Developing Safety Management System SPI’s to Meet The Business Objective to Monitor Safety Performance

Sofema Online (SOL) www.sofemaonline.com considers the optimum organizational safety system behaviours to effectively monitor safety performance.

Introduction - ICAO identifies an SPI as a “a data-based safety parameter used for monitoring and assessing safety performance.”  By developing effective organizational SPIs, we are able to measure and manage the processes to ensure the optimum output with a focus on the precursors of potentially serious events, rather than current visible outcome.

Why to Use Safety Performance Indicators?

SPIs play a major role in delivering an effective SMS because they enable performance-based safety management.

Early SMS systems with rudimentary data collection and analysis are typically transitioning to a more global approach which is placing more emphasis on the use of safety performance indicators (SPIs).

SMS employs measurable performance outcomes to verify the Safety system is operating in accordance with organizational expectations rather than simply meeting regulatory requirements.

There is no set rule for the creation of SPI’s and each organization should develop their own SPIs to enable a value driven outcome. For example, monitoring & measurement of safety performance in proactive terms.

Safety Performance Indicators (SPI’s) are used to:

» Monitor known safety risks.

» Detect emerging safety risks.

» Support the determination of appropriate mitigations (corrective actions).

» Support the determination of safety objectives specific to an organization..

» Setting of alert levels.

» The overall monitoring of safety performance.

Criteria for a Useful SPI

SPIs should ideally be, aligned with the safety targets of an organization and reflect the actual safety performance of an organization with the following key features:

» Reliable Measurement

» Statistically Significant

» Representative of the Business Area Output

» Able to avoid Bias

» Cost Effective (Return on Investment)

What we measure is typically more important than how we measure it (choose wisely). Good SPIs reference meaningful data, add value to safety performance and help to identify exposures.

» Clear & unambiguous data related to a specific target.

» Strong causal link with the desired outcome.

» Data able to drive mitigations where required.

SPI Building from the Bottom Up

Ideally SPI’s should evolve from a Reactive Foundation with a grounding of Reactive Risk Management before moving into a more Proactive set of measures. In this way to have a strong basis to build on, particularly where we are adding complexity.

Setting Alert Levels

» Alert levels may be set either quantitatively and qualitatively, depending on the organisation's objective and how the SPI is constructed. Alert levels are essentially subjective in nature and usually in the first instance based on our understanding and expectation related to our own particular organization. Alert Level settings being analyzed and reassessed periodically with the oversight of the Safety Review Board (SRB).

Note – A high frequency of minor occurrences may well demand an SPI, even though the relative risk indicated by a frequency/severity graph is quite low.

Next Steps

Please see www.sassofia.com, www.sofemaonline.com or email team@sassofia.com for additional details or if you have any questions.