If we have NO records of training personnel on the Elements of our Safety Management System (SMS), but decades of records on Compliance Program(s) training, well then we do NOT HAVE A FUNCTIONING SMS.
We may have an SMS on paper and it may be plastered all around the workplace, but if the workforce is NOT trained on the elements of the SMS and their purpose within the organization – that IS NOT how an SMS is IMPLEMENTED, MANAGED, MEASURED, and AUDITED.
Yes, an SMS requires more training than a “Safety Compliance Program”; but the value of this training and this approach to managing the risks of the organization will produce returns on this investment far greater than our traditional “Safety Compliance Program”.
It just takes a serious desire within the organization, and especially at the Senior Leadership level, to do SAFETY DIFFERENTLY.
