Safe employees are not only a crucial aim of any organization, they are in fact the keystone of productive operations delivering high quality. Although it is no secret that safety, quality, and productivity go hand-in-hand, the prevailing cultures and safety systems in many workplaces are not structured with this principle at their core.
Instead, forethought is given to measurable results—units manufactured, tons extracted, deliveries made—while safety and quality become practically an afterthought, almost a given. Then the roles of safety professionals become largely reactive, sometimes even punitive, in response to safety lapses. Little time and effort can be given to improving the system proactively and preventatively.
This occurs in large part because prevented incidents cannot be counted; only incidents and near-misses can. Workplace safety then becomes somewhat of a very long-term game of golf, trying to reach production goals, hoping for the fewest number of incidents allowed.
Instead, when safety is a core value and is considered an aspect of production and quality goals on a daily basis, rather than identified as separate safety goals measured after-the-fact, safety becomes more emphasized in the minds of employees and supervisors. The urge to take shortcuts or skirt safe practices under pressure to meet production goals becomes diminished if not eliminated altogether. Over time, the need to juggle safety, quality, and productivity is reduced, because one facilitates the other.
Predictive Safety can help your organization start making safety a core value, giving you the tools and knowledge to meet the challenges of a multigenerational workforce, reduce impairment risk, and build an organizational culture suitable for the modern era. Contact us today to discuss the best and most cost-effective ways to improve safety and human performance at your organization, whether by managing worker fatigue, reducing the risk of impairment from drugs and alcohol, improving safety leadership and organizational culture, or some combination of services most suitable for your needs.