Programme overview
Technical depth: Conceptual · Practical mode: Case study
Introduction
Serious incidents rarely stem from a single frontline mistake; investigations repeatedly trace them to decisions on priorities, resources, contractors and reporting made far above the site. Yet many senior managers see HSE performance only as injury rates that say little about major accident risk. This Core Concept course equips senior managers to lead HSE through governance, culture and visible engagement, drawing on ISO 45001, OECD guidance on corporate governance for process safety and IOGP leadership guidance. Participants examine cases from several industries and leave with an HSE Leadership Plan for their own area.
Course Objectives
- Define the accountability that senior managers carry for HSE performance under ISO 45001 and recognised governance guidance
- Assess the organisation's HSE culture using the Hearts and Minds culture ladder and the leadership characteristics in IOGP guidance
- Set HSE policy direction, objectives and board-level indicators that give a true picture of major accident and personal risk
- Judge the quality of HSE assurance, contractor oversight and incident learning presented by specialists
- Lead visible HSE engagement and respond appropriately when a serious incident occurs
- Produce an HSE Leadership Plan for the participant's area of responsibility
Target Audience
- Senior managers and directors accountable for operational divisions, sites or business units
- Executive committee members with oversight of HSE, operations or risk
- General managers and plant directors who own HSE outcomes across a site or region of operations
- Board and risk committee members overseeing HSE performance and disclosure
- Heads of HSE who advise the executive team and the board
Course Outline
Day 1: The Executive Role in HSE Performance
- Executive HSE Accountability Under ISO 45001 Clause 5 Leadership
- Personal Safety Versus Process Safety: Major Accident Lessons for Leaders
- HSE Business Case: Direct and Indirect Cost of Incidents Model
- Board Oversight Duties Under ISO 37000 Governance Principles
- Executive Self-Assessment Against the OECD Corporate Governance for Process Safety Guidance
Day 2: Leadership and Culture Models
- Hearts and Minds Safety Culture Ladder
- IOGP Report 452 Leadership Characteristics That Shape Safety Culture
- Safety-I and Safety-II Perspectives on Performance Variability
- Human and Organisational Performance (HOP) Principles for Leaders
- Psychological Health and Safety Oversight Under ISO 45003
Day 3: Leading HSE Through Governance and Visible Leadership
- Visible Felt Leadership Site Visit Protocol and Leadership Conversations
- HSE Policy, Objectives and the Board Reporting Cycle
- Leading and Lagging Indicators Using IOGP Report 456 Tiers
- Contractor HSE Governance Across the Supply Chain
- GRI 403 Occupational Health and Safety Disclosure in Sustainability Reports
Day 4: Risk, Failure and Difficult Decisions
- Production Pressure and Safety Trade-Off Decision Framework
- Normalisation of Deviance and Weak Signal Detection
- Major Accident Hazard Oversight Using Bow-Tie Barrier Dashboards
- Executive Response to a Fatality: Duty of Care, Investigation and Communication
- Climate-Related HSE Risk Under ISO 45001 Amendment 1:2024
Day 5: Case Work and the HSE Leadership Plan
- Refinery Explosion Case Study: Board Oversight Failures
- Construction Fatality Case Study: Contractor Leadership Gaps
- Executive HSE Dashboard Design for Board Reporting
- HSE Leadership Plan Drafting
- Executive Peer Panel and Plan Defence
Skills You Will Gain
- HSE Governance
- Safety Culture Assessment
- Visible Felt Leadership
- HSE Performance Oversight
- Major Accident Risk Oversight
- Post-Incident Leadership
- Contractor Safety Oversight
- HSE Reporting and Disclosure
Why Attend This Course
- Return to work with an HSE Leadership Plan setting out your own commitments, indicators and engagement routine
- Ask the questions that expose weak barriers and optimistic reporting before an incident does
- Understand how your decisions on production, budgets and contractors shape the HSE culture below you
- Compare leadership approaches with senior managers from energy, construction, manufacturing, utilities and logistics
Conclusion
HSE performance reflects what senior managers pay attention to, fund and question. This course moves from executive accountability and the business case, through the principal culture and leadership models, to governance routines, meaningful indicators and the difficult decisions where production and safety compete. The final day tests that material against major incident cases and produces an HSE Leadership Plan that participants take back to their executive team, giving them a clear basis for how they will lead HSE in the year ahead.