Whilst I understand the need to be able to step back a little from the organisation you work for to provide a perceived impartial approach to accident investigations or to provide advice that guides the company, I think the advantages of this approach are far outweighed by the advantages of being seen as part of the team.
An outsider will never get to have the level of open and honest conversation that provides an insight to a worker’s concerns or expertise without the trust and confidence that comes with a team mentality.
Try conducting investigation interviews with people who see you as an outsider; they would immediately see you as the health and safety police regardless of how much you try to convince them you are not looking for someone to blame.
The same is true of some leadership teams; as an outsider it can become difficult to persuade some senior leaders that you have the best interest of the company at heart, rather than simply reciting legislation and regulation to make life difficult.
I have worked as both a consultant (the outsider), and for a single entity where I spent a colossal amount of the first 2 years trying to dispel the amount of suspicion that comes with any new employee – multiply that out as a new health and safety manager!!!
I have to say engagement, cooperation and collaboration is far easier and productive when you are seen as a valuable team member.
Get inside your team, build relationships, join in. It works
Thank me later!!

I completely agree with Alan and was about to write a similar reply. I disagree fundamentally with Rosa Carrillo's proposition. Safety people should be on the train with everybody else, instead of running alongside gesticulating.

I also believe they need to speak more about the overall benefits to the organisation and stop thinking they need to be "passionate" about health and safety. Being passionate frankly just makes us look detached from the realities of business. Neither an outsider, nor a teammate, just a nuisance.

To be taken seriously, we have to be able to communicate in terms of the overall success of the business. It puts us on a "team" level and helps with trust, credibility and respect.

Perhaps if Rosa is talking about being an outsider in the context of manager/sub-ordinate relationships. Being a manager means you have to maintain a certain level of professional distance with your staff. Its the old case of banter and jokes with them today, but needing to fire them tomorrow. Its difficult to do that if they are a "mate". If that professional separation that makes a person an "outsider" in her context then I do agree.

If its an outsider in the context of being seen as "outside" the organisation or business, then I am with the other commenters and disagree. In my experience much more is gained by being part of the team.

"I also believe they need to speak more about the overall benefits to the organisation and stop thinking they need to be "passionate" about health and safety. Being passionate frankly just makes us look detached from the realities of business. Neither an outsider, nor a teammate, just a nuisance."

Spot on @

Couldn't agree more. As a consultant I used to tell leaders that the cost of doing something in health and safety couldn't be used as an excuse for not doing it unless it was excessively disproportionate. Then I moved into a role in a business and discovered very quickly that cost is absolutely part of the decision making process. Not because a business is looking for reason s not to implement reasonable controls, but because they are a business. Passion can only take you so far. I'm passionate about taking care of the folks that work, but having a an eye on cost, business and the overall goal makes you relevant to the business itself, not merely necessary.