Know
- A strong safety and health culture is vital to every nonprofit, and you have the ability to shape the culture of your organization.
- In general, culture shows up in three ways: artifacts (the “stuff” of your organization), behaviors (what you see or experience), and underlying values (unseen attitudes or assumptions).
- A culture that values safety and health will lead to better decisions in support of safety and health within your organization.
- The first step in addressing your organization’s safety and health culture is to assess what your culture is now. Then identify items to add or change to strengthen your nonprofit’s future culture.
- A nonprofit has tools and systems in place to help with operations. Your organization can leverage tools, systems, policies, and more to create a strong safety and health culture.
Reflect
As you create a safety and health culture within your nonprofit, think about the following questions:
- What two or three words would you use to describe your organization’s safety and health culture?
- What would a strong safety and health culture look like with your organization? Describe what you would see, hear, and/or feel.
- What one tool would help support a stronger safety and health culture within your organization?
- How can you create incentives for people to behave safely?
Grow
- Identify 3-5 scenarios at your organization that involve possible safety and health risks. For each scenario:
- Describe task(s) involved and how the scenario could unfold if the right process is followed.
- Identify tools, policies, procedures, etc. in place to reduce safety and health risks.
- Discuss potential opportunities to further reduce risk.
- Make a list of all the types of people connected to your organization, including those within the nonprofit, as well as the people served. Next to each type, note how you think they would describe your organization’s safety and health culture.