Sally Patten of the Australian Financial Review recently wrote an article on the impact of COVID-19 and how it is impacting the roles of senior management and board members.  There was a particular focus on how important it is for this group of highly influential business members to understand their organisations’ challenges.

Following postponed board visits, the chairperson of Super Retail Group, Sally Pitken, said, ‘having to cancel and not get out in the business is problematic.’

‘Even though we have adapted to virtual meetings etc., the delayed site visits were a barrier to directors being able to gain a deep understanding of how the company is tracking, particularly in areas such as safety and culture.’

‘Even though we have adapted to virtual meetings etc., the delayed site visits were a barrier to directors being able to gain a deep understanding of how the company is tracking, particularly in areas such as safety and culture.’  – Sally Pitken, Chairperson – Super Retail Group

Echoing this concern, Newcrest chairman Peter Hay is quoted as being frustrated with the lack of ability to conduct site visits and how it is important to keep ‘taking the temperature’ and there is a ‘missing tool in the tool kit’.

…there is a ‘missing tool in the tool kit’. – Peter Hay, Chairperson – Newcrest

It is encouraging to see board members leading from the front and voicing their concerns in relation to the criticality of understanding safety culture.

The good news is that the missing tool in the toolkit already exists; we just need to equip board members with this tool!

What is the missing tool?

Safety Culture Index (SCI) by Global Safety Index ® is used by leading organisations to measure, monitor and benchmark their Safety Culture. It is a critical tool for those seeking granular insights into what’s working and what’s not working across their business.

Global Safety Index, recent finalist in the Australian Workplace Health and Safety Awards, is the worlds first integrated safety leadership, culture and mental health literacy diagnosis and measurement tool. It directly addresses the challenges that Board members face in understanding the impact on leadership and culture across their businesses and should form part of any due diligence toolkit.

Written by Luke Beeston, Director – Risk and Innovation, HSE Global