Systems
Looking for something specific? The following topics address a wide range of business needs and challenges.
Desired Paths: What Organizations Can Learn from Mechanical Erosion
Desired paths are a fascinating example of behavior in the real world. A desired path is a trail that appears when people, or even one person, repeatedly walk to a destination using what makes the…
Planning for the People Side of Change
Many organizations invest significant resources into lean culture and process improvement initiatives. Despite the time and effort, the failure rate for these initiatives is a staggering 80%. Why…
Are Your Work Systems Unintentionally Sabotaging Employee Engagement?
Telecom giant AT&T recently announced it is scaling back its “presence report” system. This system is designed to enforce return-to-office compliance for employees. Since its introduction, it has…
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…
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…
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…
Save Lives by Addressing Systemic Root Causes
A recent article in the Wall Street Journal highlighted a troubling trend on our nation’s airport tarmacs. Safety incidents among ground crew workers are on the rise. The article starts by describing…
Common Leadership Errors: Failing to Create Sustainability
Common Leadership Errors: Failing to Create Sustainability
Organizations are constantly evolving to keep up with a changing world. This evolution can include refinements to strategy, systems,…
When Safety Systems Work Well
I recently had the opportunity to do an assessment with a company that is a safety culture exemplar. At ADI, we work with a lot of companies that have sophisticated safety management systems, but…
Two Truths about Performance Improvement
When it comes to influencing behavior in organizations, there are two truths that need to be considered. These truths relate to two major aspects of the organizational culture: the systems operating…
Surveillance for Amazon Drivers? Keys to Monitoring Driving Safety
Five U.S. Senators wrote to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on March 3, 2021 to express their concerns about surveillance cameras with tracking software being installed in some delivery vans operated by…
Adding Infection Control Behaviors into Behavioral Safety Systems: Beyond COVID-19
During this phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, have repeatedly advocated behavior change as mitigating steps to…
Safety Rewards Can Be Dangerous
I just finished reading an ISHN article on safety incentives and the value of a gift card reward system to promote safety. To say that I didn't like it is an understatement. It reminds me of the many…
Measuring Performance: Necessary but Insufficient
“What gets measured, gets done.” If this saying is true, then why are so many people overweight?
I have been recording my weight daily for over 35 years and as I am writing this, I am 4.5…
Is “Deskilling” a Threat to Safety in Your Workplace?
Maybe you’ve heard the term de-skilling. It refers to the loss of knowledge or skills on the part of a person as a result of technology doing more of the work for them. In work environments…
Electronic Performance Monitoring: When Good Intentions Turn to Digital Hammers
Electronic performance monitoring tools (let’s call them EPMs) are becoming more prevalent in the workplace. The transportation sector seems to be leading the pack at the moment. Dr. Ron…
OSHA Memo Warning about Improper Use of Safety Incentives and Discipline
Managing consequences such as incentives and punishment are thorny issues in safety. ADI has long held that monetary bonuses based on injury counts/rates are problematic for a number of reasons…
Personal Responsibility Within a Behavioral Approach
We have received much positive feedback on our book Safe by Accident and we are delighted that so many people find it helpful. There is one issue that some people are struggling with so we want…
