Hello Everyone,

As we are quickly approaching the end of the year, I thought I would take time to reflect on 2018 and share some thoughts for the future.   

This year, as a company, I believe we have made very good progress on our journey toward Creating Safety. We started the year by first introducing the concepts promoted by Andrew Sharman in his book “From Accident to Zero” to the GBU HSE Managers and the Industrial Directors, both of which were very supportive.  Then, together with the Industrial Directors, we prepared a presentation which was given to the Leadership Council.   We held sessions on the topic at the Industrial Week in June, as well as at Site Managers’ meetings, HSE resource meetings, and at the request of different GBU’s/Functions.    Throughout the year, I have seen a change, with more and more people talking about safety differently, no longer just focusing on accidents.

Many of us are discovering what safety leadership and culture mean.  Some sites have already done Safety Climate or similar assessments to understand the status of their safety culture.  Still, other sites are training employees (and contractors) on risk awareness and safety leadership.  Several leadership teams have held training sessions with Paul Balmert or Andrew Sharman.  These type of sessions help create a common vision for where we want to go in Safety.  Interestingly, at our most recent Industrial Family Council Meeting, the Industrial Directors described what they wanted to see (in terms of safety) when they walked into their plants 5 years from now.  The words they used were:  Care, Pride, Clean, Proactive, Well Maintained, Competence, Openness (speak- up), Collaborative, Alignment with Contractors, Inherently Safe Designs, people STOP work if they have questions or a concern, Safety is how we do things whether at work or at home, etc.  To use the words of Andrew Sharman, they were describing their vision of “Safety Heaven.”  Paul O’Neill (former Chairman of Alcoa) said, “Organizations with potential for greatness have the characteristic of being places were people don’t get hurt.”  I believe that if we are able to achieve the Industrial Directors’ vision for the future, we will not only have sites where everyone goes home safe at the end of the day, but we will also have sites that consistently perform at a world class level.

I know this year has been very challenging.  There have been many changes (Oxygen) and the added pressure of implementing the new minimum requirements for the SLSR’s.   You have had to manage these changes while at the same time producing product, developing new products and applications, remaining cost competitive, implementing projects, operating in compliance, etc.   Thank you for all the efforts you have made in supporting safety.

As you have many priorities to balance, I would not be surprised if at times, things may seem impossible.  Saint Francis of Assisi once said: “Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”    I believe that creating an environment/culture like the one described by the Industrial Directors will make the impossible – possible.     

We recently met with the GBU/Function HSE Managers and discussed several topics including the implementation of the SLSRs and other HSE procedures.  We agreed with the HSE Managers that we would give you more time to align your practices with the minimum requirements.  Also, I have heard that at times the procedures may be interpreted differently than how they were intended.  In general, the procedures are based on regulatory requirements, good practice, and historical high severity incidents within the Group and were not meant to be impractical.  If you believe that something does not make sense or is creating unnecessary work, please let us know (preferably before implementing).

Finally, people often say that the sign of a good leader is someone who people follow because they “want to” and not because they “have to”.  However, when it comes to safety, our job is not to create followers but rather to create leaders. Often, our employees are working alone, and we count on them to know what to do and when to “STOP” and ask questions or ask for help.  They must be safety leaders if we want everyone to go home safe each day.

Thanks for all your support this year and Best Wishes for you, your teams, and your family during the holiday season and for 2019!

James