Seminar On

“ OHS Leadership-Opportunities &

Challenges”
At
22nd Regulating Agencies
And Safety Professionals Meet

28th September 2018

Expectations and Challenges for
Safety Professionals

Speaker :
Bajirao B. Dethe
Chief Manager-Corporate EHS, Piramal
Enterprises Limited
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

OBJECTIVES :

• To know the various expectations of Organizations /

Management from Safety Professionals.

• Various Challenges For Safety Professionals.

• To know how to meet these expectations

• To know how to overcome the Various Challenges

• To know the leadership qualities required for effective

safety professionals.
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Organisation / Management Expectation

• No Accident / Incident i.e. Zero Accident / Injuries or Zero Incident

• Establish systems to have Zero Tolerance towards Safety

• Build and Drive the Safety culture in the organization

• Safety professionals must transform EHS into a Business Value and

demonstrate EHS performance in the context of organization’s
business objective-Cost of an accident / productivity loss, efficiency
loss etc.

• Understand the business and its requirement and use Business

language / Management language ( For example- Returns, ROI,
Benefits, Savings, Payback, Sustainability, CTQ-critical to quality,
Business continuity, Balance score card, reputation, robust programs,
Use KPI’s, KRA terminology for Safety aspects etc…
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Evolution of Safety
Safety Remedial Action
Performance Focus Management
Unsafe
Behaviours Expectations
Culture People led

Minor injuries/
Near Misses
Management
Systems
led
Safety
Serious
Accidents
Improvement
Focus
Regulation
Equipment/Conditions
led

Time
Expectations and Challenges for Safet Professionals

Cultural Maturity

Management
Expectations

Bradley Curve
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Expectations-World Class Safety Culture

Management
Expectations

World Class
Generative
Proactive
Reactive
Chaotic

5 Levels of cultural maturity

 Behaviour Based Safety
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Beginning
Interdependent Stage Culture Expectation
Injury Rates

Improving

Succeeding
Leading
Management
Expectations Zero
Reactive Dependent Independent Interdependent

9
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

1
Fatality Management
Expectations
Every Fatality Starts 400
Serious Injuries
with an Unsafe Act
20,000
Minor Injuries

240,000
Near Misses

2 Million
Unsafe Acts / Unsafe conditions

Data sources: Heinrich, HSE, John Ormond

Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Organisation / Management Expectation continued…

• Safety / EHS is an Enabler for Business Growth & sustainability

• Ensure Compliance to all legal & other Requirements Pertaining to

EHS….also he should think & establish Beyond Compliance Status

• Safety Professional should act as “ Evangelist” / Preacher for Safety

• Safety Professional should have Passion For Safety, Perseverance, and

Professional, Practical not theoretical, high Patience

• Do integrate the safety program into Organization’s business

initiatives

• Deal with At Risk Behaviour or implement Behaviour Based Safety

System
Dealing with At Risk Behaviors

12
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Some facts & realities

1. Safety professionals are working as “soldiers in battle field-
without guns”
2. “Line Management” is responsible for Statutory
compliance. However lapses are pointed towards Safety
Officer.
3. In case of occurrence of Accident/incidence- common
question raised is -“What Safety Officer is doing?”
4. Safety Officer is seen as a person to defend or advocate the
organization from penal actions and litigations
5. Safety Professional is exposed to Emergency & Unsafe
situation…when all are running away , they have to run
towards to dangerous situation to mitigate / control it.
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

All Above Management Expectations and

some time High Expectations

Real Challenges
for every Safety Professionals
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals
C- Clock (12 C’s)- Effective Safety Professionals-
Fulfilling Management Expectations

Continual Culture Improvement

Communication
Consistency 12
11 1
Commitment
Clarity 10 2
Full-filling Collaborative
Caring 9 Management 3
Expectations
C-Clock
Commander
8 4
Co-ordination
7 5 Competency
Confidence 6
Coaching
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Use of Advance techniques for effective output

Adequate information is available in the

developments of Safety on

Internet

Software

Literature
“Effective use of multi media for learning,
propagation of Safety should be explored.
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Safety Leadership Behaviours

• Visibility
• Clarity about his Role & Resp.
• Engagement
• Feedback
• Recognition
• Involvement
• Providing Support
• Setting Standards
• Challenging at risk behaviour
• Continual Improvement
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Safety Conversations in everyday use

Flexible
Work structured Team talks
supervision process

Moving Effective Safety Engagement

around
office/site Setting to
Specific Everyday
Everyday
safety visits work opportunity
opportunity

1:1s
Praise Team Praise
good Approaching meetings good
behaviour unsafe behaviour
behaviour
19
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Dealing with Unsafe Behaviour

Flexible
Think about
structured
What
yourif it
process
becomes an
approach
argument?
Consider
Demonstrate
body
I don’t have time I don’t know
that you care
language Effective Safety Engagement what to say
now

Specific Everyday
Ask opportunity
why they
safety visits
Positive not think you
I don’t want to
apologetic
look stupid
haveIt’s not my
stopped
problem
them

Praise Understand Praise

Approaching Be sensible
good and
I don’t understand unsafe I don’t feel good
behaviour and realistic behaviour
empathise
their job
behaviour
confident

20
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Paradigm Shift continued)

(

• Recent Industrial accidents like explosion of

Boiler / reactors, electrical fires etc. Show how
tangible values are not more significant than
safety, OR reputation of the organization
SO
• Safety performance can play a major role in
shaping organization’s competitive edge and
reputation
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

Paradigm Shift
• Now a days, in few enlightened companies value of EHS
program is measured / accounted, using process
improvement tools

• Simple techniques like “ Balanced scorecard” can be

structured to enable users demonstrate relationship
between EHS & Business Value

• “Safety performance” and “EHS compliance” are

critical to company’s reputation & “Business
continuity”
Overcoming the Challenges and meeting Expectations

For achievement of the goal of “Zero Tolerance”, a safety manager has to imbibe
and display below leadership qualities of the highest order.

1. Praise employees when they choose safe behaviours.

2. Solicit participation from employees.
3. Reward employee participation.
4. Be a shining example. ...
5. Invest in people. ...
6. Continuously improve and simplify plant safety. ...
7. Visit plant areas regularly. ...
8. Maintain openness.
9. Learn the names of as many employees as possible.
10. Try to learn something new AT LEAST ONCE PER day.
Overcoming the Challenges and meeting Expectations

Soft Skills Matter in a Safety Culture : According to the Stanford Research

Institute, 75 % of long-term job success is attributable to soft skills, while only 25 % is
attributable to technical knowledge.
Below ten soft skills needed to all effective leaders to build a strong
safety culture :
1. Listening
2. Communication
3. Non-verbal Communication
4. Interpersonal skill-connecting people
5. Win-Win Approach
6. Saying “no”
7. Conflict resolution
8. Coaching
9. Dealing with difficult workers / hard nuts
10. Managing change effectively
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

And at last Everyone Safety Professional should

know “Duties of Safety Officer”
1. Advise for planning & organizing safety measures.
2. Advise on safety aspects, check & evaluate safety
performance.
3. Advise on Purchase of quality PPE’s.
4. Plant safety inspections.
5. Advise on accident reporting & investigations.
6. Effective functioning of safety committee.
7. Safety promotional activities.
8. Safety Training.
Expectations and Challenges for Safety Professionals

“Safety is not an intellectual exercise to keep

us in work. It is a matter of life and death.
It is the sum of our contributions to safety
management that determines whether the
people we work with live or die”.
• Sir Brian Appleton