Using Digital EHS&S Tools to Increase Workforce Engagement
Jason Brezski
April 9, 2026
Sandy Nessing
April 9, 2026
Unfortunately, many companies are facing eroding workforce engagement. The linkage between an engaged workforce and EHS&S performance is not a soft management theory; it’s a statistically proven driver of enterprise resilience. Research from Gallup, McKinsey, and others shows that engagement acts as a multiplier for safety, compliance, and strategy execution.
Enabling Engagement Without Adding Complexity
Although companies are under pressure to digitize EHS&S, improper implementation or use of tools may inadvertently add administrative burden without significantly improving decision quality or engagement. When frontline users are not involved in the system design, or when technology is implemented without process or culture changes, the result is often fragmented systems that do not achieve the intended outcomes. This can lead to low adoption, “checkbox” behavior, data overload, and missed opportunities for innovation, learning, and empowerment.
Digital EHS&S tools can simplify work, connect people and data, and give leaders better visibility to make smarter decisions when set up and utilized well, but technology alone isn’t the answer. Real, sustainable progress happens when digital tools are integrated within the EHS&S management system to enhance a culture of continuous improvement, where employees are engaged, learning is ongoing, and innovation becomes part of how work gets done every day.
Using Digital Tools to Simplify Work
Reviewing your digital EHS&S programs often leads to opportunities to simplify processes, reduce friction, and empower people with better insight, not just collect more data. Transforming what used to be a reporting burden into a decision enablement platform unlocks higher engagement and adoption from frontline teams; cleaner, more trusted data that supports faster decisions; and reduced administrative load and duplication across systems.
To help strengthen your EHS&S management system, start by simplifying the high-friction parts. Here are some steps you can take:
- Establish a cross-functional team to identify the issue areas
- Engage with the right stakeholders and be consistent
- Engage employees as partners, not just participants
- Prioritize and invest in the selected areas of focus (remove non-value-add)
- Manage operational risk by acknowledging change
- Use digital tools to enable decision making – not just data capture
- Shift the conversation from “what happened” to “what did we learn”
- Make EHS&S expectations visible in everyday leadership moments
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About the Author
Jason Brezski
TRC Companies
Jason has held leadership positions both in privately and publicly held organizations over the past twenty-five years. His early career roles spanned not-for-profit and life sciences organizations. He progressed to a leading role in an EHS management and technology consulting firm where he served over eighty clients (primarily Fortune 500) over twelve years. Prior to joining TRC, Jason held leadership team positions in the global EHS departments of Johnson & Johnson and Amazon.
Sandy Nessing
TRC Companies
Sandy has nearly three decades of transformative leadership in the utility sector, during which she served as a driving force behind innovative corporate sustainability and communication strategies. Her expertise spans ESG and sustainability reporting, corporate governance, stakeholder and community engagement, culture transformation, strategic communications, materiality assessments, and risk management. As a Senior Advisor at TRC, Sandy helps clients identify and implement strategic sustainability solutions to better navigate evolving reporting requirements and meet the growing demand for transparency.