Importance Of Middle Management in Worker

ComplianceInfluencing Behaviour

Presented ByJohn McGinnHSE Engineer

Seadrill

12th Dec 2013

Definition Of• Middle Management:

Comprises of managers who head specific departments such as safety, construction, or production, or who serve as project managers in some organisations

• Worker Behaviour: Patterns of actions and interactions of the members of an organisation that directly or indirectly affects its effectiveness

Why Middle Managers May Be the Most Important People in Influencing worker

behaviour

• “We tend to think of companies as all about systems and not enough about people.” He suggests that companies should pay more attention to filling middle levels of management, figuring out who the best ones are and rewarding them appropriately”.

Ref: Ethan Mollick: University of Pennsylvania

25/05/2011

Ask yourself…… Do my managers/ team leaders:

1. Communicate safety standards to their teams?2. Involve workers in hazard spotting in the workplace?3. Prevent unsafe acts?4. Motivate workers to be safer?5. Monitor safety standards on a daily basis?6. Report workforce activity to Senior Management?7. Get regularly assessed on their ability to manage their

teams effectively by Senior Management?

Communication• Managers who make an effort to remain in constant

contact with workers, place emphasis on workplace communication.

• Managers who don’t communicate with their workers essentially tell them that communication isn’t important and isn’t needed in the workplace.

• A workplace that doesn’t practice effective communication often results in missed deadlines, incomplete or wrongly completed tasks and a lack of knowledge about new policies and guidelines.

Communication

Effective communication requires managers to share their thoughts and positive ideas with

workers.

In turn, this allows workers to share theirs with management.

e.g. Reporting without consequence!

Safety Culture

What makes up a Good safety culture?

“The product of individual and group values, attitudes, perceptions, competencies and patterns of behaviour that can determine the commitment to, and the style

and proficiency of an organisation’s health and safety management system”

Quote Ref: http://www.managementbriefs.com/_media/pdfs/safety_matters_chapter3.pdf

BarriersTo Managing a Safety Culture

There are a wide range of reasons why some organisations may be reluctant to use middle management to feedback on their own level of safety maturity, such as:

• Not perceiving there to be a need • Worries about what might be discovered • Resource issues • Difficulties associated with signing up to long-term commitments• Belief that there is nothing (positive) to achieve• Concern that the results of assessments may be worse compared to

other yards

Feedback

• Without feedback, you cannot assess

• Without assessment you cannot benchmark

• Without a benchmark you have no standard comparison

Feedback:- Behaviour Culture

• Worker Morale

• Worker Performance

• Worker Communication

• Worker Attitude

Management Performance• Workers often mimic the dedication that

managers exhibit.

• People learn from an early age to pay attention to the way their superiors act which can either be hardworking or lack work ethic

“Culturally Conditioned”

“Lead By Example”•Invest time and effort in developing workers safety morals and attitudes

“Promote a positive culture & individual development”

•Look out for high potential in workers as the next generation of team leaders and middle management

Promotion with Middle Management Support

Show high potential workers the ropes through effective coaching.Lead by example and support.Monitor progress through engagement.

Title isn’t everything!!

Kimchi Effect

Being taught is one thing……..Making it taste good is another…..

Attitude• A company consists of workers with negative or positive

attitudes.

• A workers attitude often reflects the attitude of his middle Management.

• Managers who take a negative outlook on everything usually cause workers to do the same.

• Negative attitudes cause workers to become cynical about their work, leading to carelessness.

Carelessness in this industry causes loss of life!!

Positive Thinking

Positive Action!

Remove Negativity

• Negative managers also prevent workers from developing and improving, because their management style doesn’t promote positive thinking and encouragement.

• Managers who take on a negative attitude usually do so without realizing that it adversely affects the workplace

Example

A worker in another project isn’t wearing his PPE safety glasses.

What are your managers teaching your workers in your project to do when they passed him?

Did They Ignore it?

Result:

• Possibility of worker being blinded / disabled and unable to work.

• An LTI and investigation for the organisationDented Safety Record??

Punishment or Correction?Punish poor behaviour

OrManage it through an effective

training program

Role of Middle Management

• Lead by example• Be directly involved Worker Manager

• Be motivated & Proactive• Be knowledgeable• Be understanding• Be Firm• Be accountable! Engage! Communicate! Monitor! Report!

Middle Managemen

t

If Not…….

You Might Get……

Thank YouStay Safe!

Stay Visible!