RIASSUNTO
Abstract
The single largest factor for success in incident free operations is leadership. Leaders are responsible and accountable not only for getting results but getting results in the right way and behaving in accordance with company values. Leaders at every level are expected to foster and reinforce an incident free culture, cascade the message that incident free is a priority throughout their organizations, instill operational discipline and work to ensure that their entire workforce comply with safety requirements.
In a newly acquired company it was a challenge for leaders to manage the risks of organization change and at the same time shift the workforce paradigm to a new culture and drive them towards incident free operations. Leaders had to determine which safety requirements and behaviors applied to their specific organizational roles and took action to integrate them into routine duties. This paper discusses the experience and approaches that the company used to manage the risks of organizational change, the key steps and building blocks used to move towards incident free operations, and the leadership accountability established to drive and sustain a safety culture to achieve high levels of performance. Key activities included building leadership accountability, establishing a Safety Leadership Team, directing a safety management system process, setting priorities, monitoring progress on plans that focus on the highest-impact items, and demonstrating visible leadership engagement and commitment. Examples of the key activities and how the leadership accountability metrics were developed and tracked will also be discussed.
An improvement in safety is reflected by achieving zero number of Days Away From Work cases and excellent completion of leadership accountability metrics. A Leadership Behavior Survey conducted in 2010 as well as the 2011 Corporate OE (Operational Excellence) Audit indicated satisfactory results. The paper concludes leadership accountability is an important factor to ensure success to drive towards incident free operations.
In 2011, the business unit experienced zero Days Away from Work cases and a 75% decrease in Total Recordable incidents. Visible leadership and engagement have been very instrumental in fostering and reinforcing a workforce incident free culture, and directly contributed to an improved safety performance.
Background
Prior to the merger, the former company experienced many major incidents almost every year. Examples: main office building & platform fires with lost drilling, fatalities at construction sites, helicopter transportation accident with fatalities, boat collisions, and drowning. This situation was reflected by the high numbers of DAFW cases during that period. This was a real challenge for the new operator of that company to operate & maintain production while preventing injuries, illness and other incidents.