Progressing To the Next Level of Safety Management

This article is the third in a series of articles that takes a closer look at the aviation safety management system. The entire series can be found here.

In the previous article; “The Shifting Focus of Safety Management,” I made the statement; “In order to progress to the next level of safety management, a performance based approach is required to assess the actual performance of activities against organizational controls.”

What does this mean?

Let’s break this idea into individual descriptions for the following:

• Organizational Controls
• Measurable Performance Objectives
• Compliance vs. Performance

Organizational Controls

Organizational controls are simply the tools put into use to keep activities on track to achieve the desired results.

Think of a control as a defense designed to protect against the potential for an undesirable result.  Organizational controls may include: equipment; software; supervisory practices; policies and regulations; continuous monitoring; and inspections, audits, and surveys, all with expectations to reduce safety risks to a level as low as reasonably practicable.

Measurable Performance Objective

Performance is the effectiveness of activities to fulfill their intended purpose.  Measurable performance objectives depend on the collection of data that can be assessed against the controls designed to manage the activities.  Armed with data the necessary corrective or preventive actions can be taken to maintain safety risks at a level as low as reasonably practicable.

Compliance vs. Performance

A compliance based approach to safety management is rigid (doesn’t change) and prescriptive (controlling).  In a compliance based safety environment, regulations are used as an administrative control.  A strict regulatory framework is supported by inspections and audits with a single objective: regulatory compliance.

A performance based approach to safety is flexible (accepts change) and dynamic (will change).   In a performance based safety environment, there is a need to define a set of measurable performance objectives with strategies (controls) designed to achieve desired results.

Regulatory Oversight

A performance based system is not devoid of regulatory oversight.   In a performance based environment; regulations are the foundation for safety management initiatives.  Compliance with safety regulations is essential to the development of sound safety practices, but much more is required.

Oversight of compliance with the regulations (control) must be supported by identification and prioritization of actual safety risks, and measured to verify effective safety performance. To simply comply with the minimum standards set by the regulations will not provide the data needed to recognize obscure, latent, or emerging safety problems.

Conclusion

Each organization has a unique risk profile that defines their areas of highest risk.  A properly functioning SMS requires a thorough analysis of the safety risks that are generally experienced by an organization in day-to-day operations.  The appropriate measurable performance objectives and organizational controls can only be determined from an understanding of the unique risk profile.

The only way to ensure that the resources expended on safety are appropriately targeted is to design and implement an SMS that is specific to the operator.

The canned or “off-the-shelf” SMS that some vendors are peddling or the “check the box” compliance approach to safety management simply will not provide the desired results.