Working towards a zero-harm mindset

Do you get up in the morning and think “I am going to have a good day today”?

If you do, the chances are you will spend the day proving yourself right and finish your day feeling satisfied. However, the opposite is also possible. If you feel that your day has not started well it can become a dreadful day and, in the health and safety world, a dreadful day can mean someone has been injured.

I am currently managing a project to maximise the benefits of the ‘good day’ positive mindset with the goal of improving our health and safety outcomes. My company has a purpose “to create a better every day for everyone to build a better life for all”. If our people are getting hurt because of workplace incidents and accidents, that is not adhering to our purpose. A better life isn’t one with a broken bone!

A zero harm mindset

My team is working with people managers to create a ‘zero harm’ mindset that they can then pass on to their own teams. The goal is to change behaviour such that our people authentically believe that, when it comes to accidents, zero is the only acceptable target – and that it is possible to have a zero-harm day. Too many people in our industry accept a level of minor accidents as inevitable, but even small cuts and burns should not be an expected part of a working day.

The project has been delivered through workshops, in which we explore the link between people’s quality of life and their safety. We frame the quality of life as their ‘why’. This ‘why’ can include a multitude of things. We have talked about hobbies, fitness, holidays and career goals, but – in almost every case – workshop attendees identify spending time with loved ones as their most important ‘why’.

Obviously, there have been exceptions. One delegate could not decide if the golf clubs or the wife was more valuable, but I decided not to pursue that discussion!

The next step in the process is to get people to think about what they are potentially putting at risk (their ‘why’) by taking a shortcut or not following a safe process. After the workshops, those participating in the programme are tasked with implementing nine toolboxes with their non-management employees. Delivering these toolboxes with an authentic belief in a zero-harm mindset is imperative, as it will ensure the manager delivers them with passion.

It is the team’s role to ensure they have that belief at the end of the workshop. This ‘zero-harm mindset’ approach has been shown to influence their decisions in the right way, making them more likely to make the safe choice.

Measurable outcomes

The project was piloted in other countries where Sodexo operates, specifically Asia, and there have been measurably improved outcomes where the project has been rolled out. The workshop structure and content were put together by a team of subject-matter experts, while my role has been to pick up the project and, with the support of my team, deliver the programme with passion and enthusiasm.

"Einstein is frequently quoted as saying that the definition of insanity is 'doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result'. Simply reiterating the rules that people are clearly not following, or that they are not convinced are necessary, is a waste of time, energy and resources."

Caitlin McArthur, Zero Harm Mindset Delivery and Deployment Manager, Sodexo, UK

Talking honestly

I have wide experience of delivering health and safety training across the company, so I understand it frequently comes with an expectation of being dry, and all about risk assessments, slips, trips, falls – and endless reports. It has been fabulous to receive comments during this project such as: “I thought I would lose seven hours of my life that I would never get back, but that was the best training I have ever had.”

The open dialogue during the workshops has been emotional, interesting and, in some cases, life changing. Asking people to talk honestly about their mindsets requires focus – not only about safety at work, but also about how important their ‘why’ is, and how much they should and can do to protect it.

One delegate was led to openly admit that their driving was not safe, and they had never considered how that makes their loved ones feel and the impact it has on those around them.

In our training, we use the quote often attributed to Albert Einstein: 'You can never solve a problem on the level on which it was created.'

In my experience, changing the attitude that accepts that accidents happen can be a difficult hurdle to overcome. If people expect accidents as a normal part of their work environment, they are not likely to be committed to following controls put in place to prevent them. When the same incident occurs repeatedly even when controls are in place, we have to look at why this is happening, and the thinking around the problem needs to be reviewed.

Opening up the discussion around thinking differently about safety has proved highly effective in getting people to see safety as an enabler, not a blocker. Be honest – you have probably blamed health and safety at some point for spoiling the fun or making an unnecessary barrier to getting things done.

If we can get employees to switch to understanding that the processes are protecting them and their ‘why’, it brings a whole new perspective and an opportunity to change the story going forward.

Impact at home and at work

Being safe at work is an important part of how valued an employee feels. It also impacts on all the people around them, at work and at home. If every day when you or your ‘why’ goes off to work you are both concerned for each other’s safety, that makes for a very stressful life.

Einstein is also frequently quoted as saying that the definition of insanity is 'doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result'. Simply reiterating the rules that people are clearly not following, or that they are not convinced are necessary, is a waste of time, energy and resources. So, thinking differently and being open to new ways of doing things safely is a must.

Our project has shown that we can change thinking by focusing people on the importance of their ‘why’.

The ‘zero-harm mindset’ has been my world for the past 10 months, and an interesting one at that. We have delivered more than 300 workshops across the business, which is a considerable investment in safety. We will be measuring the impact of the project by reviewing our accident statistics and carrying out culture evaluations with managers who have completed the programme.

I am already convinced that we have made an impact and I would love to be part of a workforce that achieves zero injuries.