work systems

Reason #3:  Business Case Failure

Reason #2:  Failure to Tie Ergonomics Into the Mission and Strategic Initiatives of the Company

Reason #1:  Lack of a Systems and Systems Aproach 

How are new program ideas generated?  Where do they get there start?  Well, typically things start because there is a need for something.  Once the need is identified, then the company has to decide how to address that need.  This is often done by a person or committee that sifts through choices and determines the best one.  Then is assigned to lead the program and implement the changes.  There is typically a budget and a timeline attached for implementation.

How many times has your company started new programs only for them to fail within months to a couple years?  How many initiatives are you able to count that have come and gone within the past 5-10 years?  Does your company roll out new initiatives every year that in essence focus on the same thing, i.e. customer service, increased sales, improved safety, etc.?  Does it feel like these programs are trying to reinvent the wheel over and over again?

I was meeting with a health and safety manager recently who shared that his manufacturing company’s H&S numbers weren’t very good. His supervisor wasn’t happy with the numbers and was given the directive to improve his numbers and rejuvenate the H&S culture of the company.  He went on to say that the safety committee met on a regular basis but the employees didn’t really want to be there.  In short, the company lacked energy and enthusiasm for safety.

When I left the “comfort” of the my corporate position to start Kelby Ergo Design I was immediately struck by two things:  1) the majority of the people I met at business networking events hadn’t heard of my title, “ergonomist”, although most had heard the term ergonomics, and 2) they shared similar misconceptions of what ergonomics was and the impact it could have on business.  I thought I’d address the top three common “myths” that I see as an ergonomist.  There are definitely more than three but I’ll save those for other posts.

Myth #1—Ergonomics is just about safety

I had a conversation a few months ago with an employee health nurse who was telling me about her frustrations with a specific employee.  (Specific names and details about the job are purposefully left out to protect identify.) He was a “repeat offender” who happened to injure himself on a regular basis.  She could count on him being in her office every 3-4 months complaining of the work and how he hurt this or that.  The injuries typically resulted in a few lost work days and/or a few days in which he was restricted in what he could do.  She went on to sa