Kevin Chothani has a big job.
As head of the safety, health, and environment (SH&E) program for Sekura Energy Private Limited, he is responsible for the overall safety culture of a company dealing in power transmission, solar energy, wind energy, and highway assets. Based in Mumbai – the second-largest city in India with a population of nearly 20 million – Chothani leads strategic planning to protect his people and the environment.
It’s a vital role and one for which he is qualified. Chothani is a Certified Safety Professional (CSP), a Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH), and a Chartered Member of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (CMIOSH). He has worked almost 20 years in the field.
He knows the value certification has brought in his career development, and now he is doing his best to share that with the next generation.
Chothani is one of BCSP’s Ambassadors, a group of more than 30 credential-holding SH&E professionals from around the globe volunteering to represent BCSP at speaking engagements and to help in raising awareness for the value of certification.
“My major role is that I guide and mentor students and other working environmental, health, and safety professionals to enhance their competence through BCSP certifications and guide them in a one-on-one basis.” Chothani said.
Chothani, who has held the CSP since 2013, was not aware of certification opportunities when he completed his degree in electrical engineering in 2002 and entered the workforce. It wasn’t until a decade later he discovered and achieved certification.
Since then, he has risen to senior leadership roles, first with General Electric, then the Adani Group, and now in his current position with Sekura. Through volunteering as a BCSP Ambassador, he desires to ensure others are aware of certification opportunities earlier in their careers.
“To students or EHS professors … I will ask them to go for accredited safety certification as soon as possible,” he said. “This certification will provide great opportunities for career advancement as well as personal satisfaction.”
The CSP is just one of 10 BCSP credential offerings, each uniquely designed for SH&E practitioners based on their responsibilities and experience. Ambassadors like Chothani are helping to support the global expansion of BCSP certifications and making workplaces safer around the world by championing the value of the credentials.
BCSP has recently made a concerted effort to expand the reach of the program by recruiting more Ambassadors outside the United States, seeking to facilitate continued growth in places like Chothani’s India, which already boasts more BCSP credentials than any country outside the United States.
Today’s aspiring credential holders, and even those who have already achieved certification, have more resources at their fingertips than Chothani did when he was pursuing the CSP. In recent years, BCSP has launched programs like examCORE to aid in preparing for examinations and recertPRO to assist credential holders in the recertification process.
Then, of course, there are the Ambassadors out there to help too.
“Now resources are also available for examination preparation,” Chothani said. “And I would further advise someone that you can always reach out to your area ambassadors for more guidance and support for steps to achieve those certifications.”