Safety Culture Assessment

When an assessment becomes necessary

• Before defining a cultural transformation strategy or program.
• When departments, sites or leadership levels have very different perceptions.
• When indicators do not explain the signals observed in operations.
• When the organization needs to set priorities and a baseline to track progress.
• During a change in leadership, an integration of operations or a review of the safety strategy.

How the reading is built

The design of the assessment depends on the context, its reach and the decisions the organization needs to make. To cross-check different sources, the work may combine:

• Analysis of existing information, indicators and practices;
• Interviews and listening sessions across different levels of the organization;
• Observation of routines, rituals and work situations;
• A reading of perceptions about leadership, responsibility, trust and response to risk;
• Comparison between departments, sites or groups, where that analysis makes sense;
• An executive summary with findings, priorities and recommendations.

The Bradley and Hudson curves can be used as maturity references, without replacing the organization-specific reading.

What to do with the findings

By comparing the findings, leadership can see what recurs across departments and what needs attention in a particular site or group. That discussion helps choose priorities based on the conditions actually found.

Together with the organization, we decide who takes part, how the findings will be presented and what the next steps will be. The format depends on the context, and the time a transformation takes varies from one organization to another.

Proven experience

More than 500 Safety Culture Assessments conducted.

The Projects page records assessments and other safety culture work at organizations such as Coca-Cola, Bayer, InterCement and CESP. Each project had its own context and reach.