The Psychology of Saying Thank You

Safety reward programs should always be designed to reward outstanding safe behaviors and recognize exemplary safety performance.  And one of the best ways to do that is… Just Say Thanks!

Outstanding performers are probably prevalent throughout your organization, but you might not be aware of all of them.  Not everyone is wired to take special notice of a terrific safety performance; but leaders need to develop an "eye" for those behaviors that can stop injuries and accidents and help contribute to a culture of safety appreciation.. 

Why is Thank You Important?

According to behaviorists, saying 'thank you' is not only good manners, it is also beneficial to the overall well-being of your employees.  It can strengthen their social net worth, produce positive emotional feelings, and help them cope during more stressful times.

Psychologists have studied the effect that "thank you" has on individual performance. 

In a report in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, experimenters found that people appreciated being needed, they perform more effectively when they are encouraged, and "felt more socially valued when they'd been thanked."

And even more noteworthy, research shows that more employees leave their jobs not because of an unfair manager, heavy workload, or stale donuts in the breakroom.  They leave because of a lack of appreciation and praise.

When you give employees positive recognition, you reinforce the actions and behaviors you most want them to repeat.  Those behaviors turn into positive safety habits that lead to reducing workplace accidents. 

Sincerity Counts

We've all experienced that moment when someone says to us," You've made my day!"  When those types of positive affirmations are prevalent within an organization, you'll likely find a stronger work ethic and a sincere commitment to the success of the company among employees.

We often hear that "it's the little things that count."  They do, and saying thanks should be at the top of your to-do list.  

For more information on AwardSafety products or services or other white papers please contact us at awardsafetyinfo@cox.net

Predictive Analytics and Workplace Safety

Can You Predict Workplace Injuries with Any Degree of Accuracy?

Research conducted by teams at Predictive Solutions, a leader in occupational safety software, and Carnegie Mellon University  has shown that workplace injuries can be predicted by computers with accuracy rates as high as 97%!

Outside the field of safety, there have been many studies that show, with conclusive evidence, that computers are better than humans at predicting events. According to Predictive Solutions, “This has been proven with regard to parole decisions, medical diagnoses and business supply chain optimization among other things.”

At a time when artificial intelligence and robotics is discussed as meaningful ways to improve productivity, if predictive analytics has a proven accuracy record with regard to safety, shouldn’t it be a part of safety performance?

Of course there are many questions that need to be asked when considering using predictive analytics as part of your overall safety culture.  Just few might be “What companies and industries have used it? Why are companies struggling to deploy predictive analytics programs on their own? How is predictive analytics applied in safety programs? How much would it cost?”

As data is the primary component of the analysis, some facts that may cause you to pause

in your decision to use predictive analytics might be:  “According to IBM, 2.5 Quintilian bytes of data are created daily and 90% of the data in the world was created in the last two years.”  The collection of safety data has similarly skyrocketed.  “In July 2015 alone, one company recorded more than 200,000 safety observations. At this rate, they will collect over 2.4 million in a single year!”

Obviously taking on a project of this magnitude is not for the faint of heart; just gathering the type of input data required would be a challenge.  But if the end result is being able to predict incidents and stop them before they happen, prevent serious injuries and death to you employees; it might be worth a look.

And maybe the first question to ask when considering predictive analytics might be “where and when will your next injury occur?”

For more information on AwardSafety products or services or other white papers please contact us at awardsafetyinfo@cox.net.

Advice on Marrying Safety Training with Safety Incentives

When your train someone how to be safe and then apply the principles of human behavior modification to actually performing their job in a safe manner, you will reinforce the training in such a way that it will become a habit.  When you continually and consistently acknowledge that safe performance with positive reinforcement you will be building a strong and positive safety culture that will be embedded in your companies.

In too many organizations safety training is viewed as a separate standalone function.  But in reality, safety is nothing more than the beginning of the behavior change model.  The term “safety incentive” has become a pariah in some safety circles because of the negative focus that OSHA has put on it.  Unfortunately the incentive industry as well as safety professionals who lacked the understanding of how to properly implement a successful safety incentive program have given much credence to OSHAs concerns.  But it’s time to learn from the mistakes of the past and see safety incentives as a part of your safety culture…the part that will positively affect your entire safety program. 

The only way to use a safety incentive appropriately is when you actually reward people for doing things safely.  You have to have a system to ensure that any incentive is based on an actual change or sustaining safe work habits…nothing less. 

This paper on OSHA and Safety will clarify all the confusion surrounding safety incentives.  If you want to  create a behavioral safety program that will provide results at minimal cost, be completely OSHA compliant and can provide dramatic results you may want to review the ideas in this white paper. 

Marry the right safety incentive with your safety training and achieve your goals by changing one behavior at a time.  

For further information on our products or services please contact us at awardsafetyinfo@cox.net.  

The Power of Positive Thinking & Safety Culture

While Norman Vincent Peale (1998-1994) was a prolific writer, “The Power of Positive Thinking” was by far his most widely read work.  The book was first published in 1952. Now, over 60 years later, advances in cognitive psychology and neuroscience have added some scientific evidence to his theory. 

For years the phrase “positive thinking” was considered by many to be a soft and fluffy term that was easy to dismiss.  The workplace guru’s preferred the more intellectual terms of “work ethic” and “persistence,” or more recent, “employee engagement.”  We won’t attempt to explain the vast amount of research that has gone into this study, but do want to give you some of the conclusions drawn that are very interesting when it comes to understanding employee attitudes that have so much to do with employee performance.

These recent advances in cognitive psychology and neuroscience have shown, as the scientists say, “how our life’s ups and downs activate different neural circuits in the brain and create rapid changes in a range of important neurotransmitters.”  In other words changes in brain chemistry can alter how we think which then relates to how we feel and then how we behave.

Keeping a positive attitude and reducing work stress whenever possible can be critical in a safety environment.  Consider the following conclusions that were derived from a large meta-analysis combining the findings of over 225 academic studies on employees with a positive psychological wellbeing:

• They have on average 31% higher productivity  
• Are highly predictive to have long-term physical health
• Are less likely to have elevated levels of stress and stress related illness
• Avoid the anxiety that triggers depression

Negative emotions that are caused by fear, anger, stress, self-doubt etc closes our brain off from the outside world where positive emotions broaden the sense of possibility and opens our mind to more positive options. 

A recent Gallup survey reported that 70% of the US workforce is disengaged with their job. EHS Advisor in a recent survey relayed that over 90% of safety professionals felt that the lack of worker participation was the number one issue they faced on the job. 

While maintaining and fostering a positive attitude toward safe work performance may not be the answer to a great safety culture, it certainly will play an important part.

For more information on AwardSafety products or services or other white papers please contact us at awardsafetyinfo@cox.net.