Employee Behaviors & Safety

If you've spent any amount of time in aviation, you probably have a story or two about someone who was complacent, over confident, or just plain reckless. Cautionary tales of narrow escapes from certain disaster or decisions that resulted in actual disaster. These stories emphasize bad behaviors and worse decisions that could only have ended in bad outcomes.

What about good behaviors and good decisions? Why don't we tell more stories about that? I recently met Dr. Kodey Bogart who, in addition to being an accomplished helicopter pilot, SMS expert, and author, has done some very insightful research into positive employee behaviors that strengthen safety culture.

Whatever your organization does in aviation, I am willing to bet you want to do so without incident or accident. A strong safety culture leads to better... everything: workplace, service and product quality, customer experience, and a healthier bottom line. What is especially interesting about Dr. Bogart's work is that she identifies positive behaviors that should be sought out and encouraged by employers. These behaviors or traits lead to a stronger safety culture and all of the benefits that go with it.

I strongly encourage you to check out Dr. Bogart's ideas and findings. You can read about her work in Vertical Plus Magazine:

Traits that influence safety: Exploring employee behavior in

aviation maintenance organizations