It’s $500, should I get one!
I’ve been in the safety world long enough to have formed certain expectations when I work with small employers. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been there and realize that you only know what you know and given your knowledge of what makes a workable safety program and what will only be a problem going forward, you’re reluctant to spend money on something you don’t understand. Your dollars are limited. An investment in your business is usually made through careful thought backed by experience. Will the proposed piece of equipment last, is it costly to maintain, will it enable your operation to thrive and grow? Will it add value? Ask the same questions before you cut a $500 cheque for a safety program.
Is your safety program a tool?
As a small business owner, when you build a safety program, you’re required to make a decision at the start as to the primary purpose of the program. You don’t have to tell anyone what your motives are, but that will show quite clearly down the road. Some owners look at the benefits that they want to receive as a product of a good program, while others are satisfied to be able to bid on projects and have a logo on their letterhead. There’s a big difference between building a 14 point program that covers the required elements for certification and building one that will have a lasting impression on all aspects of your business, from public image to employee pride. So when you consider what type you want to have, picture it as an investment for a “Tool”, that with proper setup and a bit of maintenance, can be used for as long as you’re in business.
Do you want a green or blue binder?
I’ve worked with a lot of small companies that are the proud owners of a safety program that was purchased from a vendor that had preformatted all the elements, adjusted to individual companies by entering the name and address. The elements of the “program” do correspond to those required by the certifying body but are bare boned without much detail. The new owner, knowing a limited amount of what a good program consists of, purchased it because convenience trumped value. The biggest decision required is the color of the binder, whether to pay the extra $25 for matching your company colors. I don’t want to paint all these programs with the same brush, but be aware of what your buying, no safety program is turnkey for a stated cost! You’re purchasing a template with your company name inserted, nothing more. You’ll have to develop it internally to raise the value and have it actually contribute going forward.
I need what?
To have an effective program takes time, resources and commitment. That’s it! Remove any of these elements and the program suffers, usually displayed with the external audit results. I’ve seen audit results of 98% on a company that didn’t have a list of their critical hazards, hmmm? I call BS!
As a business owner your liability, corporate and personal, has increased substantially and will be exposed when a serious incident occurs.
When you get a program built by others, how will they build a custom program for you without having experience in your industry? How will the custom program address risk rankings, orientations, emergency response requirements, training requirements, inspection items, …?
These are the type of questions to ask yourself when doing one stop shopping for a program. All of the required elements can be found by taking a one day course at a certifying partner such as ACSA, MHSA, etc.
Take the time to attend the courses, gain an understanding of the elements of a program, take them and develop the required documentation and practices for your own circumstances, implement them over time, adjust what isn’t working and the result will be a program that is “customized” to your operations.
If you have to buy a ready-made program, ask what specific items that you’ll need to provide to ensure it’s specific to your operations. If the answer is logo and contact information, look elsewhere!
Exercise for you.
1.Write the amount of the “Safety Program” package down.
2.Write down the hourly rate you would pay yourself or safety person to assemble a program.
3.Divide the total cost by the hourly rate to get total available hours devoted to development.
Example
$500/$20=25 hours. 25 Hours to create a 14 element safety program, fully customized to you!!
Note: I don’t know a lot of experienced safety personnel that work for that rate, so maybe it’s created by someone who’s very good at running a Word program? Just saying…
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