Sunday, July 1, 2012

521.5.8.RB - Value Narrative


Excellence in safety is the value that I want to convey in my organization. Often times safety can be jeopardized because of the tempo of operations in a distribution center, resulting in unsafe behaviors from team members.

In one instance a team member failed to come to a complete stop at one of the intersections in the distribution center. As he traveled out into the aisle, his vehicle struck the vehicle of another team member, resulting in damaged equipment and possible injuries. No one was hurt but the equipment was damaged and it was an incident that could have resulted in much worse. The single protagonist in the story is safety. The team member decided to forgo safety to get his job tasks done quicker.

This story makes my value that much more clear and important. Employee safety should always come first, no matter what the job or organization. At Target, safety is always number one. We believe that everyone should leave work in the same condition in which they came, and safety should never be compromised. Unsafe behaviors from team members often lead to corrective action.

Target does a very good job of developing and implementing safety programs in all areas of the business, but it falls on the shoulders of the operations managers to ensure that safety is not being jeopardized because of team member expectations. When work becomes too much for someone and safety needs to be forgotten, something needs to change. I think this incident made managers aware of the consequences of not coaching and correcting unsafe behaviors. It is imperative that our operations managers know what to look for as far as safety is concerned, and know our safety action plans so that they can execute them. 

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