Contractor Management

The Evolution of Contractor Management: From Control to Partnership

Contractor management traditionally remains one of the most complex areas of responsibility in the field of occupational safety. Unlike in-house personnel, where corporate culture and safety standards are built over years, contractors change regularly, bringing with them varying levels of training and attitudes toward risks. In this webinar, Tatiana Borisova, Head of HSE and Business Continuity at Novartis in Russia, CIS, and Central and Eastern European countries, shares practical experience in integrating contractors into the unified safety system of a large international company.

The speaker analyzes a comprehensive approach where safety begins long before workers enter the site and does not end with a formal briefing. This system is based on the principle of equal treatment: for the company, there is no difference between its own employee and a contractor's worker when it comes to preserving life and health.

A Four-Stage Selection and Control System

The presentation details an algorithm for working with contractors, consisting of four key stages. Such a structured approach allows weeding out unreliable companies right at the start and systematically developing those ready to meet high standards.

1. Tender and Prequalification

Safety assessment begins at the stage of forming the tender assignment. Representatives of the HSE department participate in developing requirements, while potential suppliers fill out detailed questionnaires and provide supporting documentation. Based on this information, a rating is formed:

• Green zone: the company fully meets the requirements and is allowed to work without restrictions.
• Yellow zone: shortcomings requiring elimination are identified. An improvement plan is drawn up, which must be completed before signing the contract.
• Red/Black zone: critical non-compliances precluding the possibility of cooperation.

The speaker demonstrates with an example how a company from the "yellow-red" zone managed to transform its occupational safety system over several years of purposeful work and eventually win a tender, moving into the "green" category. This proves that strict but transparent customer requirements stimulate the development of the service market.

2. Modular Onboarding and Risk Assessment

After signing the contract, which strictly stipulates occupational safety requirements, the adaptation process begins. Instead of a standard introductory briefing, a modular training system is applied. The program is formed individually depending on the specifics of the work performed: landscapers are not told about working at height, but are necessarily trained in environmental standards and rules for separate waste collection. For employees working in production, specialized training on GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) standards is conducted.

A mandatory stage is the joint development of a risk assessment for each type of work. This allows synchronizing the understanding of hazards between the customer and the contractor before the actual activity begins.

3. Daily Control and KPIs

Safety management during the work process includes daily joint safety walks involving the heads of contractor organizations. Work efficiency is evaluated according to a KPI system fixed in the contract. Key indicators include:

• Compliance with legislative norms and the company's internal, stricter standards.
• The LTIR (Lost Time Incident Rate) indicator — the number of incidents with lost working time per hours worked.
• Timely investigation of incidents and micro-injuries.

It is important to note that the fulfillment of these KPIs directly affects the financial motivation of the contractor. The principle of collective responsibility is applied: serious violations can lead to a reduction in the bonus part of payments for the entire contractor company, which stimulates management to strictly control compliance with rules on site.

4. Annual Assessment and Development

The system is not static. An internal audit of contractors and a reassessment of their performance are conducted annually. For long-term contracts (more than 3 years), a re-tendering procedure is provided, which prevents contractors from relaxing and motivates them to continuously improve.

Gamification and Psychology in Training

Special attention in the presentation is given to the psychological aspects of working with personnel. Traditional lecture briefings are recognized as ineffective due to the rapid dissipation of listeners' attention. Instead, interactive formats are introduced:

• Gamified training: quests, card games, and practical simulations in workplaces (warehouses, production).
• Mixed teams: both full-time employees and contractor workers participate jointly in training, which contributes to the formation of a unified safety culture.

This approach significantly increases personnel engagement and leads to an increase in the number of reports about potential hazards (near-misses), as people begin to better recognize risks and are not afraid to report them.

Motivation and Open Dialogue

Instead of a punitive system, the company relies on encouragement and openness. Contractors participate in corporate safety competitions on an equal footing with full-time employees and receive valuable prizes for achievements in the field of occupational safety. The main goal is not to punish for a mistake, but to identify the root cause and prevent the recurrence of an incident. Open dialogue allows contractors to give feedback to the customer, pointing out possible improvements in the company's own processes.

What You Will Learn from This Webinar:

• How to build a contractor prequalification system and weed out violators at the tender stage?
• What safety KPIs are most effective to include in a contract with a contractor organization?
• How to apply financial sanctions for violations of occupational safety requirements without destroying partnership relations?
• Why is modular onboarding more effective than a standard introductory briefing?
• How to use gamification to increase the engagement of contractor workers in safety issues?