A Short, Sharp Shock……but does It actually work?

What I’m talking about this month are those large scale, very expensive Health & Safety so-called ‘immersion’ experiences which are currently in vogue. You know the kind of thing – the attendees are placed in the middle of a scarily lifelike disaster scenario played out by actors. So far, so good. You then find yourself plunged into the middle of a panicked reaction acted out in real time, with all hell breaking loose. Suddenly, it’s all hands to the pump as you evacuate your fictional environment and try to get to safety, perhaps getting the opportunity to analyse what went wrong along the way. 

But at the end of the experience as you and the team emerge, nerves a-jangling like rusty keys hanging from an old nail in a hailstorm, what has actually changed? When you and your colleagues return to the all-too-real world of work, what will be different? 

In order to effect real, lasting, positive change in our workplaces’ safety cultures, the most vital aspect that we really must address can be easily summed up in one word: ‘skills’. And being guided en-masse through a harrowing experience - while possibly being not a bad idea for a team building session – cannot and never will be sufficient to build the necessary skills you and your people need to deliver better safety conversations and engagements, and build a safer environment for all. 

And let’s not merely single out such so-called ‘immersive’ experiences. I could say much the same thing about mock trials. We’re all familiar with these – put your chosen Director in the mock-dock, have them cross-examined by qualified barristers, add in actors as witnesses, all well briefed with an indefensible, iron clad case that will put said Director behind bars for a lengthy and well-deserved prison sentence. 

But again, apart from giving your top-level leaders a mighty scare, where’s the skills-build that’s so necessary, so central when it comes to delivering positive and lasting change? Plus, it’s arguable that if your most senior leaders really do need scaring into submission, you might have bigger problems! The other scary thing of course is the invoice that often follows either of the above endeavours, but that’s for another day!

But what about that old chestnut ‘Hearts & Minds’, I hear you ask? Yes, such sessions do deliver some buy-in to the ideas behind improved safety but Hearts & Minds is a short-lived concept. No, if you really want to transform your HSE culture, you cannot do it just by scaring your folk half to death. One flash–bang-wallop day, complete with whizzbangs, just doesn’t cut it. And we know, because ‘high-impact’ is what we do. But there needs to be a lot more to it than that if you want lasting improvement.

You build and develop safety cultures and safety behaviours by building a sound, proven development & training programme, improving the influencing skills of your leaders at every level, allowing them to learn, practice and improve their skills in a safe, encouraging environment. Take it from us, we’ve been doing this a long time. We use drama where it belongs – in the centre of the learning that your organisation needs in order to keep everyone safe. 

2macs: Bringing in the drama, taking out the crisis.

Harry is Head of Behavioural Safety and can be contacted on harry@2macs.com