Arrow Energy employees completed the Safer Together Safety Culture Survey across a four week period in May and June 2017. Arrow had an excellent participation with 90% of employees completing the survey.

Arrow’s approach was to complete the survey in individual face to face department sessions which were facilitated by the Line Manager supported by a member of the HSE team. By doing this Arrow was able to obtain live results and department specific feedback.  This resulted in 31 department specific reports, six Business Unit reports and an overall Companywide report.

Each department is now addressing their own specific results and feedback, and opportunities for improvement. Most teams have already come up with actions that they will be taking forward. This “bottom-ups” approach will allow teams to focus on improvements that are meaningful and specific to them.

Overall, the results indicated that employees who completed the survey thought the safety leadership behaviours at Arrow Energy were mostly positive. An overall conclusion can be drawn that the company have a positive and maturing safety culture.

Michelle Zaunbrecher, Vice-President Health, Safety and Environment, commented: “We carefully considered the resources required to do the survey and how to structure it. Planning the survey, coaching and supporting the facilitators upfront, and involving the teams in the improvement actions were the key success factors. Arrow obtained insightful information from the survey that can be used by our managers and supervisors going forward. The survey process was a useful tool to get visibility, participation and ownership at a team level.  We were really impressed with the rich information generated, and the enthusiasm from the teams to discuss their findings and work out improvement actions.”

Below is an overview of the results:

Module 1 Everyone

The top three behaviours that were demonstrated Always/Usually were:

  • Follows the rules and uses the right procedure for the job
  • Keep safety a priority especially under time pressure
  • Takes care of other team members, and supports team safety standards

The top three behaviours that were demonstrated Sometimes/Seldom were:

  • Participates in local programs or initiatives to improve safety performance
  • Challenges impractical rules and procedures, identifies improvements to supervisors
  • Takes the time to consider how decisions and actions may affect others now and in the future

Be Mindful was voted the Most Impactful behaviour. Planning & HSE Management System (Simplification & Consultation) were the key improvement opportunities identified for this behaviour.

 

Module 2 Supervisors

The top three behaviours that were demonstrated Always/Usually were:

  • Promptly acts on safety concerns, seeking management support where necessary
  • Encourages the team to be wary, and stop the job if they have safety concerns
  • Describes and explains to the team what is expected of them, reinforcing the need to thoroughly check their work

The top three behaviours that were demonstrated Sometimes/Seldom were:

  • Visits the worksite frequently and discusses safety issues with the team
  • Recognises and rewards good individual and team safety performance
  • Supports coaches and involves team members in implementing safety improvements

Involve the Team was voted the Most Impactful Behaviour for Supervisors. Planning and Share Learning were the key improvement opportunities identified for this behaviour.

 

Module 3 Managers

The top three behaviours that were demonstrated Always/Usually were:

  • Ensures effective mechanisms exist for people to stop the job or raise safety concerns
  • Keeps the message simple and direct
  • Ensures that safety communication is regular and reaches all personnel

The top three behaviours that were demonstrated Sometimes/Seldom were:

  • Seeks out bad news
  • Regularly uses different communication methods to get the safety message across
  • Continually seeks new ways to widen client and workforce participation and involvement

Proactively Involve was voted the Most Impactful Behaviour, Collaboration, Integration and Planning were the key improvement opportunities identified for this behaviour.

For more information about Arrow Energy click here.

For more information about Safety Culture Survey click here.