The most significant challenge in safety is not the incident, but what happens after. Too often companies respond with ineffective or even counter-productive actions—actions that can actually create more risk for employees and the business. That’s why it’s important to bring in an experienced executive coach who can help you lead your organization through this challenging period of time, guiding you through a process designed to make sure your organization learns from mistakes without repeating them.
Coaching Creates Interdependence
One of the most important things a safety executive can do is to create a culture that encourages employees to take on greater responsibility and accountability for their own safety. Employees who have a sense of interdependence are far more likely to work together toward common goals, creating a stronger safety culture overall. An executive coach can help your managers lead their teams in a way that fosters a strong sense of interdependence.
Identifying Areas for Improvement
If you’re an executive at a company that has experienced a significant safety incident recently, there are likely areas where the organization itself could have performed better. An executive coach can help your team members look back objectively on how they performed—and make sure everyone is clear about what needs to be done differently next time around. In this stage of coaching, an experienced executive will also work with employees to identify specific goals and objectives associated with each area for improvement identified during the assessment stage. An effective executive coach will lead employees through exercises designed to provide insight into which or knowledge gaps might have contributed to the incident. For example, an employee who performed well during the assessment stage might realize that he or she could have prevented the accident by asking a colleague for clarification on certain requirements.
Coaching Motivates Employees
Motivation is not something people are born with—it’s something they need to be taught. By working with your employees to identify specific ways in which they can improve their own performance, you create opportunities for them to develop greater motivation which, in turn, can help drive better results for you and your business. One of the most important roles of an executive coach is to motivate employees so they feel empowered to perform at their best every day. An experienced coach will lead employees through exercises designed to provide insight into which or knowledge gaps might have contributed to the incident. For example, an employee who performed well during the assessment stage might realize that he or she could have prevented the accident by asking a colleague for clarification on certain requirements.
A coach can also help employees develop new ways of thinking about safety, helping them internalize the idea that the personal commitment to safety is solely their own responsibility.
Safe Employees are Productive Employees
An executive coach who has experience in safety performance coaching will work with your managers to help motivate team members and provide guidance during this critical time for your company. The goal is to facilitate an open dialogue throughout the organization so everyone learns from mistakes without repeating them. Through honest self-assessment and targeted goals, organizations can turn a potentially volatile situation into a positive learning opportunity for all involved—lowering risk while improving performance and productivity.
Resetting Milestones
In some cases, a safety performance coaching program can be used to reset performance milestones following an incident. In this scenario, the executive coach will work with managers and employees to determine what needs to happen to provide closure around the event and set new goals for moving forward.
Improve Safety Performance Post-Incident
A strong commitment to learning from mistakes without repeating them is a clear sign that you’re serious about encouraging a stronger safety culture throughout your organization—one that encourages all team members to take ownership of what it means for them personally. Executive coaches who have experience in safety performance coaching know how important it is for leaders at every level to take responsibility for creating a culture where everyone feels empowered to learn from their own mistakes. In turn, an effective executive coach will lead employees through exercises designed to provide insight into which or knowledge gaps might have contributed to the incident. For example, an employee who performed well during the assessment stage might realize that he or she could have prevented the accident by asking a colleague for clarification on certain requirements.
An executive coach who has experience in safety performance coaching will work with your managers to help motivate team members and provide guidance during this critical time for your company. The goal is to facilitate an open dialogue throughout the organization so everyone learns from mistakes without repeating them. Through honest self-assessment and targeted goals, organizations can turn a potentially volatile situation into a positive learning opportunity for all involved—lowering risk while improving performance and productivity.
In some cases, a safety performance coaching program can be used to reset performance milestones following an incident. In this scenario, the executive coach will work with managers and employees to determine what needs to happen to provide closure around the event and set new goals for moving forward.
A strong commitment to learning from mistakes without repeating them is a clear sign that you’re serious about encouraging a stronger safety culture throughout your organization—one that encourages all team members to take ownership of what it means for them personally. Executive coaches who have experience in safety performance coaching know how important it is for leaders at every level to take responsibility for creating a culture where everyone feels empowered to learn from their own mistakes. In turn, an effective executive coach will lead employees through exercises designed to provide insight into which or knowledge gaps might have contributed to the incident. For example, an employee who performed well during the assessment stage might realize that he or she could have prevented the accident by asking a colleague for clarification on certain requirements.
Safety Coaching Stresses the Positive
Executives who are tasked with leading their organizations into safety coaching programs often find themselves stuck in a cycle of blame and punishment, focused on fixing the problems that face them. To achieve better results through safety coaching, it’s important to focus on what you want your employees to do rather than what not to do. The goal is not just compliance—it’s performance improvement. By focusing only on the negative, employers risk creating an environment where employees feel punished for mistakes they previously had no control over. An executive coach can help your team shift its mindset so you can maximize safety performance throughout your organization.
In addition to helping employees better understand how they contributed to a given mistake, an executive coach will also work closely with your organization’s leadership team to identify specific steps that can be taken going forward. This helps everyone stay focused on the positive and helps create a culture where it’s not just okay to make mistakes—it’s expected. An effective safety coaching program will promote self-awareness, develop tangible skills, and highlight the role leaders play in inspiring commitment throughout their organizations. More than anything else, it emphasizes the importance of taking personal responsibility for safety performance every day.
An executive coach helps employees establish a clear understanding of the role they play in safety management and motivates them to optimize their own performance. An experienced leader understands that mistakes are an inevitable part of work life, instead preferring to focus on how employees can learn from past mistakes in order to become better contributors tomorrow. The end goal is not compliance, it’s fostering a culture where everyone from executives to entry-level team members take responsibility for their own actions and the actions of those around them every day. Ultimately, your organization will be well-positioned to set a standard for safe behavior among all constituencies—a powerful goal for any leader.
Conclusion:
This article presents a strong argument that your organization can benefit from executive coaching to foster a culture of safety and personal responsibility. Executive coaches guide employees and managers through exercises designed to identify which knowledge gaps might have contributed to accidents and other harm, helping them take ownership for their mistakes. Not only does this help organizations avoid repeating past mistakes, it also allows everyone in the organization to better understand how they can make positive contributions going forward. An effective safety coaching program helps you focus on what you want your employees to do rather than what not to do—the goal is performance improvement, not just compliance with regulations. More importantly, it emphasizes the importance of taking personal responsibility for safe behavior every day. For these reasons others related to your own business context can be listed.
With executive coaching, leaders at every level can ensure that the company’s safety culture becomes a positive force that motivates employees to constantly look for new ways to improve. By partnering with an experienced executive coach, your leadership team will have the guidance it needs to create a safe environment where everyone truly feels empowered to learn from his or her own mistakes. The result is a workplace that’s more productive, efficient, and free from human error.
To learn more about how executive coaching works and how it can benefit your organization, contact an executive coach today.