Abby Fansler, Global Consulting Manager for Caterpillar Safety Services, spends her days helping companies understand their current training gaps to improve safety outcomes, which in turn also increases employee engagement and leadership development. Fansler shares her first-hand advice on building a resilient safety culture and how contractors can implement these same strategies.
GOALS
One of the most critical aspects of safety training, according to Fansler, is developing common goals within the workforce. "You have to establish a shared mindset about how to respond to daily challenges, unexpected conditions, new information, near misses and incidents," she explains. This mindset must prioritize learning and improvement over blame and punishment.
Safety training isn’t just about following a checklist or adhering to regulations—it’s about cultivating an environment where employees feel comfortable speaking up about safety concerns. Fansler highlights the importance of psychological safety, where open communication is encouraged and recognized, and employees are empowered to take ownership of safety processes.
Safety training, when done right, empowers workers to make informed decisions that protect themselves and their coworkers.
Takeaway for contractors: Focus on creating an environment where employees are comfortable raising safety concerns. Encourage leadership to foster open communication and seek to learn rather than blame. This will lead to a more engaged workforce and better safety outcomes.
LEADERSHIP
Caterpillar Safety Service’s safety training programs focus heavily on leadership, with assessments that measure how leaders perform in areas like trust, accountability, credibility and connectivity. Fansler notes that safety outcomes are heavily influenced by leadership performance, and companies need to ensure that leaders at every level are unified in their message and setting a positive example.
Takeaway for contractors: Evaluate your leadership team’s commitment to safety. Consider conducting assessments to measure leadership performance and identify areas for improvement. Strong leadership is the foundation of a successful safety culture.
EVALUATION
Before making any changes to a safety training program, Fansler recommends conducting a thorough assessment. "You need data and evidence to drive decision-making," she says. Caterpillar Safety Services offers several types of assessments, including worksite assessments, safety perception surveys and safety leadership assessments.
- A worksite assessment evaluates the completeness of a company’s safety management system and gathers feedback from employees to determine whether safety expectations are being met.
- A safety perception survey assesses the culture and identifies any gaps between management’s expectations and employees' experiences.
- Finally, a safety leadership assessment measures how leaders are performing and whether their actions align with safety objectives.
Takeaway for contractors: Before revamping your safety training, conduct a comprehensive assessment of your current program. This will help you identify gaps and focus your efforts where they are needed most.
ENGAGEMENT
Safety training is only effective if employees are engaged and see value in the experience. "The best way to motivate people is to help them see value in the experience," Fansler says.
Fansler stresses the importance of getting employees involved in building safety solutions, as this generates ownership and trust. “Ownership requires clearly defined expectations for every role, and the most successful safety cultures involve those employees as experts in crafting those expectations.”
Caterpillar Safety Services takes a unique approach to safety training by acting as "guides on the side." This means facilitating an environment of interaction and ownership rather than lecturing or instructing. "I always tell my groups, ‘I’m here to ask questions, share ideas and facilitate a conversation, and the answers are already in the room,’" Fansler explains.
Takeaway for contractors: Make your safety training interactive and relevant. Encourage employee participation and get them involved in crafting safety solutions. This will lead to greater engagement and ownership of safety processes.
Getting employees more involved in building safety solutions generates ownership, buy-in and trust.
Abby Fansler
Global Consulting Manager for Caterpillar Safety Services
BENEFITS
When safety training is done right, the benefits extend beyond just reducing incidents on the jobsite. Fansler highlights how building leaders’ skills to connect with employees and engage them in safety processes can lead to long-term gains. "Over time, accountability for sound processes and ownership in continuous learning and improvement results in reduced incidents, savings on insurance and workers' compensation, productivity gains, and a happier, healthier workforce," she explains.
Investing in safety training also has a positive impact on employee morale and retention. When employees feel that their safety is valued, they are more likely to stay with the company long-term, which is a key factor in workforce development. A strong safety culture can help attract and retain top talent, which is essential in today’s competitive job market.
Takeaway for contractors: Investing in safety training is an investment in your workforce. Not only will it reduce incidents and save costs, but it will also improve employee retention and morale.
CONNECTING THE DOTS
Ongoing safety training should be tailored to employees' changing roles and responsibilities. Regular assessments and feedback can help companies identify when new training is needed and ensure that all employees are up to date on the latest safety practices. Investing in safety training is an investment in a company's future success.
“Leaders have to understand their role in owning and driving safe performance, and relentlessly walk the walk,” Fansler says. “When leaders establish norms of open communication, operational learning and effective response to good and bad news, they create an environment that empowers involvement and ownership by employees.”
Photo credit: Caterpillar
