(152b) Practical Application of ‘Critical Steps’ to Improve Human Performance

Most would agree that we cannot stop all human error, but we can institute protective measures to avoid critical errors involving significant process safety risk. However, organizations often refer to critical tasks or critical work in a more conceptual way, rather than applying specific and unambiguous criteria at the task step level. In the absence of clear definitions, it’s conceivable that all steps become critical which means nothing is critical. Moreover, not all operating steps have a commensurate potential for serious adverse outcomes and certain tasks are recoverable where operators can correct missteps before an incident.

If we expect workers to manage risk in operations and maintenance activities, then leadership should be able to provide tools to differentiate those steps which are critical from the non-critical. When ‘critical steps’ become an essential feature of process safety knowledge and the organizational culture, then the workforce can focus on those steps that require an exceptionally high degree of human reliability. The author will present practical examples of ‘critical steps’ and human performance tools to improve operating procedures, process hazards analysis, and execution of tasks in the field.