Aviation Safety Management

                         Safety Culture is  the way safety is perceived, valued and prioritised in an organisation. It reflects the real commitment to safety at all levels in the organisation.  It has also been described as "how an organisation behaves when no one is watching".                         Safety Culture is not something you get or buy; it is something an organisation acquires as a product of the combined effects of Organisational Culture, Professional Culture and, often, National Culture. Safety Culture can therefore be positive, negative or neutral. Its essence is in what people believe about the importance of safety, including what they think their peers, superiors and leaders really believe about safety as a priority. Why is Safety Culture Important? Safety Culture can have a direct impact on safe performance. If someone be...

Key Features for Developing and Maintaining a Just Culture                 The following list outlines some of the key features that need to be addressed when developing and maintaining a Just Culture in an organisation: Just Culture policy documented. Definitions agreed about what is “acceptable” behaviour, and what is “not acceptable”. (Note: these will be specific to, and aligned with, values derived from national, organizational and professional cultures). Sanctions agreed for unacceptable behaviour. Process to deal with actions in the “grey area”. Just Culture policy communicated throughout the organisation. Reporting systems linked to Just Culture policy. Fair treatment being applied. Breaches of the policy being monitored (e.g., error punished or violations excused). Reports being followed-up; actions taken to address error-producing condition

Organisational Culture  - a culture set by the characteristics and value systems of particular organisations. Organisational performance is subject to cultural influences at every level and the organisational culture consists of shared beliefs, practices and attitudes. According to ICAO Doc 9859 - Safety management manual the following three levels of culture, have relevance to safety management initiatives, since the three levels are determinants of organisational performance: National culture  differentiates the national characteristics and value systems of particular nations. People of different nationalities differ, for example, in their response to authority, how they deal with uncertainty and ambiguity, and how they express their individuality. People are not all attuned to the collective needs of the group (team or organisation) in the same way. In collectivist cultures, for example, there is acceptance of unequal status and deference to le...

                          Culture is characterized by the beliefs, values, biases and their resultant behaviour that are shared among members of a society, group or organization. An understanding of these cultural components, and the interactions among them, is important to safety management. Among the most influential cultural components are organizational, professional, and national. A reporting culture is key component of these different cultures. The mix of cultural components may vary greatly among organizations and can negatively influence effective hazard reporting, collaborative root cause analysis, and acceptable risk mitigation. Continous improvement in safety performance is possible when safety becomes a value within an organization as well as a priority at the national or professional level .                         Safety Culture encompasses th...

     Performance Objective . Top management will promote the growth of a positive safety    culture and communicate it throughout the organization.     General Design Expectations. (1) Top management will promote the growth of a positive safety culture by:     (a) Publication of senior management’s stated commitment to safety to all  employees;     (b) Visibly demonstrating their commitment to the SMS;    (c) Communicating the safety responsibilities for the organization’s personnel;     (d) Clearly and regularly communicating safety policy, goals, objectives, standards,  and performance to all organizational employees;    (e) Creating an effective employee reporting and feedback system that provides    confidentiality;   (f) Using a safety information system that provides an accessible, efficient means to  retrieve safety information; and   (g) Making essen...