By Chris Mitchell, CSP (email)
Safety Advisor, Safety Management Group

Professional sports teams are groups of people who bring very different skills together to achieve victories. A pitcher and a third-basemen work just feet apart, but have separate responsibilities. A left tackle and a quarterback couldn’t be more different, but their actions must be perfectly synchronized. And point guards and centers have roles that evolve depending on the side of the court.

Even with all the right skills in place, teams usually need something else to help them succeed: coaching. It’s the coach’s job to stay focused on the big picture, coordinate every player’s role, and help each achieve maximum performance. When something goes wrong in a game, the coach calls a timeout, and works with the team to change strategies.

Shift your focus to a construction site, and you’ll have a similar situation. You’ll find all sorts of professional craftspeople with specialized skills, working under a common timetable to erect a structure under the guidance of supervisors. One type of coach on the "field" is a Safety Coach, who's charged with reducing hazards and ensuring that nobody gets hurt. A
manager/foreman/supervisor who performs his or her job like a coach, respecting the ”players” and providing the right expertise at the right time, will generally achieve a higher level of safety.

Visit this link Safety Coaching: A Game Plan for Motivation to read the complete article. To learn more about our professionl safety consulting services visit our web site Safety Management Group.

Labels: coaching, construction, consultant, safety

By Ron Hanson, CHST
Vice President of Operations Safety Management Group

How can you make your worksite a safer place? Many employers take an approach that's similar to the one used by OSHA: they set strict rules and then dole out stricter penalties when those rules are violated. That kind of approach can improve a company's safety record. Sadly, it all too often has the unintended effect of damaging morale. And, in my experience, it's often a sign that a company really doesn't see safety as a critically important aspect of doing business.

Other companies view safety as something more than just another set of rules. They recognize the value of maintaining a safer workplace. They know that increased safety usually translates into better morale, less turnover, higher productivity, and better profits. Beyond the business reasons, they also have a genuine concern for the well-being of their employees, and want to ensure that everyone goes home healthy every night.

Those companies understand the value of creating and maintaining a safety culture. A safety culture goes beyond regulations and equipment to provide a clear sense that safe practices are an important part of everything the company does.

Having a safety culture is more than simply developing programs, performing audits, conducting weekly 'toolbox' training meetings at jobsites, or offering safety incentive programs. A culture is defined as consistent beliefs, values, and behaviors among all members of a population. It's an attitude that flows through every level of the business, and a set of values shared by all employees.

Of course, it's possible to have a negative safety culture. The best example of that is when management pays lip service to safety issues but clearly doesn't embrace the concept. Comments such as 'safety is just common sense,' 'safety is the safety director's responsibility,' 'accidents just happen,' and 'safety is a necessary evil,' often define the safety culture of a company more accurately than a room full of safety programs and procedures. If employees believe that management really doesn't care about safety, it won't be a priority for them, either.

Maintaining a safety culture can provide bottom-line benefits. Because an organization that is focused on safety will have fewer injuries, it reduces expenses that are related to injuries and illnesses. It reduces the number of workmen's comp claims, and leads to lower insurance premiums. Companies with strong safety cultures typically see less absenteeism and other problems that are triggered by morale issues. Why' When workers sense a strong safety culture, they believe that their employer actually cares about them and their well-being ' and people work harder when they genuinely feel that they are valued.

What are the most important factors in developing a safety culture? The answer might surprise you.

Visit this link Real Safety Begins with Real Values to read the complete article by Safety Management Group. To learn more about our construction and manufacturing safety consulting services visit our web site Safety Management Group.

Labels: culture, safety, value

Most companies prepare safety program because of requirements for local and federal compliance. But a good safety program can do far more than simply keep you on the right side of the law. By helping you ensure that you have the right systems and programs in place, a safety program can help to ensure that your employees don’t get injured on the job. Because they are probably your company’s greatest asset, and are critical to meeting the needs of your customers, keeping employees safe and healthy also keeps your business safe and healthy.

Visit this link Drafting a Safety Program to read the complete article by Safety Management Group. To learn more about Safety Management Group's construction and manufacturing osha safety program development capabilities visit our Workplace Written Safety Programs page.

Labels: construction, manufacturing, osha, program, safety, workplace, writing

INSafe, a division of the Indiana Department of Labor has awarded Safety Management
Group a safety training scholarship for use by Indiana businesses.

The INSafe Small Business Training Scholarship Programs provide an
opportunity for employers to educate their workforce in critical
workplace safety and health training topics.

INDIANAPOLIS, January 23, 2008 – INSafe, a division of the
Indiana Department of Labor has selected Safety Management Group
to deliver safety training through the state’s INSafe Small
Business Training Scholarship Program.

The training scholarships are limited to employers that meet the es
ablished criteria, have 250 employees or less. Priority
consideration is given to employees of woman-owned businesses,
minority-owned businesses and public employees.

"By partnering with Hoosier organizations such as Safety Management
Group, information and resources concerning workplace safety and
health training are made more readily available to working Hoosiers.
INSafe is pleased to be a partner with Safety Management Group
for Hoosier workplace safety and health," Deputy Commissioner of
INSafe, Sean M. Keefer stated.

Learn more about this exciting opportunity at our INSafe Scholarship page. To learn more about Safety Management Group's community involvement see our community outreach page.

Labels: insafe, safety, scholarship, training

Labels: consulting, firm, largest, safety