Safety culture within all industries including the electrical industry is clothed in an influence of leadership style. Of course employees need to be accountable for their own actions, encourage their colleagues to do the same, yet safety is culture driven, of which a leader establishes and inspires this culture. A leader, whom people believe truly care about their welfare will have followers, translating their beliefs, values, attitudes and behaviours to provide a substantial impact on workplace performance.
A consequence of evolution now sees us living in a society shrouded under a heavy mist of rules, regulations and legislation. This mist provides challenges of system induced obstacles to safe performance, for employees and leaders alike. Employees must abide, not allow complacency to set in, or take shortcuts to complete works within a required timeframe; whilst leaders need to encourage and support safety behaviours.
Differing views on this topic range from British Prime Minister David Cameron declaring in early 2012 that Britain’s health and safety culture will be killed off for good, as it was a monster that hampers business growth. Whilst here in New Zealand and in Canada recent research identifies the importance of the safety culture and its relationship with workplace performance, reducing business costs.
The Electrical Engineers Association New Zealand has instigated an industry wide initiative called the Safety Climate Project, of which the main aim is to try and reduce workplace related injuries and deaths. New Zealand Statistics shows us that in the electrical industry alone there have been 389 serious workplace related injuries in the last five years (Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment 2012).
Recent research and nationwide surveys have portrayed results that indicate employees have the knowledge, have the ability and are equipped to carry out their work yet; do not have the same desire or want to perform the task with a squat perception of workplace interactions. Those issues most prevalent were low morale based on a lack of trust, transparency and their belief in not only management but leadership with the need for a clear direction and vision.
What emerged in part, is the need to be aware of how the style of leadership can influence heavily upon an employee’s attitudes, beliefs and perceptions (Cox & Cox 1991), stripping the culture of safety which in turn provides a potential breeding ground for disaster.
It could be argued that these issues are the employee’s perceptions only, yet are not these perceptions also an employee’s reality (Borner 2011). When left unchallenged these perceptions spread through the grapevine (McShane, Olekalns, Travaglione 2010) escalating the initial and underlying cause to a point where morale is reduced, moving the employees focal point from their work at hand to analysing unsubstantiated perceptions. It is here that safety can be compromised and complacency moves to the fore.
The problem ascends further by the fact that Employees in the industry work well in self directed teams, thriving in a position of autonomy when in a high stress situations such as an electrical fault caused by a storm. The leadership needed to enhance this autonomy and the ability to work well in high stress situations requires careful consideration when applying directives for routine maintenance and everyday works. The ability not to be condescending and autocratic which in turn strips motivation thereby affecting safety.
At the heart of the process is a realisation that safety culture is a human challenge and any attempt to lead safety requires an innate understanding of how people really think and behave.
There are numerous books, articles and writings with in depth discussions around leading organisational culture. But what of the sub culture of safety? This culture is determined by trust, credibility, commitment, care, communication, recognition and norms learned through observation and experiences. Yet surely it is the most important culture to be influenced by leadership. It is the creation of this type of workplace culture that can save lives and prevent injury.
“Leadership is defined as an art that liberates people to do what is required of them in the most effective and humane way possible” (Dyck, Roithmayr 2011 p257). Leaders require the ability to excite, stimulate and drive employees towards the organisations vision. To accomplish these within the electrical industry requires more than one particular style of leadership. It requires the ability for a leader to morph, meeting the situation whilst at the same time ensuring the task at hand, is on track for completion.
This ideal style of leadership finds support from within Situational, Path Goal and Transformational leadership theories which condense to these prerequisites.
- Provide the vision and drive it.
- Show commitment, trust and respect - walk the talk, be transparent and show you care.
- Empower, provide inspiration, intellectual stimulation and show integrity.
- Follow through, be accountable and ensure others know they are accountable also.
- Recognise and reward.
- Communicate, communicate and communicate some more utilising all methods both old and new.
With an appropriate style of leadership in place, an organisations safety culture can remain appropriately clothed leaving the employee satisfied, supported and energised performing in a safe environment and a great workplace.
The importance of leadership influence within the culture of safety has already been identified hence the first step has been taken.
What is required now is the ownership that industry leaders must take in identifying within themselves traits, where through self improvement they can provide a strong positive safety culture, required in any leading organisation (Dyck 2011).
A special thank you to Heidi Borner for highlighting the many dimensions of safety and of course thanks to Dr Bernie Frey for pushing me outside my comfort zone.
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