Safety Role For Executives
“Management have the power to direct the actions of employees and influence their attitudes, and they do this every day to get what they want – except to prevent accidents”
This statement may surprise and disappoint many managers as we assume, often more through hope than factual evidence, that our safety programs and initiatives actually work.
So what is the safety role for top management?
Let’s first look at the various levels of management in the organisation and their key functions.
1. Senior Management
Executives and directors set the vision, strategy and targets for the business, find and allocate the resources necessary to achieve the desired objectives, and motivate all levels of the business to fulfil their roles.
2. Middle Management
The group with responsibility for developing the detail and plans to implement the company policy and strategy, and support departments to understand and follow company policy.
3. Staff Advisors
Various specialists including; safety, legal, human resources, quality and environmental (who often do not share accountability for the business output), who advise on compliance and cost minimisation programs eg workers compensation self-insurance
4. Frontline Supervisors & Managers
Staff who direct the day-to-day activities of employees who produce the company output
Almost every authoritative study on management effectiveness confirms the two most influential levels within your organisation are:
a) Frontline supervisors who co-ordinate production and most directly affect employee behaviour; and
b) Senior managers who set the strategic direction and moral standards eg what tactics are acceptable to achieve the corporate objectives and how we treat individuals.
This is not to say middle managers and advisors are not required or effective in what they do, but it does highlight the importance of your initial focus being on the two priority groups if you want to launch a successful safety initiative.
A study by Petersen* on effectiveness of safety initiatives shows some of the least effective activities include:
Using posters to promote safety
Setting up employee safety committees
Offering incentives for good safety records
Safety contests and prizes
Training all supervisors in first aid
Investigating all incidents
* Safety Management a Human Approach, Petersen, 2001
Some of the above findings may come as a surprise or shock as many of us have seen these activities used frequently in business and would have thought most of these activities are sensible and reasonable. Once again highlighting that much of what we do to improve safety is not proven to be effective, but we still continue to do it.
The same study found the most effective safety initiatives include:
Supervisor participation
Managers Support
Effective engineering of equipment and good inspection & maintenance practices
Effective selection and training of employees
Monitoring of performance and feedback
Providing employees with clear simple rules, and fair enforcement process
We can see from the above that executive participation in the safety program is important, and this leads back to our earlier question of what should senior managers do?
The Australian workforce is irreverent and often sceptical about the motives and value of senior managers, therefore, great care is needed in guiding executives to interface with employees, or even well-intended initiatives will be interpreted harshly and likely back-fire.
We recommend you coach executives planning a safety leadership tour of the workplace so they properly understand the risks of doing it incorrectly and know the key do’s and don’ts.
PURPOSE OF EXECUTIVE SITE TOURS:
Not to find hazards, or criticise individuals.
Motivate workers to follow agreed (safe) work practices.
Opportunity to ask questions about local issues or concerns.
Show personal concern for safety of employees.
Demonstrate your personal involvement in the safety program.
Studies by Dr Larkin* show the least effective tactic is to over-concentrate on corporate values and the most effective is communicating on “shop floor” issues eg
Is your equipment and tools safe and reliable?
Are you adequately trained to do your job?
Has anyone been injured working in this area? What happened? What has been done to prevent it occurring again?
* Communicating with Employees (Larkin, 1989)
If interested in a sample pocket card to help executives conduct more effective safety leadership tours email us for a copy.
