Aggregates Manager Digital Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/403276
39 AGGREGATES MANAGER November 2014 SAFETY EXCELLENCE Top management is visibly committed. Middle management is actively involved. Front-line supervision is performance-focused. Employees are actively participating. System is flexible to accommodate the culture. Safety system is positively perceived by the workforce. Six Criteria for Safety Excellence 1 Ensure supervisory perfor- mance of safety-related activi- ties. Supervisors have to under- stand that safety is part of their scorecard. If not, they are less likely to demand safe pro- duction from their employees. Middle managers can ensure supervisory perfor- mance by requiring, reviewing, and re- sponding to safety reports from supervisors on their defined safety activities, and by participating in various safety activities with their supervisor. 2 Ensure the quality of supervi- sory performance of safety-re- lated activities. Performance measurements have to go beyond looking only at lagging indicators (injury statistics) and reports that indicate whether supervi- sors are completing safety tasks (quantity). There must be a quality check by the man- ager to determine how well the safety activ- ities are being executed. An ineffective safe- ty meeting with employees does nothing to improve safety. The role of the manager is then to periodically conduct spot checks on the defined safety activities and measure them against the quality standards. Where performance issues are noted, the manager can help to improve the skills necessary to meet the desired expectations. Managers can also inspire the continuation of per- forming quality safety activities by recog- nizing supervisors when they do a good job. 3 Demonstrate your belief that safety is important. There are many activities that middle management can perform to achieve this. Here are a few to consider: a. MBWA, or Management By Walking Around — make yourself visible to the workforce and model safe behav- ior. Spend time talking to employees about safety and focus on being posi- tive and catching people doing things right. b. Participate as often as you can in safety meetings, workplace examina- tions, and other safety activities. c. Hold one-on-one meetings with your supervisors to discuss safety and how you can support them. d. Provide your supervisors with the necessary time to complete their safety activities and provide ongoing safety training to their employees. e. Prepare a routine safety report for your boss based on safety reports from your supervisors. The Six Criteria suggest there isn't a singular key to safety performance, or an individual group within an organization whose involvement makes or breaks the culture. Rather, we could liken the criteria to a combination lock in which the align- ment of multiple digits grants access to peak performance. In the October issue, I explained how top management aligns itself with the goal through visible commitment. Now, we know how middle managers can lock into the effort. In next month's issue, we will look at the critical role supervisors play in a culture of safety excellence. AM Zach Knoop is a senior safety consultant and project manager for Caterpillar Safety Services. He works with Caterpillar cus- tomers in the aggregates and construction industries to coach leaders, train supervisors, and engage employees in building cultures of safety excellence. He can be reached at SafetyServices@cat.com.