• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Safety Risk .net

Humanising Safety and Embracing Real Risk

  • Home
    • About
      • Privacy Policy
      • Contact
  • FREE
    • FREE SAFETY eBOOKS
    • Free Hotel and Resort Risk Management Checklist
    • FREE DOWNLOADS
    • TOP 50
    • FREE RISK ASSESSMENT FORMS
    • Find a Safety Consultant
    • Free Safety Program Documents
    • Psychology Of Safety
    • Safety Ideas That Work
    • HEALTH and SAFETY MANUALS
    • FREE SAFE WORK METHOD STATEMENT RESOURCES
    • Whats New In Safety
    • FUN SAFETY STUFF
    • Health and Safety Training
    • SAFETY COURSES
    • Safety Training Needs Analysis and Matrix
    • Top 20 Safety Books
    • This Toaster Is Hot
    • Free Covid-19 Toolbox Talks
    • Download Page – Please Be Patient With Larger Files…….
    • SAFETY IMAGES, Photos, Unsafe Pictures and Funny Fails
    • How to Calculate TRIFR, LTIFR and Other Health and Safety Indicators
    • Download Safety Moments from Human Resources Secretariat
  • PSYCH. OF SAFETY & RISK
    • What is Psychological Safety at Work?
    • Safety Psychology Terminology
    • Some Basics on Social Psychology & Risk
    • Understanding The Social Psychology of Risk – Prof Karl E. Weick
    • The Psychology of Leadership in Risk
    • Conducting a Psychology and Culture Safety Walk
    • The Psychology of Conversion – 20 Tips to get Started
    • Understanding The Social Psychology of Risk And Safety
    • Psychology and safety
    • The Psychology of Safety
    • Hot Toaster
    • TALKING RISK VIDEOS
    • WHAT IS SAFETY
    • THE HOT TOASTER
    • THE ZERO HARM DEBATE
    • SEMIOTICS
    • LEADERSHIP
  • Robert Long
    • ALL POSTS
    • Learning Styles Matter
    • There is no HIERARCHY of Controls
    • Scaffolding, Readiness and ZPD in Learning
    • What Can Safety Learn From Playschool?
    • Presentation Tips for Safety People
    • Dialogue Do’s and Don’ts
    • It’s Only a Symbol
    • Ten Cautions About Safety Checklists
    • Zero is Unethical
    • First Report on Zero Survey
    • There is No Objectivity, Deal With it!
  • Slogans
    • Researchers Reveal the Top 10 Most Effective Safety Slogans Of All Time
    • When Slogans Don’t Work
    • CLASSIC, FAMOUS and INFAMOUS SAFETY QUOTES
    • BEST WORKPLACE HEALTH and SAFETY SLOGANS 2022
    • CATCHY and FUNNY SAFETY SLOGANS FOR THE WORKPLACE
    • COVID-19 (Coronavirus, Omicron) Health and Safety Slogans and Quotes for the Workplace
    • Safety Acronyms
    • You know Where You Can Stick Your Safety Slogans
    • Sayings, Slogans, Aphorisms and the Discourse of Simple
    • Spanish Safety Slogans – Consignas de seguridad
    • Safety Slogans List
    • Road Safety Slogans 2022
    • How to write your own safety slogans
    • Why Are Safety Slogans Important
    • Safety Slogans Don’t Save Lives
    • 40 Free Safety Slogans For the Workplace
    • Safety Slogans for Work
  • Safety Culture
    • Safety Culture Silences
  • Psychological Safety
You are here: Home / George Robotham / Communicating Change

Communicating Change

June 26, 2012 by George Robotham Leave a Comment

Article by George Robotham – www.ohschange.com.au

A quote I love from this article: “The world of safety is famous for well-meaning, ponderous, glossy publications that no one really knows about, cares about or uses. Safety communications are also famous for the use of “weasel-words”. “Weasel-words” promise a lot but deliver little. Corporate OHS people are experts at producing technically brilliant safety communications that the workers do not connect with”

Communicating change – Winning employee support for new business goals – T. J. Larkin, Sandar Larkin

Introduction

I worked with T.J. Larkin analysing communications in a major organisation, the things he says make a lot of sense to me.

There were 3 main messages to come out of this research-

  1. Use face-to-face communications,
  2. Use the supervisor to communicate and
  3. Frame messages relevant to the immediate work area.

Extracts from the text

After receiving communication employees should return to their job and perform better than before. This change should be observable and immediate. Communication should have one goal, improving performance. It should change the way employees do their job.

If communication is to change behaviour it must be grounded in the desires and interests of the receivers. To be noticed the communication must be something that interests the receiver, to change behaviour it must touch one of their values.

A lot of current communications is designed to please head office. The communication is not oriented towards the receivers and consequently does not change the way they act.

Communication often comes from senior management, it is a mortal sin to fail to use supervisors to introduce change to front line employees

There is some loyalty and admiration among middle and senior managers. This dissipates fast as you head toward the front line. On the front line loyalty and admiration are replaced by suspicion. Senior management should never go direct to the front line.

Working with a powerful supervisor is associated with-

1 Increased trust in the supervisor

2 Increased desire for communications with the supervisor

3 Increased belief in the accuracy of information coming from the supervisor

It is not the employees communication relationship with the C.E.O. or head office that matters, rather it is his or hers communication with his or her supervisor that matters. The supervisor must be the privileged receiver of information, never brief workers and supervisors together. Do not trickle communications down through middle management, it rarely works.

Australian front line employees like videos much less than their American counterparts.

Do not rely on the company newsletter for communicating change

Professor T.J. Larkin says “If it is not face-to-face it is not communication”.

General safety communications

With written communications I aim to be succinct, have an appropriate structure and utilise management summaries with major reports. I use photographs, diagrams, flow-charts etc. to illustrate main points. Important written communications must always be followed up by a face-to-face meeting. The BHP guideline for general correspondence is that if it takes more than 2 pages to write it is too much for busy people to write and read. The world of safety is famous for well-meaning, ponderous, glossy publications that no one really knows about, cares about or uses. Safety communications are also famous for the use of “weasel-words”. “Weasel-words” promise a lot but deliver little. Corporate OHS people are experts at producing technically brilliant safety communications that the workers do not connect with.

Action and Experiential learning models must be used for communicating learning as opposed to lecture style presentations.

Conclusion

There were 3 main messages to come out of this research-

  1. Use face-to-face communications,
  2. Use the supervisor to communicate and
  3. Frame messages relevant to the immediate work area.

These are very simple yet powerful messages that are often ignored in practice, much safety communications should be examined for its effectiveness.

  • Bio
  • Latest Posts
  • More about George
George Robotham

George Robotham

George was a Legend in the Safety World who passed away in Sept 2013 but left us with a great legacy
George Robotham

Latest posts by George Robotham (see all)

  • Safety Communications - May 29, 2022
  • How To Write a Safety Report - May 9, 2022
  • Risk assessment tips - April 27, 2022
  • How to Write Safety Procedures - June 30, 2021
  • How to Give an Unforgettable Safety Presentation - June 3, 2019
George Robotham
I have worked in OHS for most of my working life, many years in the mining industry including over 10 years in a corporate OHS role with BHP. Since leaving the mining industry I have worked in a variety of safety roles with a variety of employers, large & small, in a variety of industries. I was associated with my first workplace fatality at age 21, the girl involved was young, intelligent, vivacious and friendly. Such a waste! I was the first on the scene and tried to comfort her and tend to her injuries. She said to me “George, please do not let me die” We put her on the aerial ambulance to Rockhampton base hospital where she died the next day. I do not mind telling you that knocked me around for awhile. Since then I have helped my employers cope with the aftermath of 12 fatalities and 2 other life-altering events. The section "Why do Occupational Health & Safety" provides further detail but in summary, poor safety is simply very expensive and also has a massive humanitarian cost. My qualifications include a certificate I.V. in Workplace Training and Assessment, a Diploma in Frontline Management, a Diploma in Training & Assessment Systems, a Bachelor of Education (Adult & Workplace Education) , a Grad. Cert. in Management of Organisational Change and a Graduate Diploma in Occupational Hazard Management. I am currently studying towards a Masters in Business Leadership. Up until recently I had been a Chartered Fellow of the Safety Institute of Australia for 10 years and a member for about 30 years. My interest is in non-traditional methods of driving organisational change in OHS and I have what I believe is a healthy dis-respect for many common approaches to OHS Management and OHS Training. I hold what I believe is a well-founded perception that many of the things safety people and management do in safety are “displacement activities” (Displacement activities are things we do, things we put a lot of energy into, but which when we examine them closely there is no valid reason for doing them). My managerial and leadership roles in OHS have exposed me to a range of management techniques that are relevant to Business Improvement. In particular I am a strong supporter of continuous improvement and quality management approaches to business. I believe leadership is the often forgotten key to excellence in most aspects of life. I hold the Australian Defence Medal and am a J.P.(Qualified). I have many fond memories of my time playing Rugby Union when I was a young bloke.

Please share our posts

  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: George Robotham Tagged With: Change Management, communication, safety communication, safety slogan

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Search and Discover More on this Site

Never miss a post - Subscribe via Email

Enter your email address and join other discerning risk and safety people who receive notifications of new posts by email

Join 7,463 other subscribers

VIRAL POST!!! HOW TO QUIT THE SAFETY INDUSTRY

NEW! Free Download

Please take our 2 minute zero survey

Recent Comments

  • Amy Saunders on Quick Tips for Preventing Electrical Issues in the Workplace
  • Michael on Construction Risk Assessments
  • Rob Long on How to Leave the Safety Industry
  • Wynand on How to Leave the Safety Industry
  • Brian Edwin Darlington on How to Leave the Safety Industry
  • Brian Edwin Darlington on Culture Silences in Safety – What Culture Isn’t
  • Rob Long on How to Leave the Safety Industry
  • Rob Long on How to Leave the Safety Industry
  • Brent Charlton on How to Leave the Safety Industry
  • Richard Brookes on How to Leave the Safety Industry
  • Rob Long on The Rhizome as a Learning Model for Risk
  • Ooker on The Rhizome as a Learning Model for Risk
  • Rob Long on Safety Doesn’t Need Military Language
  • Manjit Handa on Safety Doesn’t Need Military Language
  • Rob Long on Why Safety is Attracted to Behaviourism
  • Ricardo Montero on Why Safety is Attracted to Behaviourism
  • Admin on Culture Silences in Safety – Ritual
  • Anonymous on Culture Silences in Safety – Ritual
  • Rob Long on Cultural Silences in Safety – Power and Politics
  • Admin on Cultural Silences in Safety – Power and Politics

FREE eBOOK DOWNLOADS

Footer

Top Posts & Pages. Sad that most are so dumb but this is what safety luves

  • BEST WORKPLACE HEALTH and SAFETY SLOGANS 2022
  • Free Safety Moments and Toolbox Talk Examples, Tips and Resources
  • Road Safety Slogans 2022
  • CATCHY and FUNNY SAFETY SLOGANS FOR THE WORKPLACE
  • FREE RISK ASSESSMENT FORMS, CHECKISTS, REGISTERS, TEMPLATES and APPS
  • Download Safety Moments from Human Resources Secretariat
  • 15 Safety Precautions When Working With Electricity
  • What Is Safety?
  • Free Risk Assessment Template in Excel Format
  • COVID-19 (Coronavirus, Omicron) Health and Safety Slogans and Quotes for the Workplace

Recent Posts

  • Understanding Psychological Terminology
  • Poetics of the Self
  • Culture Silences in Safety – What Culture Isn’t
  • There is No Objectivity, Deal With it!
  • When Only More Guilt Will Do
  • How to Leave the Safety Industry
  • Keep Counting Every Time You Don’t Achieve Your Goal, That’s Professional
  • Safety and Non-Neuroscience
  • Paperwork and Usability in Tackling Risk
  • Safety as a Masculinist Activity
  • You Don’t Want a Compliance Culture
  • The Soul of Mental Health
  • Identity and Safety
  • Psychosocial Controls and Measures for Who?
  • Linguistics and Safety
  • Not a Profession’s Bootlace
  • Cultural Silences in Safety – Power and Politics
  • History and Safety
  • What is Psychosocial Safety
  • A Guide to Psychosocial Safety Skills
  • Doing Away With Health and Safety–Language and People
  • The New Enemy of Safety – The Unconscious
  • Tape Down Those Leads
  • More Safety Code to Disguise Behaviourism
  • Why Safety is Attracted to Behaviourism
  • Safety Culture–Hudson’s Model
  • Understanding Safety as an Archetype
  • The Purpose of Safety
  • Learning Styles Matter
  • Due Diligence and Holistic Ergonomics Workshops
  • Having FUN in Safety FUNdamentalism
  • 80% of Safety Practitioners Are Idiots
  • Risk Homeostasis Theory–Why Safety Initiatives Go Wrong
  • Culture Silences in Safety – Semiotics
  • Flooding is Dangerous, and I don’t Mean the Water….
  • Cultural Silences in Safety – Aesthetics
  • What Can Safety Learn From Playschool?
  • Risky Conversations, The Law, Social Psychology and Risk
  • Due Diligence Videos – 10000 downloads
  • Release the Safety Monster and Wreck a Good TV Show
  • Paper Safe
  • Safety Starts with Us
  • Investigations and Heuristics
  • Barry’s Latest Safety Innovation Discovery
  • The Human Race…
  • The ASSP Getting Complacency Completely Wrong
  • What in the (Risk & Safety) World is Imagination?
  • Understanding Safety Myths
  • Cultural Silences in Safety – Empathy
  • Culture Silences in Safety – Trajectories

FEATURED POSTS

Learning Styles Matter

Knowing When to Break the Rules

I’m Concerned That We Can’t See The Safety Forest For The Safety Trees

Social Psychology of Risk – Body of Knowledge

The Challenges for Organisations in Dealing with Mental Health

Selling Out Safety

Does Safety Have A Soul?

Safety-1, Safety-2, Safety-3

We Are Such Experts….

Nudge Nudge, Wink Wink – Improving Safety the SMART Way

Disrupting the Methodology in Safety?

I DON’T KNOW

Understanding Safety as an Archetype

Risk and Safety Starts with Being?

Data Cannot Drive Vision

In Praise of Balance in Risk and the Threat of Extremism

Anchoring Safety to Objects

Binary Opposites and Safety Goal Strategy

What are Your Secret Messages in Safety?

The Ethics of Safety

How Workers Really Make Decisions

Daydreaming and Safety

What Are the Benefits Of Social Psychology of Risk?

The Sacred Bra Tree

Free Two Chapter Download and Book Competition

The Human Safety Newsletter is Out

Visualising Risk

A Critique of Pure Reason

Lemmings for Lemmings in Leadership and Risk

Risky Conversations Book Launch in Perth

Sense-Making and Decision-Making in Risk

The 5 Ways We Identify Hazards

New Social Psychology of Risk Website

The Great Heinrich Hoax

European Tour Dr Long 1-5 June 2020

Why Would You Talk That Way?

Abby Normal Safety

In Honour of George Robotham and Geoff McDonald

Safety People Don’t ‘Save Lives’

Behaviourist Neuroscience as Safety

More Posts from this Category

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address and join other discerning risk and safety people who receive notifications of new posts by email

Join 7,463 other subscribers

How we pay for the high cost of running of this site – try it for free on your site

What is Psychological Safety at Work?