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Safety Culture?

How to Improve HSE Performance through Measuring and Developing Safety Culture

02/04/2012

Summary of Presentation

Purpose and Objectives What is Safety Culture? What influences Safety Culture? When to use Behaviour Interventions Diagnostic and Measuring Tools
Advantages and Disadvantages

ModuSpec Self Assessment Process


Report Information

Summary of Presentation (cont)


Climate Survey demo Conclusions

Objectives

To provide:
An insight into the topic of Safety (HSE)
Culture and what it takes to establish a successful culture An understanding of why measuring safety culture is an important pre-cursor to applying any Behavioural Safety intervention or modification An overview of a Safety Climate process through demonstration and use of the tools

Poor Safety Culture

Accidents that result in severe injuries may not be random events, rather their causal factors may derive from an accumulation, over time, of deficiencies in an organizations safety culture
We are convinced that the management practices overseeing the Shuttle program were as much a cause of the accident as the foam that struck the left wing CAIB Report

A Good Example of Safety Culture

E. I. Dupont starting manufacturing explosives in the early 1800s Developed concept of separation distances for the powder mills and designed buildings so that explosions would go upwards or away from occupied buildings Built his house inside the plant and insisted managers also live inside the plant Developed plant rules and procedures

Definitions

Safety Culture
The collective values and attitudes of
people in the organization
Behavioural Issues Task Group Step Change

The knowledge, values, norms, ideas


and attitudes which characterize a group of people Seldom a unified or homogenous quantity, usually diversified, fragmented and split into sub-cultures

Definitions

Safety Climate
Surface snapshot of the state of safety
providing an indicator of the underlying safety culture Step Change Behavioural Issues Task Group

Behavioural Aspects of Safety


The way organizations act out their safety
management systems and how systems operate in reality. Includes safety culture, safety leadership and behaviour modification

Safety Culture What is it?

The product of individual and group values, attitudes, perceptions, competencies and patterns of behaviour that determine the commitment to and style and proficiency of an organizations health and safety management ACSNI 1993 The way we do things around here CBI
1990

Safety Culture What is it?

As the Board investigated the Columbia accident, it expected to find a vigorous safety organiztion, process and culture at NASA, bearing little resemblance to the ineffective silent safety system identified during Challenger Disaster (86) NASAs initial briefings to the Board on its safety programs espoused a risk averse philosophy that empowered any employee to stop an operation at the mere glimmer of a problem Unfortunately, NASAs views of its safety culture, did not reflect reality CAIB Report

Imagine the difference if a Shuttle Program Manager had simply asked Prove to me that Columbia has not been harmed by the foam strike

Frequently Asked Questions


What does a good safety culture look like? How do you know if the safety culture is improving? What are the key issues to focus upon first? When to stop working on a specific safety culture issue and move onto the next Is it always necessary to survey staff to measure safety culture? How does behaviour modification link to safety culture improvement?

Improvements in Safety Performance

Road to QHSE Culture


- Warning signs - Training - Inspections / Maintenance plans - Regulatory compliance - Incident reporting / - Performance Analysis investigations - Refresher training - Auditing and Management Review - Change Management process - Human Behavioural Implications - Procedural compliance - Obligation to intervene - Empowerment to stop the job

Incident Frequency

Reduction through TRADITIONAL QHSE PROGRAMS Reduction through addition of ADVANCED APPROACHES WITH SUPPORTING SYSTEMS

Time - Maturity of QHSE Approach


Reduction through further addition of MODERN APPROACHES

Safety Culture Change


Peoples attitudes and opinions have been formed over decades of life and cannot be changed by having a few meetings or giving a few lectures

(Mao Tse Tung)

Sound Safety Culture

A sound safety culture is INFORMED



Good reporting systems Just and fair Learning from experiences Flexible and adaptable
James Reason 2001

Sound Culture

Reporting Culture
Organizations with little trust often find it
difficult to get people to admit to their own mistakes

Just and Fair


Reaction to the reporting of events should be
proportionate to the intentions behind and the consequences of an action Organizations which apply sanctions in a fair and just manner will build trust and creativity

Sound Culture

Flexible and adaptable


Organizations which want creative
contributions from its employees must have a degree of tolerance. E.g. value a verbal exchange of experience and creativity if it means work will be safer.

Sound Safety Culture

Learning
The ability to share knowledge across
organizational boundaries is a key aspect of a sound safety culture e.g. are employees fully involved in decisions affecting their safety and health? Conflicting objectives are a way of life i.e. do the job quickly and efficiently, but do it safely without getting hurt

Management and Culture

The significance of the way managers speak and behave is often underestimated Managers who only get involved after the event e.g. an accident will not enjoy the same credibility as those who were involved all the time

Behavioural Issues

Behavioural issues are extremely important


Behaviour turns systems and procedures into
reality Good safety performance is determined by the way an organization lives its systems and processes

Example of airlines Fly similar aeroplanes Similar standards of pilot training Risk to passengers varies by a factor of 42

What Influences Safety Culture?

Interaction between:
The person The job Organizational factors

Unsafe behaviour may have been the final act in an accident sequence, but worker behaviour will have been influenced by the job, work environment and the organization

What Influences Safety Culture?


Person

Safety

Safety

Climate

Culture

Organization

Job

What Influences Safety Culture?

Safety performance is improved when all factors job, environment and organization are considered Requires behavioural changes at all levels in the organization, not just at workplace People behave the way they do because of the consequences that result for themselves after doing it.

Who Influences Safety Culture?

If there are safety problems, it is because the behaviours producing the problems are being reinforced Managers and supervisors change worker behaviours by their own action or inaction Focusing only on the front line worker will not result in positive changes

Who Influences Safety Culture?


Management has the most influence How do they walk the talk and demonstrate safety leadership?
Field visits to talk knowledgeably about
safety e.g. accident stats and near misses Safety manager is a full member of the senior management team

Demonstrate Management Commitment

Senior managers meet to discuss safety performance against objectives and targets Time off provided for safety training. Managers safety leadership appraisal and self assessment questionnaire Managers lead Safety Orientation training Adequate # of safety professionals are available to assist operational and field staff. (Not to take over!!)

Behaviour Modification Preconditions

Is a significant proportion of accidents primarily caused by the behaviour of front line workers? Do a majority of managers and supervisors want to reduce the current accident rate? Will management be comfortable with empowering and delegating some authority for safety to workers? Is management willing to trust the results produced by the workers? Are the workers willing to trust management?

Behaviour Modification Preconditions


Is there a high level of management involvement in safety? Is management willing to provide the necessary time and resources for workers to be trained and to carry out observations? Has a program champion or champions been identified? Are the existing communication processes adequate for the increased communication and feedback between management and workers?

Behavioural Change Conclusions

Any behavioural modification program needs a strongly implemented and robust HSE MS as a foundation Research and practical evidence shows significant improvements can be achieved by implementing appropriate behaviour interventions Behavioural modification initiatives unlikely to be successful unless job environment and organization factors also considered

Behavioural Change Conclusions

Intervention tools which work at one location, may not work at another Suitability of behavioural tools is influenced by the existing safety culture A Safety Culture model provides a framework to identify current level and identify appropriate action to improve and move to next level

Cultural maturity model


Continually Improving Level 5 Cooperating Level 4
Ensure consistency

Involving Level 3
Managing Level 2 Emerging Level 1
Develop management commitment

Develop cooperation between management and frontline workers

Involve frontline staff and develop personal responsibility

Kiel Centre

The Journey

Safety Culture Assessment

Diagnostic tools
Safety climate surveys Structured workshops Combination of the above

Results assist in selection of appropriate behaviour modification program and planning in how to implement

Tools to Improve Safety

Diagnostic
Used to identify issues, which require improvement

Intervention

Improve safety by addressing specific safety


behaviours

Establishing where an organizations safety culture maturity lies is key to selecting appropriate behaviour modification programs and implementing them effectively

Safety Culture Improvement Process


Assess current level Develop plan to improve Implement plan Monitor implementation Re-assess to evaluate success and identify further actions

Questionnaires Pros and Cons


Wide

coverage Can ask for yes/no or sliding scale responses Flexible timing for respondents Standard format easy to summarize

Limited

explanation, understanding of responses No discussion of remedies, improvements No commitment to change

Regular Meetings Pros and Cons


Regular,

frequent opportunities Real players are in the room Decisions can be made Commitment to act

Regular

agenda items intrude No fresh perspectives Unequal status of participants Internal problems go unchallenged

Self Assessment

Carefully considered evaluation resulting in a judgment of the effectiveness and efficiency of the organization and the maturity of its HSE Management System Self Assessment provides fact based guidance on where to invest resources for optimum improvement

Self Assessment and Audit


Self Assessment
those who have the knowledge and
expertise perform the evaluation

Audit
auditee provides information to auditor
who performs the evaluation

ModuSpec Self Assessment Process

Combination of Survey Questionnaire and Facilitated workshop Complements the audit process by focusing resources on prioritized areas Where to use?
Need to measure status of HSE MS
performance and the safety culture

Self Assessment Deliverables

Comprehensive review of HSE MS to provide status of:


Compliance, performance and effectiveness

Reliable identification of HSE Culture and all major concerns and strengths Full understanding of underlying factors Prioritized action plan for continual improvement Commitment and support from all levels

Facilitated Workshop Pros and Cons


Brainstorming

plus standard questions Key players in room Focus and equality Deep discussion New benchmarks Electronic voting = speed, anonymity

Time

consuming for participants Limited coverage Participants all come to location Is there adequate time to develop action plans?

Workshop principles

Open, frank communication Trust Everyone's input is important The person who performs the task understands it better than anyone else Group comments may be shared externally but individual anonymity is preserved

Combination HSE Self Assessment Process


Preliminary Analysis Employee Questionnaire Analyze Mixed Team Workshops

Management Workshop(s) No Action Decisions Audit Key Risks

Prioritized Action Plan

Combination Advantages

Wide coverage to gather data Deep discussion to understand Managers/staff collaborative effort Accurate final analysis Graphic + Qualitative reporting Save audit for key risk areas Management workshop takes decisions and feeds into business (action) plan

This Company Walks the Talk on Safety

7 Strongly agree 4

1 Strongly disagree

Just What Were Looking For


This company walks the talk on safety.
Votes 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 Disagree 2 3 4 5 Agree 6 7
2 4 6

A Specific Problem Known Only to a Few


This company walks the talk on safety.
Votes 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 Disagree
2 1 1 3 5

5 Agree

Abandon Ship!!
This company walks the talk on safety.
Votes 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 1 Disagree 2 3 4 5 Agree 6 7
6

HSE Corporate Profile


5 4 3 2 1 0
e g ts w s k e s ty y s g n n p hi Ris nc nin tur am gri nc es tio tio ord r in di vie s a u n e er ss pli lan truc ogr nte rg re rec ica ec nito A Re d e I a or n R o e w a s m P S Pr s C mu M p Em A Le A s C o m SE O o H C

BU Comparisons
5 4 3 2 1 0
y g e s k e s s g y n n p ts w is in rit in m io io ur hi rd es ie nc di nc r t t t g a R n s o u e a c r r ia n ev to en te ec A ic ec rg pl ss R la de ni og tru ar rr In e e R a P o o S un w Pr om C M ss A ps m Le Em C E A O S om H C

North

South

Central

Workshop Output

Conclusions

The need to understand Safety Culture or Human Factors is the way of the future if we are to improve safety performance Everyones doing it!
UK - Culture Maturity Model and Climate
Questionnaires Canada Safety Stand Down Week Perception Survey, Imperial, CPC, Shell Hearts and Minds US Dan Petersen Perception Surveys started in the early 90s on railroads

Conclusions

In the 80s, there was UPITFOS, which initiated the Basic Safety Program (BSP) and Certificate of Recognition (COR) Is Safety Culture the step change needed for the beginning of the 21st century? Should we draw closer parallels to Quality Management and use Six Sigma Safety Culture approach? Statistical information from the UK offshore and North America would suggest that significant improvements are resulting from Safety Culture initiatives

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