Behavior based safety works best when employees are active participants, not passive listeners. To build a stronger program, leaders need to listen, communicate clearly, and involve employees in solving safety issues together.
Summary: Behavior based safety only works when employees are involved, heard, and trusted. This post explains how better listening and clearer communication can turn BBS into a true team effort.
Get to know your people, know what’s important to them and what’s happening in their lives. Without being like their doctor or therapist, you really do need to know what’s happening in their lives. Take a healthy interest in their activities such as where a person likes to go on holiday, knowing that their dog has died and what hobbies they or their kids have. These external influences will be driving their performances anyway. You’ll be amazed at the diversity of interests your people have outside work… YOU probably aren’t their central point of interest, surprising, eh?…
Provide clear direction…don’t expect your people to be clairvoyant. Make your expectations perfectly clear so they know what they are supposed to do. Don’t TELL them when you want something done, ask THEM when they can deliver it and talk the delivery schedule through with them. You need their commitment – if your people say they can’t do something in your expected time frame there’s probably a good reason for it, so LISTEN and resource the project accordingly. If you make every task a priority, people will know that you have no priorities.
Trust your people to get on and do it – that’s it, TRUST them until such time as the person proves themselves to be unworthy of trust. When managers don’t trust people to do their jobs, the lack of trust plays out in a number of negative ways that affect the business.
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Avoid constantly checking up on your people and telling them how to manage every little detail. Put yourself in their shoes and imagine how you’d react if your boss constantly watched you or admonished you for every shortcoming. Perhaps your boss does treat you that way, but that’s no excuse for you to do the same. Listen and help people feel that their opinions are valued. ‘Listening’ is a critical management skill and when people feel listened to, they feel respected. You will then get much more information to help you implement your BBS or project.
When you do make final decisions, ask your people for their feedback. Don’t assume you are infallible and that they’re the stupid ones. Avoid creating roadblocks that teach people quickly that their ideas are always subject to a ‘presidential’ veto and then wonder later on why no one has any more suggestions for improvement. Enabling people to make decisions about their work is true leadership. If you fail to react to the problems that do arise on the journey then those issues will soon fester if they’re ignored. Managers have a habit of hoping that an uncomfortable issue or disagreement will just go away on its own. It really won’t.
The best communication is transparent communication. Sure, some information is company confidential and you may have been asked to keep certain information under wraps for a while, but aside from these rare occasions, share what you know. When you DO ask people for their ideas and improvement suggestions, and if you fail to implement their suggestions, DO let them know why.
Finally when things do go wrong, really think hard about where the blame lies. Take responsibility for your own actions and don’t simply blame your people. The responsibility is ultimately yours so LEAD and protect your people. When you blame people it’s you that will become disrespected and then they’ll be working against you, not WITH you. That will not only derail your project it’ll push up your costs, and that’s a subject for another day!
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A successful behavior based safety program depends on two-way communication between leaders and frontline employees.
When behavior based safety becomes a shared effort, teams are more likely to report concerns and act on feedback.
Leaders who listen consistently can make behavior based safety more practical and credible across the organization.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Why is employee participation important in behavior based safety?
Employee participation makes safety observations and feedback more accurate and useful. When workers feel heard, they are more likely to report risks, suggest improvements, and support the program.
How can managers improve communication in a BBS program?
Managers can improve communication by asking for input, following up on concerns, and explaining expectations clearly. Consistent two-way communication helps build trust and keeps safety conversations practical.
What role does leadership play in behavior based safety?
Leadership sets the tone for whether BBS feels supportive or punitive. Leaders should model accountability, listen to employees, and act on feedback to strengthen safety culture.
How do you avoid making BBS feel like a top-down initiative?
Involve employees early, ask for their perspective on hazards, and make visible improvements based on their input. That helps the program feel collaborative instead of imposed.
