Closing the Gap Between Procedure and Practice

Problem: A top tier offshore drilling operation was experiencing repeat near miss incidents during routine handling. Robust procedures existed. Awareness campaigns had been run. Performance dashboards remained green. Incidents continued.
Behavioural Mechanism: Frontline crews had quietly normalised shortcuts that saved time during routine tasks. Supervisors reinforced the shortcuts through what they did not stop. Antecedent: schedule pressure. Behaviour: deviation from procedure. Consequence: approval through silence.
Intervention: Restructured the consequence environment. Supervisors were trained to intervene visibly and predictably on small deviations, not just major ones. Leadership KPIs were re-weighted to include observation quality over observation count.
Result: Repeat near miss frequency in the target work scope reduced significantly over the following operational cycle. Supervisors reported clearer authority to challenge routine deviation. Crews reported greater consistency from leadership.