Lesson 20: Trustworthy
On March 28, 1979 near Harrisburg, PA, the nuclear reactor at Three Mile Island began to fail around 4:00 AM when the main feedwater pumps stopped sending water to cool the reactor. Soon, a bubble of hydrogen gas threatened to rupture the container and release radiation into the atmosphere. Although experts concluded the incident had negligible effects on the physical health of people or the environment, nuclear power lost credibility as a safe energy source. At the time, it was no longer trustworthy.
Since reading about the impact of Three Mile Island, I reflected on how I could build a trustworthy trade school, specifically trustworthy graduates. As the nuclear power industry begins to grow in popularity, I see these graduates operating these facilities with their new skills.
Jennifer Pema is an Investment Associate in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Program Office (LPO) providing over $300 billion of funding to clean energy projects. This week, I interviewed her about her work and learned how the LPO committed $1.52 billion to reopen a nuclear power plant in Michigan. She described how the plant hosted a public meeting to discuss the reopening and more importantly build trust with the community, which showed me how the process was as important as the outcome.
As Three Mile Island began to fail, so did public trust in nuclear energy. However, the incident caused the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to develop more robust requirements for the safe use of radioactive materials. Understanding the NRC regulations is essential not only for power generation companies but also for my work training people to work in these nuclear plants. Given both the history of nuclear power and the regulatory environment, we need trustworthy people operating these facilities.
My values are to act with love, humility, and wisdom. Leaders make mistakes every day and successful leaders are humble enough to admit when they are wrong so the organization can make the appropriate changes for the well-being of the company. The NRC acknowledged the mistakes at Three Mile Island to learn how to make the nuclear industry safer. 45 years later, we need nuclear power more than ever, and the industry’s efforts to rebuild trust will make communities safer. Sending trustworthy graduates to employers is a top priority for me because trustworthy employees make trustworthy businesses.
Trustworthy is Lesson 20. Next week, I will share Lesson 21: Fear.
