Best Practices: Safety Culture

Aria Behrouzi

PD Committee Member

NAYGN

Safety Culture

Dr. G. Kenneth Koves

2013 May 12

Grand Hyatt Hotel

Washington DC, USA

Agenda

• What is safety culture?

• Why is it important?

• Just in Case

What is Organizational Culture?

• First, a question

• ‘An empirically based abstraction’ – Schein 2010

• A construct or idea we create to characterize the functioning of multiple, complex, interacting systems, including the functioning of the interactions of the systems, based upon observation.

It is Also

• ‘A pattern of shared basic assumptions learned by a group as it solved it problems to external adaptation and internal integration…’

– Schein 2010

• For example: National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling: Preliminary Conclusions – Managerial – ‘No evidence at this time to suggest that there was a

conscious decision to sacrifice safety concerns to save money.’

• “It is the way we do things around here.”

What Safety Culture is NOT

• Industrial safety – alone

• Safety Conscious Work Environment (SCWE) – alone

• Radiological safety – alone

• Nuclear safety – alone

• Security – alone

• Production – alone

What is Safety Culture?

The core values and behaviors resulting from a collective commitment by leaders and

individuals to emphasize safety over competing goals to ensure protection of people and the

environment » (NRC Safety culture policy statement, March 2011)

Why Take so Much Time with the Definition?

• Help you understand that

– Safety culture is not ‘physics’

– Measuring safety culture is not an ‘engineered activity’

Why is it Important?

• Preliminary research indicating a -.3 correlation between a healthy culture and cost per megawatt hour

• Don’t fall for the suckers choice of safety vs. production

Production

Profitability

Reliability

Safety

Why is it Important?

• Personally – Nuclear power plants take it very seriously

– Nuclear suppliers take it very seriously

• It should not be a negative perception to have a questioning attitude – Is this the right or safe way to do this?

– If there is no response, you have an obligation to escalate

Just in Case

• Once in a while there are individuals or even organizations who just don’t get it

• You still have the responsibility to raise issues – Corrective Action Program

– Supervisor

– Employee Concerns Program

– Ombudsman

– Nuclear Oversight

– Nuclear Regulatory Commission

QUESTIONS/ THANK YOU

Ken Koves

koveskg@inpo.org

NAYGN

May 12 – 14, 2013

Washington DC

SEMS

A JOURNEY OF

LEARNING & CONTINOUS

IMPROVEMENT

Charlie Williams

Center for Offshore Safety

Safety & Environmental Management Systems

What are the elements of SEMS?

Leadership Mechanical Integrity

Safety and Environmental Information

Pre-Start-Up Review

Hazard Analysis Emergency Response and Control

Management of Change Incident Investigation

Operating Procedures Audit

Safe Work Practices Records and Documentation

Training

SEMS is a key mechanism to reduce the likelihood of

major incidents

Goal: Safe & Reliable Operations / Operational Integrity

Technical Standards / Safe Work

Practices and Operating

Procedures

Skills and Knowledge

Safety Values / Human

behaviors + + +

SEMS

SEMS Purpose

Operating Processes /

Decision Making

Bow Tie Approach

Top Event

Major Hazard

Threat Consequence

Prevention Barriers

Mitigation Barriers

Operator / Contractor Interfaces

COS Core Functions • Data Collection, Analysis and Reporting

• Industry information

• Lessons from major and high potential severity incidents

• Safety performance indicators

• Identify opportunities for improvement

• Assistance

• Create good practices

• Assist companies with COS programs

• Continuously improve safety performance and safety culture

• Improve and sustain industry skills and knowledge

• Outreach & Communication

• Annual Safety Forum

• Workshops

• Meetings (including key stakeholder interface)

• Publications

• Accreditation and Certification

• SEMS Audits

• Audit standards

• Accreditation of Audit Service Providers

COS SEMS Toolkit

• Audit Protocol Checklist

• Compliance Readiness Worksheet

• Operator-Contractor Letter Templates

• Audit Guidance Document

SEMS Audit Protocol Checklist

13 sections that corresponds with API RP 75 & 30 CFR 250 – Subpart S (SEMS)

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Audit Question

Has a management representative been appointed that is responsible for establishing, implementing and maintaining the SEMS?

§250.1909(b)

[Specifically you, through your management, must:] (b) Appoint management representatives who are responsible for establishing, implementing and maintaining an effective SEMS program.

RP 75 1-1.2.2(c)

[This recommended practice is based on the following principles:] c. Management appoints specific representatives who will be responsible for establishing, implementing and maintaining the safety and environmental management program.

• COS-2-01 Qualification & Competence Requirements

Audit Leads & Auditors

• COS-2-02 Training Program Requirements for Auditors

• COS-2-03 Certification to API RP 75

• COS-2-04 Accreditation of Audit Service Providers

• COS-2-05 Standardized Audit Report Form

Accreditation & Certification

COS – SEMS II

• “…working with the COS workgroups on developing indicators to gauge industry OCS performance other stakeholders. …”

• COS-2-01, Qualification & Competence Requirements for Audit Teams & Auditors

• COS-2-03, Requirements for Third-party Auditing & Certification

• COS-2-04, Requirements for Accreditation of Audit Service Providers

• (ASPs) must be accredited by a BSEE-approved accreditation body (AB) .. Like COS

COS Current Activities

• Leadership Site Engagement

• Safety Performance Indicators

• Improving Industry Learning Capability

• Verification of Contractor Skills & Knowledge

& Contractor SEMS Audits & Certification

• Performance Based SEMS

SEMS - What’s Next

Phase I

- Audit Tools

- ASP & Auditor Tools

- Auditor & Tm

Capabilities

Phase II

- Learning frm

Audits

- SPI’S Defined

- Incident Defined

- Industry Begins

Reporting

Phase IV

- Continuously Assess Effectiveness

- Sustained Continuous Improvement

- Supporting Safety Culture & Behaviors

- Sustained Effective Leadership Engagement

-- Systems to Maintain, Enhance, and Sustain Capability

Phase III

- Learning frm SPI’s

- Learning frm Incidents

- Begin Culture/Behavior

- Skills & Competencies

Defined

Key “Shared Beliefs and Values”

1. It CAN happen here, unless I (+We) do the right thing

- No ‘Normalization of deviance’, Risk mindfulness

2. Process discipline/There is a right way to do things

- Planning and control of work processes, Valuing expertise & experience

3. Esprit de Corps/I’m going to play my part in doing the right thing

- Genuinely caring for others, a sense of unity, a common interests and responsibilities

4. Integrity

- Acceptance of personal accountability, truthfulness,

5. We’re not there yet, but we CAN do better

- Problem Identification and resolution, reporting and follow up

6. Sharing with and learning from others is valuable

- Continuous learning

Thank You

Questions

Safety Culture: Best Practices

Patricia Williams, CSP

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Engineers & Culture

“The one theme that runs through the conclusions we have reached is that the principal deficiencies in

commercial reactor safety today are not hardware problems, they are management problems.”

Three Mile Island A Report to the Commissioners

and the Public,

January 1980

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Those who want very abstract universal dimensions of culture that can be measured with surveys and questionnaires

and Those who want to study the nuances, details, and dynamics of

particular cultures by observation, interview, and intervention. Note: The first approach looks for general traits; the second

approach looks for general cultural processes.

Culture as a concept in organizational life has come to be accepted, but there is still a strong divide between:

Assessing Culture:

Perception is reality

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OK, so you’re an engineer, a scientist, a (fill in the blank)

1. Listen, don’t judge 2. Follow the process 3. Let the evidence lead 4. Apply the model for analysis 5. Don’t forget – your subjects are human - (so are you) 6. And remember to enjoy the opportunity

So how can you possibly assess anything about culture?

Safety Culture Can Be Observed

Walk the spaces

Talk to people

Observe attitudes, behaviors & conditions

Evaluate performance information

Watch work being done

Ask questions

Listen

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What is the basis for this method?

• Initial research on management & organizational factors

• Sponsored by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission

• Research team led by Dr. Sonja Haber, then of Brookhaven National Laboratory

• Subsequently extended via research sponsored by Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission & validated in other domains

Differences - Safety Culture Assessment Method & Traditional Assessments

Focus on human and

organizational issues.

Use of multiple methods provides convergent validity.

Emphasis on perceptions

and influence of perceptions

on safety performance.

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Safety Culture Model

Schein model of culture

Artifacts

Claimed values

Basic assumptions

Stages of safety culture development

Compliance

Performance

Process

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Organizational Behaviors Impacting Safety Culture

Attention to Safety Communication Coordination of Work Decision-making Formalization Goal Setting/

Prioritization Organizational Culture Organizational Learning

Organizational Knowledge Performance Evaluation Performance Quality Personnel Selection Problem Identification Resource Allocation Roles & Responsibilities Time Urgency Training

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Multiple Methods for Behavioral Measurement

Functional Analysis Semi-Structured Interviews and Focus Groups

Behavioral Anchored Rating Scales (BARS) Behavioral Observations and Checklists Organizational and Safety Culture Survey

Goal is convergence of data.

Multiple tools, providing quantitative and qualitative data, assess each behavior systematically and objectively.

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References

• Haber, S.B. and Barriere, M.T. (1998). “Development of a regulatory organizational and management review method.” Research Report RSP-00600, Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, Ottawa, Canada.

• Haber, S.B., O’Brien, J.N., Metlay, D.S., and Crouch, D.A. (1991). “Influences of Organizational Factors on Performance Reliability.” NUREG/CR-5538, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D.C.

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Recurring Themes

• Committed workforce who believe in the mission and embrace safety

• Commitment to improving policies, procedures, and processes

• Multiple mechanisms for reporting problems and concerns

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Recurring Themes

• Management and technical staff have very different views on the work

• Technical staff are primarily concerned about whether the organization’s systems and culture supports them in doing quality work

• Too often technical staff feel that management is not interested in their opinions and that they could be penalized for speaking up

Indicators of a Healthy Culture

• Effective Communication – multiple means, consistent message

• Employees feel valued and that their professional opinions matter

• Trust/respect up, down, and across the organization is evident

Indicators of a Healthy Culture

• Everyone is encouraged and feels free to raise concerns, and they are addressed in a timely manner

• Roles, responsibilities, and expectations are clearly defined and understood

• Rewards and disciplinary actions are viewed as consistent and fair

What I Have Learned

• It’s about people

• Leadership behaviors and actions matter

• What you don’t say is as important as what you say

• People’s perceptions drive their behavior

• It’s a journey – continue learning

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“I wish it would dawn upon engineers that, in order to be an engineer, it is not enough to be an engineer.” José Ortega y Gasset

Questions?

Break

3:30 to 4 p.m.