T he R ole of C orporate C ulture in S afety P erformance

1. The Role of Corporate Culture in Safety Performance Presented by Judith A. Erickson, Ph.D. President, Erickson Associates American Industrial Hygiene Conference & Expo Embracing Change June 2 - 7, 2001 New Orleans, Louisiana

2. EHS is Changing to: • Blameless • Integrated • Interactive

3. Treating Safety and Health Differently • Piecemeal Programs Do Not Work in the Long Run • Scientific Research: Management Commitment & Employee Participation • Changing U.S. Businesses

4. Importance of Understanding Culture • What Goes on in Organizations • Informal Rules Dictating Behavior • Basis for Everything Valued • Where it Helps or Hurts Safety

5. OSHAStrategic Goal “Change Workplace Culture to Increase Employer and Worker Awareness of, Commitment to, and Involvement in Safety and Health”

6. The Role of Management • Commitment • Safety vs. Other Concerns • Integration • Personal Involvement • Accountability • Support

7. Corporate Culture C • Assumptions • Values • Actions and Behavior

8. Assumptions • Human Nature • Human Relationships

9. Values • Organizational Standards of Desired Ends • Actions to Attain These End Points • Oughts and Shoulds • Preferences that Indicate Rightness of Certain Beliefs and Practices Over Others • Interdependent and Interrelated

10. How Management Communicates • By What It Does • By What It Pays Attention To • By What It Ignores • By What It Measures and Controls

11. High • Safety-Performing • Companies • Environment • Communication • EHSProfessionals • Employee Treatment

12. Study Conclusions • Organizational Issues • Positive Treatment • Does Money Talk? • Safety Programs Alone Don’t Work • Safety Program Evaluation

13. Soft Skills • Trustworthiness • Communication • Integrity • Adaptability • Interpersonal Skills

14. Current Management Book Themes • Pay Attention to Employees for Commitment and Productivity • Employee Fulfillment is a Vital Component of Corporate Success

15. Organizational Factors • Organizational Structure • Organizational Importance of Safety and Health • Responsibility/Accountability • Communication • Management Behavior • Employee Involvement • Employee Responses/Behavior

16. Perceptions The way we organize and interpret our sensory input to give meaning to our environment.

17. Perception Surveys • Feedback on Past Performance • Information for Future Direction • Design of Policies and Programs • Scientific Validity Crucial • Anonymous and Confidential

18. How Corporate Culture Changes • Major Crises • Survival Issues • Mergers, New Management, Takeovers • Management Wants to Change

19. Corporate Culture versus Safety Culture

20. Culture is • the Key • Management Leadership • Employee Participation

21. Techniques Do Not Work

22. Rethinking EHS: Not Zeroing in on Injuries and Accidents

23. New EHSApproach: More Holistic and Integrated

24. Evaluating by • Organizational Factors Improves: • Safety Performance • Productivity • Communication • Commitment • Profitability