Every business has goals. Production, Cost, Quality…. And of course doing all of that safely, ensuring everyone gets to go home and do what matters most to them. That’s why we all go to work in the first place. Think of that as “The Ultimate Goal”.
So, of all the goals in business, there should be no greater goal than achieving great safety performance.
But great safety performance doesn’t come without effort. When there’s a drive for performance, you’ll almost always find someone tasked with helping to improve it. In the world of sport that person would go by the name of “Coach”.
In the world of business, the role of coach generally falls to someone with a different title, with numerous responsibilities. We call them Leaders, with an umbrella under which Coach falls.
But what exactly does it mean to “coach” safety?
According to Wikipedia “Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person… supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance.” And that “Coaching differs from mentoring by focusing on specific tasks or objectives, as opposed to more general goals or overall development.”
Training and guidance…. In the case of safety, the knowledge to complete the work safely and guidance on how to put that knowledge into practice. Coaching.
If you’ve ever observed a good sports coach, you can likely picture how that process looks when done well – or not. Techniques are first taught, then reinforcement of their implementation is given – positive or negative. If the coaching is done well you’ll hear a lot of questions, too.
For you as a Leader – and Coach – this suggests three simple practices:
So, of all the goals in business, there should be no greater goal than achieving great safety performance.
But great safety performance doesn’t come without effort. When there’s a drive for performance, you’ll almost always find someone tasked with helping to improve it. In the world of sport that person would go by the name of “Coach”.
In the world of business, the role of coach generally falls to someone with a different title, with numerous responsibilities. We call them Leaders, with an umbrella under which Coach falls.
But what exactly does it mean to “coach” safety?
According to Wikipedia “Coaching is a form of development in which an experienced person… supports a learner or client in achieving a specific personal or professional goal by providing training and guidance.” And that “Coaching differs from mentoring by focusing on specific tasks or objectives, as opposed to more general goals or overall development.”
Training and guidance…. In the case of safety, the knowledge to complete the work safely and guidance on how to put that knowledge into practice. Coaching.
If you’ve ever observed a good sports coach, you can likely picture how that process looks when done well – or not. Techniques are first taught, then reinforcement of their implementation is given – positive or negative. If the coaching is done well you’ll hear a lot of questions, too.
For you as a Leader – and Coach – this suggests three simple practices:
- Ensure everyone knows “The Goal”. No one goes home hurt, or worse.
- Ask plenty of questions to ensure everyone has the knowledge to achieve The Goal.
- Provide feedback – positive or negative – on the implementation of that knowledge.
Doing those three things will help up your game – and theirs.
Balmert Consulting
October 2024
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