Utilities

Power and Water Utility Gets Its Best Safety Numbers on Record

Organization – Peninsula Light Company, the second largest cooperative utility in the Pacific Northwest.

Issue – Leadership was not well respected, engineering accountability was lacking and the overall safety performance was horrific; with 1 in 5 employees injured on the job. Fear and division fractured relations between union/operations and salaried personnel. Contention and division challenged the water and electrical divisions.

Outcome – In just sixteen months:

• Safety performance became best on record with a 60% improvement
• Engineering Performance: 22% increase
• Operations Performance: 60% increase
• Reversed the income trend for the Water Department and it began to make a profit
• Cost Improvement: $1,000,000
• The sustainable culture shift allowed the results to improve in subsequent years

Process – A Powered by the Human Element® methodology was used to train the leadership team. This training was then given to the majority of the staff, both union and salaried. Ongoing efforts were put in place to develop a new culture – one that was safety focused, self-accountable, high inclusion, and focused on results.

Consultant/Company – Russ Salzer, Licensed Human Element Practitioner, Owner, 3YG Sales Training Technology

Country – U.S.A.