The Essence of Safety' What The Other Voices Say

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The Essence of Safety.What The Other Voices Say

• Presented by
• Frank Dobson
• Dobson Associates

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What The Other Voices Say.

• Safety has made quite a lot of
• progress over the last 36 years.
• Our workplaces are now much
• safer than our homes.
• As a matter of fact, we are 8 times
• safer at work than at home. (BLS 05)

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What The Other Voices Say.

• There is a lot of confusion and
• misunderstanding about defining
• Safety.

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What The Other Voices Say.

• This confusion is limiting us
• from achieving the high levels
• of Safety Performance expected
• in todays Hi-Tech world.

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What The Other Voices Say.

• We all need to establish a uniform
• definition and understanding of
• Safety if we are going to Lead and
• Manage this function effectively.

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What The Other Voices Say.

• We have the responsibility to
• communicate, more effectively, a
• single-minded version of Safety to
• all of our workforce.

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Just What Do The Other Voices Say?????

• EXERCISE
• Breakout into Teams and solve
• this riddle
• What Does Safety Mean to Me?
• Record your ideas and report back
• in 20 minutes.

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Listing of Mind-Sets

• We all possess a mental model
• or mind-setof what Safety
• means to each of us.

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What Is A Mental Modelor Mind-Set?

• The human brain builds a model from
• bits of knowledge, (like putting a
• puzzle together), without knowing
• what the picture should look like, or
• how the pieces fit together.

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What Is A Mental Modelor Mind-Set?

• The bits of knowledge come from
• personal experiences, imagination,
• perceptions, and from some problem
• solving strategies we use during
• day-to-day operations.

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What Is A Mental Modelor Mind-Set?

• The picture takes shape as the pieces
• are added,
• but..
• It may never be complete.

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Listing of Mind-Sets

• Were there any people whose
• models were similar?
• If so, how similar were they?

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Listing of Mind-Sets

• Were there models that were
• extremely far apart?
• If so, how far apart?

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What Are Mental Models ?

• Variations in peoples perceptions
• of Safety.

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What Are Mental Models ?

• Mind-sets formed over time that
• have developed into realities.

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What Are Mental Models ?

• Models that were influenced by
• our cultural and professional
• experiences.

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What Are Mental Models ?

• Internal Pictures of our core beliefs
• of reality.

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What Are Mental Models ?

• Our understanding of where and
• how we fit into the world around us.

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What Are Mental Models ?

• How we see our systems working
• in our workplaces.

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Limitations to Models

• often incomplete version of an
• event or observable fact
• sometimes flawed due to human
• error in basic assumptions

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Limitations to Models

• reliant upon information from
• other models or emotions based in
• the absence of feedback
• not easily understood and open to
• loose interpretations

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Limitations to Models

• sometimes based on ambiguous and
• contradictive information
• (Garbage-InGarbage-Out)
• based on very little information and
• over-simplified explanations to a
• complex event

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Limitations to Models

• validity of information not tested
• (i.e. clinging to old Safety Myths)
• representations of what is true,
• but not what is false
• Break for 10 mins.

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Testing It For Yourself

• Exercise
• Breakout into Teams again then
• write (in 25 words or less)
• A definition of Safety.
• Take 20 minutes then record ideas
• and report out.

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Some Common Responses

• Preventing accidents and injuries
• Freedom from harm or injury
• Being safe
• Not getting hurt
• Its number one
• Following procedures

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Some Common Responses

• Being aware of your surroundings
• It is a state of being
• Looking out for each other
• Complying with OSHA
• Going home the same way you
• came to work

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Evaluating Our Responses

• How did your mental models or your
• mind-sets influence you with the
• definitions you wrote for Safety?
• Did you totally capture the
• essence of Safety that you
• expected?

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Evaluating Our Responses

• Have you noticed the wide
• variability and uncertainty?
• Was this a most difficult task
• for you to perform?

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Evaluating Our Responses

• Have we been reciting clichés
• without seeking substantiation?
• Do we follow published premises
• that may not have any foundation?

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OK..So Who Is Right Who Is Wrong?

• The implication here is not that your
• responses are right or wrong.
• We are addressing the variability in
• the key aspects of the
• Essence of Safety.

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Safety Management

• EXERCISE
• As individuals please write
• in 25 words or less..
• How Do I Manage Safety?
• Take 20 minutes then we will discuss.

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What Does It Look Like?

• This should be a simple Question!
• Why is this exercise so difficult?
• Do you really know Safety or
• how to manage it?

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Dont Copp-Out

• How many of you just wanted to
• throw-up your hands and say
• I really dont know Safety or how
• to manage it!
• Youre the Safety Guy, you tell us!

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Safety Professional Model

• How accidents are caused
• (Domino sequence of causation)
• Heinrichs 1-29-300 premise (also
• known as the Accident Ratio Study)

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Safety Professional Model

• 90 of accidents caused by unsafe
• acts of employees..
• 10 by unsafe work conditions
• Frequency precedes severity

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Safety Professionals

• Strive for certainty and wisdom to
• continuously improve and to
• constantly challenge, refine, and test
• the prevailing mental models, and
• feedback systems that influence us.

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World Complexities

• The natural world, business systems,
• accident causation, root cause,
• psychosocial factors, and cultural
• influences just may be well beyond
• our mental capabilities.

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Summary

• There is no single-minded model of
• what safety is or how to manage it.
• This uncertainty is a gap in need of
• closure.

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Summary

• This uncertainty represents an
• opportunity for safety professionals
• and organizations to achieve a higher
• level of capability and confidence in
• the quest to control hazardous
• incidents.

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Summary

• Safety is..
• Not an exact Science

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Please remember.. All Accidents Are
Preventable !
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Thank You for learning with us
today. Take Care Stay Safe
www.DobsonAssociates.com