ecchelmet Well begun is half done!
The power of effective TBTs!
Every new day brings new challenges for projects; it also brings several chances to do things right and push the needle of progress forward. At every project site across L&T Construction, a work shift begins with Tool Box Talks (TBTs) or prestart talks that are interactive sessions to help the workforce focus on the various deliverables for the day including safety. These are essential and critical opportunities to communicate, connect, collaborate, to hear and be heard and hence it pays for site leadership to ensure that these sessions are engaging, interesting and beneficial for the project.
TBTs are also referred to as ‘Safety Meetings’ or ‘Safety Briefs’, clearly identifying ‘safety’ as the key focus of such interactions, to quickly review and reinforce safety procedures and responsibilities.
Here are some tips to make TBTs more effective and productive:
1. Engagement is key
It is imperative that everyone from managers to employees, supervisors and workmen are all engaged in TBTs. Having leaders to deliver them gives sufficient reason to pay attention. The good news is that keeping an audience engaged is a technique one can master. “Engagement is the combined result of your content (how interesting and relevant it is) and how the meeting is managed,” informs P Nagarajan, Head – EHS, B&F IC. “Managing a meeting well involves planning ahead of time, careful selection of fresh content, and an interesting delivery style.”
Engagement is the combined result of your content (how interesting and relevant it is) and how the meeting is managed. Managing a meeting well involves planning ahead of time, careful selection of fresh content, and an interesting delivery style.
P Nagarajan
Head – EHS, B&F IC
2. Plan the TBT ahead of time
TBTs are brief and to be relevant to the persons being briefed, they must be in a language they easily understand, ideally peppered with colloquial words & phrases, and should not last for more than 15 minutes to be effective. TBTs must be held regularly for they act as constant reminders of the importance of safety, can reinforce existing knowledge, or even give new understanding (learning) of a topic. Every TBT should have an agenda and be clear about: goals for the meeting, topics to cover, sequencing and a final sign off. It is an ideal forum for even contractors and workmen to have their say.
Keep mixing up the order to keep the spice alive. The person leading or anchoring the TBT should be well-versed with the topic, familiar with the material and relaxed when conducting the TBT.
3. Be clear in what you are trying to achieve
It always pays to be clear of your goals; be it in life, a project, an interview, or a TBT. In communication, they say that everything should drive just one point and digressing will be a waste of everyone’s time. “It is almost like throwing balls,” muses Michael Sanderson, Head – EHS, Heavy Civil IC. “Unless you are a juggler, you can catch only one ball at a time thrown at you, so make sure that you seek to communicate just one point at a time during a TBT.” Reinforce that key message by asking the workforce to play it back, or repeat the information shared or give examples of what the meeting covered, share case studies of similar incidents & lessons learnt. For example, identify hazards or risks and how to avoid them. All this reinforces their understanding of what is required. Towards the end of the meeting, do a wrap-up and reinforce the importance they play in safety. “It’s all about learning.” Your safety message when delivered with conviction can prevent injuries. Many people over the years have changed the world with their conviction in a message.
It is imperative to make our workforce know – in fact, veryone at a project site – that they have the right and are empowered to stop work to correct unsafe work acts or conditions.
Michael Sanderson
Head – EHS, Heavy Civil IC
4. Stay relevant; stay in the present
The point of a TBT is to share timely and important information about the project site that could include specific job safety instructions, changes in job procedures and work practices, changes in rules, processes, regulations, risk control measures identified in the Risk Assessment/Safe work Method Statements, equipment, client expectations, and/or other relevant information. The best way for people to understand and retain messaging is through practical physical examples, so use lots of them. An involved audience is an engaged audience so throw questions at them requiring them to respond. Repetition is good but only to a point; overdoing it can lead to disengagement. Opening a TBT with positive feedback is a great way to get everyone in a positive frame of mind to start a new day, especially if a workman participates in practical delivery, showing his fellow workmen how it is done. Recognizing good performance and rewarding good behaviour or actions can act as fillips to build and maintain a healthy and positive atmosphere.
5. Tell a story. Don’t share a statistic.
People believe statistics but they remember stories, and the two can be used in combination to get your point across. Statistics can shock but conveying them in a story format will be more effective for the audience to assimilate and imbibe the message. Stories can be shared informally, positively, forcefully. Always maintain eye contact. Talk to the audience – remember these are Tool Box Talks – and in response, they will talk to you. Such exchanges are priceless because a lot of issues can be addressed and sorted, and are opportunities for the leadership to understand other difficulties faced by the workforce. The aim of communication is to communicate, so keep the language simple, conversational and jargonfree. Always remember who you are talking to. If someone raises an issue, ask them how they would resolve it. Usually, they would know. Then, ask others if they agree, whether it is safe, workable, what are their issues? It is better to ask and resolve an issue at the TBT than to walk away and forget to deal with it. People lose respect for the TBT.
6. Integrate work instructions & safety risk controls
The TBT should convey both the safety message and work instructions for activities to be carried out during that shift. One significant advantage is to demonstrate commitment to the ‘process’ of the job, rather than only the ‘results’. TBTs should cover the job and the safety instructions cohesively to explain:
- ‘How’ the job is to be done
- ‘Why’ it must be done in a particular manner
- ‘Why not’ in other possible ways
- ‘What’ are the hazards
- ‘How’ to protect themselves against those hazards
Safety meetings and toolbox talks are important to build a strong safety culture and reinforce our commitment to protect our workforce. Complacency is a huge factor in workplace incidents, and toolbox talks are an effective way to combat complacency by discussing hazards and work practices that pose a risk of injury.
K Ravinath
Head – EHS, L&T GeoStructure
7. Project more leaders
Everyone should be a safety leader, and TBTs are ideal platforms to project new leaders. An added advantage is that it reinforces safety leadership at an individual level, develops an appreciation for the effort that goes into planning and managing a TBT, and encourages everyone to learn valuable leadership skills. Through these interactions, workmen know who their safety managers and supervisors are. “It is imperative to make our workforce know – in fact, everyone at a project site – that they have the right and are empowered to stop work to correct unsafe work acts or conditions,” reminds Michael. “Safety meetings and toolbox talks are important to build a strong safety culture and reinforce our commitment to protect our workforce,” reiterates K Ravinath, Head – EHS, L&T GeoStructure. “Complacency is a huge factor in workplace incidents, and toolbox talks are an effective way to combat complacency by discussing hazards and work practices that pose a risk of injury.”
Jai Suraksha!