WINS is thrilled to congratulate Mr Geoff McCabe on receiving his Certified Radioactive Source Security (CRSP) designation at the end of September, adding to his Certified Nuclear Security Professional (CNSP) title. According to Mr McCabe, his experience with and knowledge gained from WINS has positioned him to enhance both his career and security at the Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station, where he currently works as Sergeant on the Nuclear Response Team. To gain more insight into Mr McCabe’s experience, we sat down to speak with him in an extended interview.
Mr McCabe was first introduced to WINS in 2018 through a leadership meeting and subsequently gained the support of his supervision to enroll in the Foundations module. From there, he pursued the CNSP programme and chose Nuclear Security Incident Management as his elective, earning his first designation in 2019.
In continuing his WINS journey, Mr McCabe then attended a workshop on the Security of Small Modular Reactors held in Ontario in November 2019 to become further knowledgeable given that his company, NB Power, is part of an energy research cluster in New Brunswick that is working to make advanced small modular reactors a reality in the province.
“Being part of the workshop really bolstered my confidence. I was the only person at the workshop from my area of expertise, and I was fielding questions from agencies from all over the world on my thoughts and opinions. I came back with a wealth of knowledge, particularly given where New Brunswick is heading with advanced reactors,” he said about the workshop.
After witnessing first-hand the benefits and knowledge gained from WINS, Mr McCabe applied to become a WINS Ambassador shortly after the Academy relaunched its Ambassador programme in early 2020.
When asked about his experience as an Ambassador, he stated, “During my time as an Ambassador for the WINS Academy, I have encouraged fellow officers on the frontline Nuclear Response Team to enroll in the Academy. Four of my colleagues are in various stages of working toward their CNSP designations, and two have already earned their CNSPs.”
As an Academy Ambassador, he explains to his team members that becoming WINS certified is more than simply gaining a title and email signature: it provides them with actionable knowledge that will in turn make their team stronger.
“A lot of people simply complete a task because it is in our job description – we don’t necessarily know the in-depth background. What the Academy does is shed light on the logic behind why we do what we do. One example is the two-person mobility rule when it comes to certain work activities. Prior to this certification, I did not know the ‘why’ behind sending two people into certain locations onsite – but now I have a better understanding of these methods which enhances our ability to mitigate any potential risks which is part of our ongoing mission to prevent, detect and defend.”
At WINS, gender parity lies at the heart of what we do, and we encourage our Ambassadors to help promote gender parity. This is a commitment echoed by Mr. McCabe, who stated that are currently six female armed officers in his department.
“Gender parity is something we are really focused on. Because of the behind-the-scenes nature of our work, many women aren’t aware of our roles and what we do. We are reworking with our Human Resources team to get more women into our field because they bring a very different perspective which builds a more effective team.” he said.
When asked about how gender parity can benefit his field, Mr McCabe said, “I think it would give us more balance and would show other women that there are opportunities out there in such a unique career. I would encourage any women who have an interest in nuclear – whether it’s on the engineering side or on the security side – to research it and apply for positions on our website.”
After Mr McCabe became an Academy Ambassador, he wanted to continue to push himself and enhance his career prospects at Point Lepreau, so he enrolled in the CRSP programme in early 2021, earning his designation in late September.
When questioned about the most rewarding aspect of his WINS experience, Mr McCabe said, “The highlight of the whole process was getting both certifications. Coming from a general frontline officer on the range doing all the tactical work that we do is great and is something that I still enjoy and that I am committed to, but I was looking for more of a challenge and being able to put in the accreditation next to my name to show that I’ve earned something above and beyond what’s required of me. That was definitely the highlight of my path with WINS.”
