RISK AVERSION OR RISK MANAGEMENT - AVOIDING 'CHOCOLATE FIREWALLS' THAT MELT AWAY JUST WHEN YOU MOST NEED THEM

摘要

Faced by the barrage of criticism, which invariably follows reported accidents, many organisations have become very risk averse and try to design out what they consider as credible accidents. This leads to the popular misconception that safety professionals try to block normal activities rather than make informed judgements on risks, as highlighted in the 2005 IOSH conference, which had as its theme 'Safety - Red Tape or Green Light?' Risk averse organisations tend to focus on legal compliance. This preoccupation can lead organisations to overlook the wide range of risks to which they are exposed, installing systems which provide a high degree of protection against a narrow range of risks, but which fail to protect against the wider range of risks. We refer to such systems as 'chocolate firewalls' because they look impressive but when a 'fire' occurs then they just melt away and provide no protection. There have been many examples in the process industry, not least at Bhopal where the hazard of water contamination was well recognised but the measures in place totally failed to protect against the contamination that actually occurred. By contrast, risk managing organisations focus on their organisation, people and business/operational processes. We outline a comprehensive strategic risk management process to identify and manage the wide range of hazards that can affect an enterprise - including process safety, occupational safety, security breaches, fraud and financial failure of partner organisations. But what if, despite your best efforts, there were a major incident 'on your watch' and you found yourself in front of an interviewer from radio, TV or the press? Would you know how to present your organisation in the best light and avoid being manipulated into making statements that you might later regret? To help you, we conclude with a short tutorial covering well-proven tips for dealing with the media.