Mondelez International is an American multinational confectionery, food, holding, and beverage and snack food company based in Chicago. Mondelez has an annual revenue of about $26 billion and operates in approximately 160 countries.
It’s been really shocking to me because I can see myself in that manager’s shoes talking a little disparagingly about Kate, and it’s hard to realize that sometimes this has been exactly my own thinking. Oh my goodness, I’m frustrated right now…
I really liked and enjoyed these bite-size sections with examples. Unbelievable how much our beliefs impact the process.
Really thought-provoking – how we understand accountability, and unspoken beliefs that punishment will lead to behavioural change, without awareness of side effects.
Why did you decide to take the Learning from Normal Work Course?
We identified a gap in our understanding with lots of potential to be better at learning proactively. We do a good job at root cause analysis after events but want to do more upfront. We had heard a lot about learning teams, and pre-accident investigations but we felt that a short and bitesize structured program would be a good first step – this was the only course from a trusted source that we could find.
Who participated in the training and why?
The HSE team supporting the European manufacturing business – these are senior leaders supporting HSE integration and strategy across ~60 manufacturing plants. Building their capability will have a large gearing effect as they coach and support plant teams.
What were some of the most important insights from the course?
- Side effects of punishment – the impact of passive aggression. On reflection – I have certainly witnessed this behaviour but didn’t think about it being passive aggression at the time. Interesting, not sure why – one to think about.
- Types of harm – physical, psychological, social, and economic…….it feels like we predominantly focus on physical harm….does anyone else agree with this?
- E.D.S. – I’ve come across this in the past but had forgotten about it, great to have this reminder as really helpful in these scenarios but more broadly in everyday conversations!
- The “I know better” vs. “You know better” unspoken beliefs were demonstrated. Just shows the impact of the questions we ask and how important it is that we get them right. It was really powerful hearing (and feeling!) the difference between the questions.
What was the overall impact of the course?
The concepts and skills described in the course have had a clear impact on the team members that participated. I have seen it shape discussions on strategy and plans, in investigations and audits as ways to build a safety culture. It has created a foundation that will enable the team to build further capability on learning from normal work in the future.
With the Learning from Normal Work training we are able to take a fresh look at proactive safety work that will enhance efforts to build engagement in safety but also derive deep insights to manage business risks, which means that our organisation will benefit by building fresh and different capabilities to support our HSE improvement progress.
What are you going to do differently in the future because of this training?
Increase the building of proactive learning skills and tools. For example, for 2023 the plan will be to build learning teams capability and this year we have completed mindset-changing safety leadership discussions that have involved learning from normal work.
How will this training help you to reduce the risk in operations?
The skills will help leaders build trust through effective interactions in the field. Building skills in learning teams will help us apply a different lens to problem-solving alongside our existing RCA approach. The mindset shift in participants in the program has taken conversations and strategy in fresh directions away from blame and operational discipline.