forgotten.
“No one asked the most important question.”
I looked at her, confused.
She said,
“Is the employee okay?”
Not one of us had asked.
I was just as guilty.
I’d become so focused on the process that I’d forgotten about the person.
That moment changed the way I think about leadership.
Processes matter.
Root cause matters.
Corrective actions matter.
But people always come first.
Sometimes the most important question isn’t about what happened.
It’s about who it happened to.