Trends in … safety software

Your organization has just purchased new safety software that tracks incidents, ensures compliance, allows employees to enter incident reports and more. It’s a sure thing that the workplace will be safer, right?

Not necessarily, said Shawn Watts, CEO of Corfix in Ottawa, Ontario.

“Too often, companies choose software for the office and then wonder why field crews don’t use it.,” he said. “Safety software only works when it’s adopted, and adoption only happens when the tool fits the way people actually work.”

Added Aaron Bolshaw, chief marketing officer at Frontline Data Solutions in Roseville, CA: “Employers need to understand that software alone can’t prevent incidents. It merely provides the standardization needed to close compliance gaps, so you can move from a reactive state to a proactive state of safety management.”

So, what can employers do to ensure workers use the software?

First, Bolshaw recommended that the safety software being implemented be “flexible enough to fit real-life, existing processes, so workers are more likely to use it consistently. It’s important that safety software configures to meet the work your team’s already doing.”

He gave this example: “Workflows and forms should match the steps frontline workers take for inspections, assessments, etc. That way, when they go to document a near miss, incident or operational change, the steps in the software match what they’re doing in real time.

“Focus on driving adoption through ongoing software user training and internal usage reviews to make sure you’re getting the most out of your investment.”

Watts’ advice is to “prioritize field adoption over feature count. Workers won’t embrace a tool that slows them down or feels foreign.

“The most important thing employers can understand is that implementation is not the finish line. Culture is the finish line. When the right tool reaches the right hands in a format they trust, safety stops being a checkbox and becomes a habit.”