Safety Culture

Terry McSween, Ph.D.

For the past couple of years I have talked about the importance on monitoring as one of the critical practices for leaders. However, the term “monitoring” has always created some discomfort for me as it has some baggage associated with it, bringing images of “bird dogging” or the video cameras that creates so much stress at some of the U. S. Post Office facilities. While monitoring is the terminology used throughout much of the leadership literature, I have never been comfortable with it.

by Jerry Pounds

Behavioral Safety has helped leaders around the world understand the value of identifying explicit, observable employee behaviors that are linked to safety – or more specifically, to injury prevention and employee well-being. Since behavior is observable, it can be recorded when it occurs and thus behavior-based safety turns instances of safe behavior into upstream measures. These measurements enable leaders to “manage” the level of safety in their organizations more precisely than downstream measures of incidents and injuries.

Elwood “Woody” Hamilton works in the electrical utility First Line Response department for ENMAX Power Company in Calgary, Alberta. He is currently serving as chairperson of the VBS Steering Committee for his department for the second time. Woody’s initiative and innovative contributions have been a major factor in the development of a thriving VBSP at ENMAX.

Before becoming the director of corporate environmental health and safety for Therma-Tru Corporation, a company specializing in the manufacture of state-of-the-art metal and fiberglass entry doors, Rick Goodman focused his career on operations and engineering.