Earlier I shared a quote from Hippocrates in 450 B.C. and in that post, I mentioned that management’s reliance on incident rates is a sickness. That got me a lot of texts and a few phone calls. So I figured I would explain what I meant by that.
Reliance on lagging indicators to measure the presence of safety by the measure of fewer consequences from accidents is NOT how any other business function gets measured. Management can NOT control the injury rates, but they most certainly can control the SMS/Safety Process that influences those rates. So the whole idea is to provide a safe path that management can follow AND measure which will lead them to their chosen end goal.
But when this is presented to a management team that is immature in their safety thinking, it is much like dealing with an addict. Go ask the addict if they need help. What is the most common response? “I don’t need help – I’ve got everything under control”. This is very much what management will say when presented with an alternative metric system, one they can actually control vs. trying to control the injury rate.
For an addict to desire change, they have to hit “rock bottom”. An organization is the same. The problem is, every addict and organization has very different “rock bottoms”. Some will seem to be “bottomless pits”, meaning they will spiral out of control for many years, suffering horrific consequences but still able to convince themselves that…
1️⃣ “We got this, we don’t need any help”…
2️⃣ “See our injury rates – we’re in the top 5% of all companies, all is good”…
3️⃣ “Never mind all those tragic accidents – they’re just anomalies caused by a careless workforce…
4️⃣ “Those accidents are not a reflection of our commitment to safety”
It is a TRUE addiction and has to be managed as such. All we, as safety professionals, can do is an “intervention” moment, but realize this… management teams with an immature understanding of safety management will have a group think/echo chamber mindset, so oftentimes we may be the lone voice of reason, logic, and science in this discussion; as they will always go back to.. “yeah but look at our injury rate”.
Take a look at how The Mayo Clinic discusses a drug intervention and just look at this through the lens of our struggles to move away from such a reliance on lagging indicators.
Some comments from the Mayo Clinic on addiction:
“People who struggle with addiction are often in denial about their situation and unwilling to seek treatment. They may not recognize the negative effects their behavior has on themselves and others.”
“An intervention presents your loved one with a structured opportunity to make changes before things get even worse, and it can motivate him or her to seek or accept help.”
