Aug 66 min read

Measuring Safety Culture Maturity with the FIC Safety Culture Framework and Survey

A young child wearing a hard hat, gloves, and an orange safety vest while holding a wrench resting on his shoulder.

In the realm of occupational safety, organizations are constantly seeking effective ways to assess and improve their safety culture. This article will explore how the FIC Safety Culture Framework and its associated survey can be used to identify the maturity of an organization's safety culture as represented on the Bradley Curve.

Understanding the Models

The FIC Safety Culture Framework

Developed by FIC Human Resource Partners, the FIC Safety Culture Framework is a comprehensive model that outlines four key dimensions shaping an organization's safety culture:

Organizational Level Commitment and Priorities
Facility Level Management and Communication
Department Level Practices and Performance
Individual Understanding and Adherence to Safety Policies and Procedures

This framework provides a structured approach for assessing and improving the cultural factors that influence safety performance and outcomes.

The Bradley Curve

The Bradley Curve, developed by DuPont in 1995, illustrates the relationship between accidents and corporate culture. It depicts four stages of safety culture maturity:

Reactive: Safety is based on natural instincts
Dependent: Safety is based on supervision
Independent: Safety is based on self
Interdependent: Safety is based on team

As an organization progresses through these stages, accident rates decrease, and overall productivity and quality improve.

Mapping the FIC Framework to the Bradley Curve

To effectively use the FIC Safety Culture Framework and Survey to identify an organization's position on the Bradley Curve, we need to understand how the dimensions of the FIC Safety Culture Framework align with the stages of the Bradley Curve. Each dimension in the FIC Safety Culture Survey is scored on a scale from 0 to 30, with higher scores indicating greater maturity in that aspect of safety culture.

1. Reactive Stage

In the Reactive stage, safety is primarily based on natural instincts, and accidents are seen as unavoidable. Organizations at this stage typically show low scores across all FIC framework dimensions, falling in the 0-10 range for each. The Organizational Commitment dimension would be particularly low, reflecting minimal investment in safety initiatives. Facility Level Management and Communication scores would indicate a lack of structured safety protocols and inconsistent messaging. Department Level Practices and Performance would show significant variability and a lack of standardized safety practices. Individual Understanding and Adherence scores would be low, suggesting a workforce that is largely unaware of or indifferent to safety policies.

2. Dependent Stage

In the Dependent stage, safety is based on supervision, with management assuming responsibility for safety. Organizations at this stage often exhibit improved scores in the Facility Level Management and Communication dimension, reaching the 15-20 range. This reflects the implementation of clear safety rules and supervisory practices. Organizational Commitment scores might show some improvement, residing in the 10-15 range, as the organization begins to invest in basic safety compliance measures. Department Level Practices would still be inconsistent, with scores likely in the 10-15 range. Individual Understanding and Adherence scores would show moderate improvement, moving into the 15-20 range, indicating that employees are becoming more aware of safety policies, even if they're not yet taking proactive responsibility.

3. Independent Stage

In the Independent stage, individuals take responsibility for their own safety. Organizations at this stage typically show high scores in the Individual Understanding and Adherence dimension, reaching into the 25-30 range. This reflects a workforce that is well-informed about safety policies and committed to following them. Organizational Commitment scores would also improve, reaching the 20-25 range, as safety becomes more integrated into business strategies. Facility Level Management and Communication scores would be strong, also in the 20-25 range, indicating effective safety leadership and communication channels. Department Level Practices and Performance would become more consistent, with scores improving to the 20-25 range as safety becomes more ingrained in daily operations.

4. Interdependent Stage

In the Interdependent stage, teams feel responsible for each other's safety, and a culture of shared responsibility prevails. Organizations at this stage often demonstrate high scores across all FIC framework dimensions, consistently in the 25-30 range. Organizational Commitment scores would reflect a strong, strategic focus on safety at the highest levels of the organization. Facility Level Management and Communication would show excellence in safety leadership and open, effective communication. Department Level Practices and Performance scores would indicate consistent, proactive safety practices across all areas of the organization. Individual Understanding and Adherence scores would remain high, but would now be complemented by evidence of team-oriented safety behaviors and a shared sense of responsibility for safety among all employees.

Case Study: Applying the FIC Survey to Determine Bradley Curve Stage

Let's consider a hypothetical case study to illustrate how the FIC Safety Culture Survey results can be used to identify an organization's position on the Bradley Curve, and how these results might correlate with actual safety performance metrics.

Company X, a manufacturing firm with 1,000 employees, conducted the FIC Safety Culture Survey. Here are the key findings, along with relevant safety statistics:

Organizational Commitment: Moderate scores (average 19.2/30) Executive leadership considers safety important, but resource allocation is inconsistent. Safety is included in business metrics, but not consistently prioritized in decision-making.

Facility Management and Communication: High scores (average 24.6/30) Clear safety goals and expectations are communicated throughout the organization. Regular safety walkthroughs are conducted, and there's prompt addressing of safety concerns.

Department Practices and Performance: Moderate to high scores (average 22.8/30) There's consistent enforcement of safety policies across departments. Some employee involvement in developing safety procedures is evident, but it's not yet universal.

Individual Understanding and Adherence: High scores (average 25.8/30) Employees demonstrate a strong understanding of safety policies and procedures. There's high reported compliance with safety rules and evidence of proactive safety behaviors and reporting.

Open-ended responses indicated a strong sense of personal responsibility for safety, with some mentions of team-oriented safety practices.

Safety Performance Metrics

Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR): 2.1 incidents per 200,000 work hours This rate is below the industry average of 3.0, indicating better-than-average safety performance. However, there's still room for improvement to reach world-class safety levels (typically below 1.0).

Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate (LTIFR): 0.5 per 200,000 work hours This rate suggests that serious injuries are relatively infrequent, aligning with the high scores in Individual Understanding and Adherence.

Near Miss Reporting: 150 reports per month This high number of near-miss reports indicates a positive safety culture where employees feel comfortable reporting potential hazards, reflecting the strong Facility Management and Communication scores.

Safety Training Completion Rate: 95% This high completion rate aligns with the strong Individual Understanding and Adherence scores.

Safety Observation Rate: 3.5 observations per employee per month This moderate rate of safety observations suggests that while employees are engaged in safety, there's potential for more proactive involvement, particularly at the department level.

Time to Close Safety Actions: Average 14 days This moderate closure time for safety actions reflects the strong Facility Management and Communication scores, but also indicates room for improvement in Organizational Commitment to promptly address all safety concerns.

Analysis

Based on these results, Company X appears to be transitioning from the Independent stage to the Interdependent stage on the Bradley Curve. The high scores in Individual Understanding and Adherence (25.8/30), coupled with strong Facility Management and Communication (24.6/30), suggest a mature Independent stage. This is reflected in the better-than-average TRIR and LTIFR, as well as the high near-miss reporting and safety training completion rates.

The emerging themes of team-oriented safety in open-ended responses and the involvement of employees in safety procedures indicate movement towards the Interdependent stage. However, the moderate scores in Organizational Commitment (19.2/30) suggest there's still room for improvement in fully integrating safety into the organizational culture and strategy, which is characteristic of the Interdependent stage. This is evident in the average time to close safety actions and the safety observation rate, which, while good, could be improved.

The Department Practices and Performance score (22.8/30), while good, also indicates an area for potential improvement. To fully reach the Interdependent stage, Company X would need to see more consistent, proactive safety practices across all departments and greater employee involvement in safety initiatives. This could help drive the TRIR and LTIFR even lower, potentially to world-class levels.

To progress further into the Interdependent stage, Company X should focus on:

Strengthening Organizational Commitment by more consistently prioritizing safety in strategic decision-making and resource allocation. This could help reduce the time to close safety actions.
Enhancing Department Practices by encouraging more universal employee involvement in developing and improving safety procedures. This could increase the safety observation rate and potentially further reduce incident rates.
Building upon the strong Individual Understanding and Adherence by fostering more team-oriented safety behaviors and a shared sense of responsibility for safety among all employees. This could help push the TRIR and LTIFR towards world-class levels.

By addressing these areas, Company X can continue its journey toward a fully mature safety culture as represented by the Interdependent stage of the Bradley Curve, which should be reflected in further improvements in their safety performance metrics.