January 26, 2015
To whom it may concern:
Austian’s Risk Services, Inc., and ARS Risk Reduction Reviews™
I have worked with Keith Austian, President of Austian’s Risk Services, Inc. (ARS), for over 10
years and was one of the very first users of the ARS Risk Reduction Review process and early
versions of what he would later develop into the ARS Risk Reduction Reviews™ software
application. I was an Area Safety Director for Laidlaw Education Services, Inc. (LES), responsible
for 5 states and 20 divisions. As a Safety Director, we were doing safety reviews of our divisions
every 2 years but were not achieving the results we desired. When Laidlaw Education Services,
Inc., implemented the Focusing on Safety (FOS) initiative and started using the ARS Risk
Reduction Review process and ARS Risk Reduction Reviews™, we immediately began to see very
noticeable reductions in vehicle accidents, employee injuries, litigation costs and insurance
reserves.
When using ARS Risk Reduction Reviews™ as Directors, we had to review other Area’s Divisions
instead of our own and the application ARS developed was extremely comprehensive but easy
to use. I also Beta tested every improvement that was made to the ARS Risk Reduction process
and ARS Risk Reduction Reviews™ in the field and sent feedback to Keith and his team. They
were always very responsive to our suggestions and to our calls no matter the day or the hour.
ARS Risk Reduction Reviews™ covers File Compliance, Policy, Procedures, Training, Safety
Leadership, Maintenance, OSHA Compliance, State, Federal, and Local Compliance, while using
it as a teaching tool for the GM’s and the Divisions. The Divisions took ownership of the
opportunities for improvement and bought into the program. This created major safety culture
shifts throughout LES, returning $10.5 million and more back to the Company every year in
savings.
I would not hesitate to work with Keith or to use ARS Risk Reduction Reviews™ again and I
strongly endorse both.
Remember, “You can’t expect what you don’t inspect!” Keith and his team will assist you in
doing just that.
Sincerely,
Robert Woods
Area Safety Director
