The foundation for an ethic starts with a consideration of Power and Technique (Ellul). Well before one can articulate any idea of virtues (https://safetyrisk.net/ten-virtues-for-a-positive-safety-culture/) or vices, one needs to be clear about a founding philosophy (methodology). Tinkering about … [Read more...] about An Ethic of Non-Power in Risk
technique
Technique – The Worship of a False Idol
By Simon Renatus In the digital age, we have traded gods of stone for gods of silicon, bowing to the altar of algorithms and screens, mistaking data for wisdom and followers for meaning. (ChatGPT, 2024) This quote raises important questions about the role of technology in our lives. Can an … [Read more...] about Technique – The Worship of a False Idol
Better Questions in Safety Require a Better Disposition to Persons
So much of what parades around safety focuses on Technique, what Ellul calls ‘the quest for efficiency’. The word is italicised to accentuate the difference between being technical and Ellul’s meaning. Everyone in safety ought to read his book The Technological Society (1964). Ellul was an amazing … [Read more...] about Better Questions in Safety Require a Better Disposition to Persons
Technique and the Demise of the Agile, Scrum Myth
It is often amusing to observe the Archetype of Technique (Ellul) surface and fade away as old and new fads are adopted and disappear. This seems to satisfy the mysterious quest for efficiency and certainty by people in business and organisations, only to discover that there is nothing ‘different’. … [Read more...] about Technique and the Demise of the Agile, Scrum Myth
7 Traits of a Safety-Focused Safety Leader – NOT!
Even when Safety attempts to discuss humanizing it does so through the lens of Technique (Ellul). The focus is rarely on persons but rather the safety program and safety outcomes. What a shame that when Safety endeavours to do something it can’t imagine outside of its own safety box! A good … [Read more...] about 7 Traits of a Safety-Focused Safety Leader – NOT!
What Do You Mean By Performance?
When we hear the word ‘performance’ what do we think of? Well, it depends. Language is contextual not propositional. If you want to know about language you need to know the context in order to understand how it is being used. For example, when we use the word ‘performance’ in the Arts, … [Read more...] about What Do You Mean By Performance?
AI and Safety, Brutalism on Steroids
There has been so much hype about AI recently and such little discernment about what is hidden in the language and discourse of so much ‘noise’ about the issue. So much of what Ellul described 70 years ago: The Technological Society Never Mind Where, So Long As It's Fast: Jacques Ellul and … [Read more...] about AI and Safety, Brutalism on Steroids
Programming for Safety, the Performance Myth
Programming for Safety, the Performance Myth The language of ‘performance’ in safety has over time, been decoupled from its real meaning. How humans ‘perform’ has been commandeered by behaviourism and scientism in safety by the meaningless pursuit of measurement. We see this typically in the … [Read more...] about Programming for Safety, the Performance Myth
Meeting is NOT About Technique
Meeting is NOT About Technique I have received an amazing amount of feedback on my piece on Meeting (https://safetyrisk.net/meeting-in-safety-with-no-meeting/ ). So, this blog seeks to extend the discussion a little further. Ellul’s notion of Technique proposes that any quest for efficiency in … [Read more...] about Meeting is NOT About Technique
Interrogation by Another Name
Interrogation by Another Name Effective response to events (investigation) is not about Technique, neither is humble enquiry about Technique (Technique is the ideology of efficiency – Ellul) or style of questions. The beginning and foundation for an effective response to any event is ethics. To do … [Read more...] about Interrogation by Another Name