“Compliance doesn’t equal competence. We have to do better.”
Jennifer Lastra started her career as an electrician in the US Navy. She spent years working in shipbuilding and manufacturing as boots on the ground. She worked as a contractor in shipyards, frequently operating in high-risk environments with minimal supervision. This was real work, alongside people who did dangerous jobs every day.
Then she saw the gaps—massive gaps in how safety was taught, understood, and retained.
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“I didn’t even realize how unsafe shipboard construction was until years later. And yet, we weren’t taught about self-awareness or situational awareness the way we should have been. We were just thrown in.”
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Today, Lastra is on a mission to change that. As the Co-Founder and CEO of 360 Immersive, she’s pioneering the use of virtual reality (VR) in safety training. Her firm creates deeply immersive experiences. This is training that forces workers to engage, react, and remember. Her philosophy is simple: traditional training isn’t working. And if the fatality rates prove anything, it’s that the industry is long overdue for disruption.
From the Navy to Night Vision to VR
After the Navy, Lastra moved into shipbuilding. After that — manufacturing, making night vision goggles for military and emergency responders. She loved the sense of service—helping those who protect others. But eventually, she felt the pull to do something on her own. She wanted to build something. And in 2014, she saw her opportunity: virtual reality.
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“We started being able to pair cell phones with VR viewers. Even if it was just cardboard headsets, I knew this technology had the power to completely immerse someone. And if you can immerse them, you can have the ability to modify their behavior.”
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But Lastra isn’t a tech person. She never set out to be one. What drew her in wasn’t the hardware—it was the potential. “It was the perfect storm,” she says. “Entrepreneurship, powerful technology, and the chance to fix something I knew was broken.”
She took that vision and started building. At first, there were skeptics. Some dismissed VR as a gimmick, a novelty. But as more companies saw the results, they realized she was onto something. “When workers go through VR training, they retain more. They react faster. They make better decisions under pressure,” she says. “It’s not theory—it’s science.”
Fixing the Gaps in Safety Training
For Lastra, the problem with traditional safety training is that it’s passive. Workers sit through hours of slide decks, printed manuals, and video lectures. They check a box, take a test, and move on. But does any of it stick?
“Most safety training today is outdated and ineffective,” she says. “We’re giving workers information, but we’re not engaging them. And when the moment comes—when they’re in a real situation—what do they actually remember?”
She experienced the challenge firsthand early in her career. As someone with dyslexia, she struggled to translate technical training into real-world applications. “I could pass any test you threw at me,” she says. “But when I got to the fleet, I had no idea how to apply it.”
That disconnect drives her work today. 360 Immersive doesn’t just build training programs—it builds experiences. Using VR, workers are placed in hazardous environments. They react, make decisions, and see the consequences of those decisions play out in real time.
“The goal is to meet learners where they are,” she says. “Some people learn best through reading, others hands-on, or a combination of both. VR bridges the gap, blending learning styles creating a more effective, engaging, and memorable experience.”
VR goes beyond technical skills – it’s ideal for simulating low-incident, high-risk scenarios like confined space rescues or warehouse fires, where mistakes have cost lives. “It’s a powerful tool for developing decision-making and critical thinking skills without actual consequences,” Lastra says. “The emotional connection makes training unforgettable and deeply impactful.”
The Next Big Fight: Psychological Safety
For Lastra, safety training isn’t just about hazard recognition and compliance – it’s about mindset. She believes psychological safety is the most overlooked factor in workplace safety.
“Early in my career, I was often the first – or only – woman on the team, which made me feel like an outsider. I didn’t feel safe enough to raise my hand or ask questions. How many people still face this same challenge today?”
She argues that fear prevents workers from speaking up about unsafe conditions – fear of asking a “stupid” question, fear of retaliation, fear of rejection. “People don’t speak up if they don’t feel like they belong. If they don’t feel safe,” she says.
Her approach integrates psychological safety, mindfulness, and situational awareness into safety training. Instead of just teaching PPE regulations, we have an opportunity to dig deeper to understand, ‘Why aren’t you wearing it?’ or ‘Why did you skip inspecting it?’ Maybe it didn’t fit, or they were rushing to finish a task.
Powerful storytelling in VR goes beyond compliance by illustrating the root causes of unsafe behaviors. By immersing learners in realistic, relatable scenarios, they build self-awareness, confidence, and the ability to speak up, take responsibility, and make safer decisions – key elements of a psychologically safe workplace.
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“If we can create emotional connections to training, we can change behavior. That’s the missing piece.”
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The Fight for Better Standards
Lastra isn’t just battling outdated training methods—she’s fighting complacency. “While yearly numbers fluctuate, the overall trend of workplace fatalities has risen over the past decade,” she says. “That means what we’re doing isn’t working.”
She points to companies that continue to recycle the same training materials year after year while expecting different results. “If your safety training hasn’t evolved in five years, you’re already behind,” she says. “If it’s just about compliance, you’re failing your people.”
With legislation threatening to cut federal OSHA oversight, she sees even greater risk ahead. “If safety regulation gets handed back to individual states, rural states will suffer the most,” she warns. “Small businesses won’t have the resources to keep workers safe, and the burden will fall on insurance companies. That means higher premiums, stricter oversight, and a lack of overall accountability.”
She believes that organizations need to take the initiative themselves—before they’re forced to. “We can’t just do the minimum and hope for the best,” she says. “It’s time to evolve.”
The Future of Safety Training
Lastra envisions a future where workers don’t just watch safety training—they live it. She sees VR evolving into a fully personalized experience. Where AI can analyze a response and then customize training to address a specific weakness.
“We’re moving beyond static courses,” she says. “Imagine training that adapts in real time. Where failing a simulation means getting recommended another, targeted experience.”
Her team has already developed an AI companion. Nicknamed “Buddy”, it guides workers through training scenarios. For now, it’s scripted. In the future, she wants it to be fully responsive, coaching workers through real-world challenges as they happen.
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“Safety isn’t just about rules. It’s about people. If we start treating workers like humans instead of compliance risks, everything changes.”
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Final Thoughts: Disrupt or Be Left Behind
Lastra’s mission is clear: disrupt the safety training industry and reduce preventable workplace fatalities.
“This industry needs to wake up,” she says. “Safety training must move beyond compliance checkboxes and focus directly on the learner. Leveraging technology and insights, we can engage workers where they are, empowering real, lasting behavior change.”
She isn’t interested in maintaining the status quo. She’s here to break it. “If you’re not evolving, you’re part of the problem,” she says. “And I refuse to be part of the problem.”
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