Introduction
The programme “Developing Advanced Safety Strategies” develops professional practice in Occupational Health and Safety. It connects the subject with workplace challenges by examining existing evidence and practices and choosing methods appropriate to the organization and its available resources.
The learning progresses from occupational safety, risk assessment, and prevention to process safety, barriers, and management of change, with practical work on strategy formulation and prioritization, risk assessment, controls, and response, crisis management, communication, and response. Participants prepare outputs to support workplace application and review the quality and results of implementation.
Learning objectives
- Prepare a work risk assessment and prevention and response plan based on the hierarchy of controls in an application related to “Developing Advanced Safety Strategies”.
- Translate strategic direction into actionable objectives and initiatives.
- Prepare a risk register connecting causes, consequences, controls, and treatment responsibilities.
- Prepare a crisis response and communication plan covering roles, messages, and escalation.
- Analyze an operational hazard scenario and review barriers and change control responsibilities.
Learning areas
1. Occupational Safety, Risk Assessment, and Prevention
- Identify task hazards, exposed people, and site conditions, gathering information from observations, records, and equipment instructions.
- Estimate the risk level and select appropriate controls from elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment.
- Review work procedures, permits, isolation, communication, and supervision according to the task, and define responsibility for stopping unsafe work.
- Analyze an incident or near miss using facts and evidence, examining systemic causes and failed controls beyond blaming individuals.
- Prepare a tabletop emergency exercise and an inspection, awareness, and follow-up plan, assigning field execution to qualified personnel under approved procedures. The application examines a case related to “Developing Advanced Safety Strategies”.
2. Strategy Formulation and Prioritization
- Analyze the internal and external environment using available data, and distinguish opportunities from assumptions that require verification.
- Define a specific strategic problem and connect it to the organization's mission and the value sought by beneficiaries and stakeholders.
- Set measurable objectives with a baseline, target, and time horizon, and assign a clear owner to each objective.
- Prioritize initiatives according to impact, feasibility, resources, risks, and interdependencies, explaining the reasons for the trade-offs.
- Build an implementation roadmap covering phases, owners, resources, review gates, and a mechanism for adjusting priorities when circumstances change.
3. Risk Assessment, Controls, and Response
- Define the work context, objectives, and assessment boundaries, and distinguish the risk source, potential event, and effects on results.
- Gather risks from processes, data, past incidents, and interviews with responsible staff, and document causes and existing controls.
- Estimate likelihood and impact using stated criteria, and review control effectiveness to determine residual risk levels.
- Select a response proportionate to the risks, resources, and authority, and specify the owner, deadline, and early warning indicator.
- Test a scenario involving changing circumstances, update the risk register, and present material risks and required decisions to the appropriate authority.
4. Crisis Management, Communication, and Response
- Identify crisis scenarios, warning indicators, and effects on people, services, and reputation, and define response activation thresholds.
- Allocate crisis team roles, decision-making authority, and escalation paths, and establish a mechanism for collecting and updating verified information.
- Draft an initial message explaining confirmed facts, actions, and update channels, avoiding speculation or disclosure of sensitive information.
- Run a simulation involving changing information, time pressure, and multiple parties, recording decisions, their rationale, and their timing.
- Conduct a post-crisis review comparing the plan with execution, and define improvement actions, owners, and dates for retesting readiness.
5. Process Safety, Barriers, and Management of Change
- Identify sources of hazardous materials and energy and process boundaries, distinguishing process safety from individual occupational safety in the case presented.
- Analyze the sequence, causes, and consequences of a hazardous event, and identify preventive and mitigating barriers and evidence for verifying their readiness.
- Review work permits, isolation, and coordination among parties under facility procedures, and identify hold points requiring specialist approval.
- Prepare a change request identifying its rationale, risks, and effects on documents, training, and emergencies, with technical review before implementation.
- Conduct a tabletop exercise involving a hypothetical barrier failure or leak, and document escalation and response actions, lessons, and the subsequent verification plan.
Practical outputs
- A task risk assessment and an inspection, training, and response plan.
- A strategy map and a priority matrix for proposed initiatives.
- A risk register, control matrix, and prioritized treatment plan.
- A crisis plan, decision register, initial statement template, and simulation exercise.
- A register of risk scenarios and barriers, and an operational change review plan.
Who should attend
- Engineers, technicians, supervisors and operations staff whose work relates to the programme subject.
- Managers and teams working in occupational health and safety, according to their practical responsibilities.
- Professionals responsible for applying the outputs of “Developing Advanced Safety Strategies” within their organizations.
Prerequisites
- Working familiarity with the programme field and the ability to discuss a professional case or challenge.
- Confirm the suitability of your experience and any specialist prerequisites with the Union before participation.
Conclusion
The programme “Developing Advanced Safety Strategies” brings together concepts, case review and a practical application. Participants prepare steps that can be adapted to their responsibilities and organizational resources, with an indicator to follow application and review results after returning to work.
Participation arrangements and any special requests are specified in the confirmation issued by the Union.