Safety Culture - The Chernobyl Explosion Created an Outcry for Safety Leaders

Who is against developing a strong safety culture in an organization? The answer, I hope, is nobody.  

However, there is another question that frequently has a much murkier answer: In a given organization, who is responsible for making sure that a long-desired strong safety culture is established?

I’ll bet that it would take the average technician, line manager, or middle management engineer a few head-scratching minutes to answer that question – and then not very well.  

We talk a lot about the safety culture of the organization – stress on the “talk”.  A little history may help.  

The first widespread use of the term “safety culture” came in response to, arguably, the world’s worse lapse of safety policies: Chernobyl (*). In 1993, the ACSNI concluded that multiple safety lapses at the Chernobyl melt-down (and several other major accidents) were caused by problems with the safety culture and defined it as:

“…(safety culture is) the product of individual and group values, attitudes, perceptions, competencies and patterns of behavior that can determine the commitment to, and the style and proficiency of an organization’s health and safety management system.” (**)

That’s a mouthful! Let’s break this down to make it clearer.

First, diagnosis – where are we now? Diagnosing the safety culture of an organization is not straight forward. We need to use maturating models such as those provided by Brady (the Brady Curve), Hudson, or the Keil Centre (I will address this in a different article). 

Second, make a plan. Once you identify the maturity of the safety culture of the organization, it is clear that a plan with specific actions must be developed and implemented. However, safety doesn’t just spring forth from a report or PowerPoint deck – if it were only that simple! The whole process needs a “catalyst element” 

Third, what is the catalyst element? Leadership. This is the element that will drive the process and make it happen. Without good safety leaders, the program or plan will just be another paper-shuffling initiative that will fade with time or as soon as some of the responsible persons are moved, retired, or changed. Therefore, to achieve any expected safety culture improvement, you must have, not only one but several safety leaders in your workforce at different levels.

The safety leader will need to believe safety is a value for the organization culture and he/she will need to become the one to make the change using the following tips:

To create a Safety Culture as a Value, Leaders must:

1. Be a role model (lead the way).
2. Share a Safety Vision (where should the organization be).
3. Work out the process (seek opportunities to improve).
4. Empower others (teamwork makes the dream work).
5. Recognize and compensate contributions (Feedback for the better)

1.    Be a role model – lead the way

• Talk and demonstrate you are committed to perform and achieve the level of safety that has been set.
• Talk about the safety culture that is desired for the corporation, organization, or group.
• Safety leaders must sometimes look above seeking support when safety leadership is lacking at upper management.
• Make the organization to feel every individual is a safety leader, that each one will appreciate that safety has an impact, regardless of their position.
• A safety leader is not about their title but what they accomplish.
• He/She shall communicate his safety values on performance criteria on boundaries instead of what he/she wants out of the team. The team will then be able to understand better his/her actions and decisions which shall be aligned with his/ her values.
• Values need to be clear. As much clear they are, the easier is to communicate them and commit to them.

Housekeeping is a very simple example. if you visit a site and find trash around, point it out to the workers and start picking up the trash yourself. You will see others helping you. Once it is done, look around and ask, "Now looks much better, doesn’t it?” Or say simply,  "This is how it should look.” Of course, thank anyone for helping you and for keeping it like that in the future.

2.    Share a Safety Vision (where should the organization be)

• Safety Leaders must foresee the level of Safety Culture to be reached by the organization, building on the conclusions of the maturity assessment, and after, filling the gaps.
• What is the safety leadership philosophy to be adopted and what will the Safety Leader stand for?
• Is safety more important than production, and how will safety and productive balance out? If a manager says "we need to start production right away”, where does safety stand?  What should he say?  “Let’s start production as soon as possible – but right the first time.”
• We will have time to do the job once by doing it right.
• The Safety Leader must raise his/her voice – and must have the authority to stop the job if he/she thinks it is unsafe.

A Safety Leader develops and cautiously creates a sense of safety awareness. He/she transmits it in such a way so that his constituents seek approval and support in order to align potentially conflicting goals and objectives to achieve the overall vision.

3.    Work out the process (seek opportunities to improve)

• By having a maturity diagnostic of the safety culture of his organization, Safety Leaders will have to lead the plan and fill the gaps.
• Safety Leaders will look for opportunities to improve procedures and processes to make easier the achievement of performance and growth.
• Safety Leaders meet challenges and facilitate changes, including the status quo.
• Safety Leaders provide oversight on seeking innovation to find better performance even looking outside experience if necessary.

The point is that Safety Leaders must assess the gaps, the actions to take that will lead to better performance and cultural behavior to make such performance to prevail in time.

4.    Empower others – teamwork makes the dream work.

• Promote and sustain collaboration between teams on creating a safe work environment with trust and respect.
• Safety Leaders build trust by sharing knowledge, information, expectations, and good quality of communication. They are the first to trust.
• Safety Leaders must create the feeling that individuals and teams need each other to improve safety performance, it cannot be done alone.
• Safety Leaders regularly ask for feedback from individuals and teams on how to improve safety performance and showing a caring concern about the competences and skills of the organization.
• During the setting of safety goals, Safety Leaders must participate actively in the process providing guidance, listening effectively, and giving over control to others.

Safety Leaders must be outspoken openly on what they believe and be passionate so that their voices are heard and can encourage others. They must provide a sense of self-determination and self-confidence to enhance other people’s capability of good performance and success.

5.    Recognize and compensate contributions - feedback for the better

• Safety Leaders are strong recognizers of improved safety performance to individuals and teams and are encouragers on achieving ever more challenging performances.
• Safety Leaders have the determination to make others shine by interfacing, guiding, and caring. This leads to the true improvement of a safer environment.
• Recognition must be given in person as much as possible to increase the impact on people and prevent misunderstanding.
• When Safety Leaders give recognition, it should be made in public and with creative incentives.
• Compensation should be impacted positively and tied to their efforts – as well as the teams they are supporting.

An individual’s or an organization’s safety performance will be enhanced by honest, open, and creative recognition by Safety Leaders, who can use handshakes, smiles, and even just by giving a simple “thank you”.

There are few more steps to be achieved for the desirable safety culture that any organization would like to be on, but undoubtedly, this will not be possible with the appropriate “catalytic dose” of the Safety Leaders.

___________________________________________________________________

(*) International Nuclear Safety Advisory Group (HSC). Summary report on the post-accident review meeting on the Chernobyl accident, Safety Series No. 75- INSAG-1. Vienna (Austria): International Atomic Energy Agency; 1986.

(**) Health and Safety Commission (HSC). ACSNI Study Group on Human Factors. 3rd Report: Organizing for Safety. London (UK): HSC; 1993.

Thanks to Michael Green (linkedin.com/in/michael-t-green-62a7652) for his review and editing of this article.