How to Train Employees to Conduct High-Quality Behavior-Based Safety Audits?

From Instructions to Live Practice: Why Behavior-Based Audits Require Training

Implementing Behavior-Based Safety (BBS) audits at the level of regulations and instructions is an easy task. It is much harder to ensure that this tool works effectively and brings real benefits. Ruslan Abdulmanov, a leading safety culture specialist at Tatneft, analyzes the problem of a formal approach to BBS. Often, line managers conducting an audit cannot build a constructive dialogue with an employee, limiting themselves to superficial remarks. The speaker shows by the example of his company that standard training methods — reading instructions and webinars — do not yield the desired effect. People need to be taught through practice and training sessions.

Professional Skills Competitions as a Training Platform

One of the non-standard approaches used by the company is the integration of BBS training into professional skills competitions. Participants are given a practical task: to conduct an audit in a simulated work situation within 10 minutes.

• Immersion in the context: A realistic work environment is created with PPE, tools, and equipment. This helps participants overcome the barrier of artificiality and act as in real life.
• Prepared "violator": The role of the employee is played by a trained person who, according to the scenario, does not agree with the remarks the first time. This forces the auditor to look for strong arguments and apply persuasion skills.
• Evaluating persuasiveness: In addition to the standard BBS steps, the "persuasiveness" criterion has been added to the evaluation checklist. It is important not just to point out a violation, but to convey the value of safe behavior to the employee.
• Feedback: After the audit is completed, the expert provides detailed feedback, noting strengths and areas for development. This is a key element of training that helps correct mistakes.

Mini-Trainings and Photo Case Studies

Realizing that competitions cover a limited number of employees, the company scales practical training through mini-trainings. The presentation details the format of working with groups where participants analyze specific situations using photographs.

• Analysis of real situations: Using photos with violations (for example, working with an angle grinder without a mask or not using ear muffs) allows practicing the skills of safely stopping work and starting a dialogue.
• Role-playing games: Participants are divided into teams and act out scenes of conducting a BBS audit, applying various persuasion techniques.
• Peer review: Observers use checklists to evaluate their colleagues' actions, which develops their own understanding of the correct BBS algorithm.

The speaker emphasizes that regular practice forms the skill of high-quality communication and increases the confidence of line managers when conducting audits.

What you will learn from this webinar:

• How to move from formal BBS audits to a high-quality dialogue with employees?
• Which practical BBS training formats are most effective for line managers?
• How to use professional skills competitions to train audit skills?
• How to properly evaluate the quality of a BBS audit and provide developmental feedback?
• How to persuasively convince employees to comply with safety requirements, even if they resist?