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Operations (���Can Safety Be Bought?��� continued from page 39) organization, some of these behaviors include: n Management commitment n An active, engaged safety committee that performs inspections and meets regularly n Proactive hazard and near miss reporting n Comprehensive and closed-loop incident investigation that ends with corrective action By focusing on behaviors as opposed to rewarding specific outcomes your incentive program will have the effect of changing the way people work and approach safety over the longer term. Safe work practices are founded on good habits. By reinforcing safe behaviors, through positive incentive, these behaviors will become good habits. Over time, even if the incentive is altered or removed, the habit will have become hard-wired as part of the individual���s approach to their job. Habit formation theory tells us that even though changing habits may have little value in the short term, they have enormous value in the long term and, if repeated, over time individuals will see the benefit of this new behavior as contributing to their overall well-being. For example, if a company is rewarded for regular safety committee meetings and completion of monthly workplace inspections, over time, this behavior will reduce hazards, increase employee engagement, and therefore reduce injury rates. Over time, they will come to see the value that this activity produces for the organization and the employees and will be intrinsically motivated to continue. You will have ���taught them to fish��� and that has long-term value that cannot be taken away. The other flaw with rewarding specific outcomes as opposed to key behaviors is that despite an organization���s best efforts, due diligence and safe work practices, a serious injury may still unfortunately occur. No management system is flawless. Having an incentive system tied strictly to injury rates will leave a safetyconscious organization deflated when one injury in February causes the entire year���s Zero LTI incentive to be thrown out the window. Rewarding behaviors and safe practices allows for the unfortunate, albeit preventable, ���blip��� in the injury radar while still The best safety incentive programs encourage a team approach in which employees are looking out for each other. keeping the troops motivated and focused on all the right things that will continue to drive improved safety performance. Therefore, the first step in any safety incentive program is to identify and reward the right behaviors such that healthy, solid and foundational safe practices are being ingrained in the organization simultaneously. Incentives Should Foster Teamwork! Most of us would agree that in order for an organization to be successful, it takes commitment from everyone! And yet, most incentive programs allow for a ���top winner��� or involve competitions where if Employee A wins, then Employee B cannot win. In a safe organization, everyone wins, therefore incentives should promote teamwork, collaboration and be based on collective efforts rather than individual achievement. According to motivation expert Steven Kerr, ���the surest way to rupture relationships is to force people to compete for rewards or recognition to rank them against one another.��� It stands to reason, then, that when collective effort is required for success, team-based awards that reward cooperation work most effectively both in the short term, in terms of focusing a group on a common goal, but also in the long term because they hit the sweet spots of team building, communication and collaboration, which are key skills that need to be learned. In fact, according to an ���EHS Today��� article by Sandy Smith, incentive programs aimed at individual workers increase performance 27 percent while programs aimed at teams increase performance 45 percent. For example, setting a near-miss reporting target for the branch will drive employees to coach one another on near miss reporting, and encourage more safety conscious employees to point out hazards to less experienced workers in an effort to help achieve their team goal. In this collaborative, supportive environment, everyone benefits. 40 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | April 2013 38_Safety_Feature_KP.indd 40 3/25/13 12:22 PM