Safety
Looking for something specific? The following topics address a wide range of business needs and challenges.
Turning HOP Principles into Action: Error is Normal
I will be writing a 5-part blog series on the 5 Principles of Human and Organizational Performance (HOP) because I have heard dissatisfaction from many leaders attempting to implement HOP inside…
Proactive Safety Leadership: The Relationship between Ops and Safety
I recently had an interesting conversation with an operations manager I wanted to share. We were discussing safety leadership and the relationship between the operations and safety departments…
Two Consultants on Leadership: Performance to be Thankful For
December is upon us and the holidays are a reminder to stop and recognize things we should be thankful for. While we often do this in our personal lives, it’s also important to acknowledge the…
Safety Taboo: Talking about the financial side of safety
The National Safety Council has estimated the total cost of worker injuries in the US to be over $175 billion dollars per year. This is more than the total cost of major diseases such as cancer and…
Beliefs Don’t Build Safe Cultures—Behaviors Do
I recently came across a series of articles (links at the end) published in Industrial Safety & Hygiene News that explored the role beliefs play in safety – specifically risk management and…
Two Consultants on Leadership: Critical Behaviors in a Job Brief
Onsite job briefs are a valuable last-step planning tool for getting jobs done safely. Even with the best designed plans, things often change on the worksite. Onsite job briefs give…
Two Consultants on Leadership: Accountability in HOP
Human and Organizational Performance (HOP) is becoming an increasingly popular approach to safety. HOP’s five principles offer an interesting framework for thinking about human error or behavior in…
The Impact of Stress on Return-to-Work from Injury
The negative impact of stress in the workplace is well documented. Long-term stress can cause physical health issues (high blood pressure, headaches), mental health issues (irritability, depression,…
Two Consultants on Leadership: Who is Responsible for “Owning” Safety?
“Owning” SafetyWho owns safety inside your organization? Your senior leaders might point to the front line and say something like, “Safety is ultimately the responsibility of the worker; it’s their…
Deregulation, OSHA, and the Battle of Short- vs. Long-Term Consequences
Given the current administration’s focus on deregulation and deep personnel reductions in government agencies, it’s hard not to be concerned about the long-term impact of these actions on safety. It’…
Preventing Pencil Whipping of Safety Checklists
Safety is filled with checklists. Pre-task checklists, equipment checklists, start-up and shut-down checklists to name a few. Unfortunately, it is all too common for people to “pencil whip”…
Early Warning Signs that Systems are Impacting Safety
About 20 years ago I conducted a safety culture assessment for a large paper products company. They had been working hard on improving their safety performance and like many organizations, had…
Frontline Supervisors: The Key to Safety Culture
Discussions of safety culture improvement often focus on senior leaders, which is appropriate since senior leaders are the ones who must define the desired safety culture, set the vision and values…
Psychosocial Hazards Part II: What Leaders Can Do Now
In Part I of this 2-part series, I presented a primer on psychosocial hazards (PSHs) for readers who might be unfamiliar with or are simply interested in learning more about this topic. As a quick…
Psychosocial Hazards Part I: The Move to Occupational Safety & Health
Introduction to Psychosocial HazardsI recently attended the annual safety conference of the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) in Denver, CO. Often at conferences, I’ll attend a talk…
An Example of (Safety) Leadership Success: Narrowing Focus to Create Results
The best way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time. This eighth blog discusses one leader’s intentional push to move away from everything is important right now to a narrowed, organization-…
An Example of Leadership Success: Building Psychological Safety
Want a team that performs at the highest levels? Make winning fun and learning a critical part of growth? The seventh blog is dedicated to one leader’s determination in developing a high-…
An Example of (Safety) Leadership Success: Creating a Learning Culture
Safety is our number one priority is a nice slogan, but the systems, processes, and management strategies happening inside an organization communicate what’s most important. This fifth blog is…
