Making Safety Part of Your DNA: A Guide to Frontline Engagement

Safety isn’t just about rules and procedures—it’s about creating an environment where every employee feels personally responsible for maintaining a safe workplace. While many organizations understand this concept, translating it into reality remains one of the industry’s biggest challenges. In fact, increasing safety participation consistently ranks as a top priority for EHS professionals across all industries.

The Leadership Imperative

Building a safety-first culture starts at the top. Without a clear commitment from leadership, even the most well-designed safety initiatives will fall flat. Safety culture must flow from the top floor to the shop floor, from C-suite to craft, creating an environment where everyone understands their role in maintaining workplace safety.

As Novara customer Bill Woods, Director of Safety, Quality, and Regulatory Compliance at American Welding & Gas explains,

“Our company dedicated a full-time resource to lead the efforts of promoting a safety culture throughout the company. This resource reports directly to the company’s CEO, who is very involved and instrumental in allocating proper resources and tools to promote safety culture throughout the whole company.”

Case Study: DPR Construction’s Three-Step Implementation Success

When DPR Construction, a major general contractor, decided to transform their safety culture by adopting Novara Flex, it implemented a comprehensive three-step approach that exemplifies best practices in cultural transformation:

1. Executive Communication

The initiative began with a company-wide announcement from executive leadership, including both email communications and a “Company Update” video. This top-down approach immediately established the importance of the safety program and set clear expectations for participation.

2. Structured Training Program

They developed a robust training framework consisting of six sessions—two in-person and four online—tailored to different roles within the organization. This comprehensive approach ensured that everyone, from the supervisory level to craft workers, understood their specific responsibilities.

3. Ongoing Support

Safety professionals were stationed on-site to provide immediate assistance, demonstrate proper usage of new tools, and offer continuous coaching. This sustained support system helped maintain momentum and ensure successful adoption.

Our Better Workforce Blog is your Ultimate Guide!

Stay informed with weekly industry updates, expert insights, best practices, and actionable tips to enhance workplace safety and compliance.

Common Safety Culture Barriers…and Solutions

Creating a safety-first culture requires overcoming several common obstacles that can impede progress. Here are key challenges and strategies to address them:

Addressing the "It's Not My Job" Mentality

One of the most persistent challenges in safety culture is the misconception that safety is solely the responsibility of safety managers. To overcome this mindset, organizations need to implement strategies that reinforce universal safety ownership. Here are key approaches that have proven effective:

Clearly communicate that safety is everyone’s responsibility
Recognize and reward proactive safety behavior
Include safety responsibilities in job descriptions at all levels
Share success stories of employee-driven safety improvements

Moving from Reactive to Proactive Mindsets

Safety isn’t just about responding to incidents—it’s about preventing them. To foster a proactive safety culture, organizations should implement comprehensive prevention strategies. Consider these approaches to shift mindsets:

Implement regular safety observations and hazard reporting programs
Encourage near-miss reporting
Celebrate preventive actions
Share leading indicators alongside lagging ones

Breaking the "I'll Do It Later" Habit

Procrastination in safety reporting can have serious consequences. The key to overcoming this challenge lies in making safety reporting both convenient and habitual. Encourage timely reporting by:

Making reporting tools easily accessible
Implementing mobile solutions for immediate reporting
Setting clear expectations for timely reporting
Following up promptly on safety concerns

Novara customer Chris Gafford, EHS Manager at Ring Energy, shares their journey:

“We started the safety culture journey, but it’s a long one. Crawl, walk, run… Most interesting is that the field guys are hungry for more. We recently did a Safety Culture Assessment survey and the overwhelming response was that they are ready to take it to the next level.”

Best Practices for Cultural Transformation

Transforming your organization’s safety culture requires a systematic approach with clear strategies and consistent execution. As one Novara customer and Sr. Safety Specialist explains:

“Putting a focus on Why people should work safe. Put the onus back on them to think about why and who they are working safe for. We utilize a ‘Why I Work Safe’ badge so our employees have a daily reminder as to why they should work safe.”

Consider these essential practices:

Setting Clear Expectations

Clear expectations form the foundation of any successful safety program. Ensure everyone understands their role in maintaining workplace safety:

Establish and communicate safety goals
Define roles and responsibilities
Create clear safety procedures and protocols
Maintain consistent enforcement of safety standards

Creating Accountability Systems

An effective accountability system helps ensure that safety remains a top priority throughout the organization. Put these key elements in place to maintain consistent focus on safety:

Implement regular safety performance reviews
Track and measure participation rates
Recognize positive safety behaviors
Address safety violations promptly and fairly

As David Finley, Novara customer and HSE Director at Dolese Bros. notes:

“Leadership had to be visibly committed at the very top. Some leaders didn’t stay with the company because they weren’t on board with the changes. We also had to quit being so rigid and have some flexibility in how we got employees actively involved in safety. We started having front-line employees solve safety problems and push their ideas to the entire workforce.”

Establishing Open-Door Policies

An open-door policy creates an environment where employees feel comfortable reporting safety concerns without fear of reprisal. Implement these practices to foster open communication:

Create multiple channels for safety communication
Respond promptly to safety concerns
Protect employees from retaliation
Share feedback and resolution updates

Judy DeForeest, Novara customer and EHS & Quality Coordinator at LDX Solutions, shares their success story:

“We are constantly visible out in the plant. Our employees see us as a good thing, we are the caring department. Praising people for working safely and finding ways to reward them. It is paying off with our lower mod rates and reduced injuries/prop damages and near misses. It takes a village, and we’re all in this together.”

Measuring Cultural Change

Track these key indicators to measure the effectiveness of your cultural transformation. Key metrics to monitor include:

Employee participation rates in safety initiatives
Number of proactive safety reports
Time to resolution for safety concerns
Employee feedback and satisfaction scores
Leading indicator improvements
Reduction in incident rates

Safety Leaders, Take Action Now!

Ready to begin your cultural transformation journey? Here are concrete steps you can take to start building a stronger safety culture today:

Assess current safety culture through surveys and feedback
Develop a clear vision for safety excellence
Create a communication strategy
Implement supporting technology solutions
Establish measurement systems
Provide ongoing training and support
Regularly review and adjust approaches

Novara Helps You Engage Your Frontline Employees

Turn your safety program into a thriving culture of participation. Novara Flex puts powerful safety tools directly in your workers’ hands, transforming manual processes into streamlined workflows that drive real engagement. The result? Better reporting, fewer incidents, and a stronger safety culture—all with less administrative burden.

Learn How Flex Helps Engage the Frontlines

Remember, building a safety-first culture isn’t a destination—it’s a journey of continuous improvement. With the right commitment, tools, and support, every organization can create an environment where safety is truly everyone’s responsibility.

Making Safety Part of Your DNA: A Practical Guide to Frontline Engagement