System safety in the oil, gas, and chemical industries

Why we should radically reevaluate the approach to safety in the oil, gas, and chemical industries

Safety in the oil, gas, and chemical (OG&C) industries is far from being “solved.” There is no data to contest that the next major catastrophe is right around the corner. Studies are showing quite the opposite; major catastrophes continue to happen for reasons that these industries have already learned in the past. History continues to repeat itself. OG&C companies should consider radically changing how they approach improving safety, and they need to take action directly from the C-suite. Here are five actions that OG&C companies can take to initiate, enable, and sustain system safety from the top.

Leading from the C-suite: 5 actions to improve safety in the oil, gas, and chemical industries

Each OG&C organization’s journey to system safety is unique. By taking a strategic approach and following our suggested five actions to initiate, enable, and sustain system safety, OG&C leaders can:

• Establish what “good” looks like
• Build the capabilities to strive for that good
• Lay the foundation to truly lead system safety from the c-suite—now and in the future

Get leaders to think differently about system safety

What is needed

• In-depth training for leaders on system safety, high reliability organization (HRO) principles, and safety culture
• Continually incorporating the principles and mindset into everyday meetings and decisions

Signs you are on the right journey

• Deep-rooted recognition of “what good looks like” from a behavior-based assessment
• Expanded understanding of the complexity of behavioral patterns and impact on safety across the organization

Articulate each area’s system safety objectives, role, and influence

What is needed

• Formal accountability in place for every leader to be able to articulate their team’s role in system safety
• Process to share system safety insights and impacts across teams

Signs you are on the right journey

• Clear understanding of how decisions made far from “the field” can impact system safety now and in the future
• Strong ownership of each person’s part of system safety in every department and at every level

Develop a proactive visualization tool for system safety

What is needed

• An interactive strategic-level system safety dashboard that provides insight into the current state of all safety controls and capabilities within a leader’s group
• A process to continually assess this dashboard and make decisions around system safety gaps based on the overall view of the state of the group

Signs you are on the right journey

• Understanding that incident rates are used solely for lessons learned and are not an indication of future rates
• Transparency is rewarded over making “good numbers”
• Leaders have a single integrated view of their safety capabilities and gaps, the state of each, and how they interrelate

Use a system safety lens when assessing the implications of strategic choices

What is needed

• Develop a process and framework to systematically assess system safety impacts every time major strategic decisions are made
• Define roles and responsibilities for leaders to follow through on any mitigating actions that are identified

Signs you are on the right journey

• System safety SMEs are consulted when reviewing the implementation plan for each new strategic choice
• Impacts to system safety are identified and tracked throughout implementation to minimize disruption to vital safety controls and capabilities

Identify system safety capability needs; close gaps

What is needed

• The working state of system safety capabilities is assessed based on a comprehensive operating model framework
• Insights from the steps above are used to identify where to target funding, resources, and time

Signs you are on the right journey

• Leaders know what safety controls and capabilities they need to foster and actively work to put these in place
• Continual assessments of the need for system safety capabilities are conducted