Tag: Safety Consultant Sydney

10 Reasons Why Training & Development is Critical for Your Success

Posted on | by Sienna

By Mark Hamon, Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant Sydney.

“Train people well enough so they can leave, treat them well enough so they don’t want to” – Sir Richard Branson

Let’s talk about a training and development for your business.

Training & Development

Training is about investing in your business and giving back to your employees. As Richard Branson put it, when you invest in your employees they will give back, and that kind of intangible quality is priceless for any business.  Have you really consider the risk and exposure your carrying if your training system isn’t up to date or poor quality?

Why should I consider a training and development program for my business?

  1. Training systems can help promote employee health and safety standards in the workplace.
  2. Shows a commitment of proof your work force is competent, trained and authorise.
  3. Gives a business owner evidence for “Duty of Care” where litigation risk can lead to prosecution.
  4. You’re operating a business in a constantly changing economic market with complex risk.
  5. Established evidence trail of workforce capabilities for legal requirements, contract tenders and proposals.
  6. Gives your external key stakeholders confidence in your company’s professional skill base
  7. Promotes morale, productivity and innovation in the workforce.
  8. Can help reduce staff turnover costs, and employee skills shortages.
  9. Could help win government based trainings funds for your business e.g. Australia.
  10. Will support and align to a company management system, including policies, procedures and business planning.

What can a KONA Risk Management Training Consultant do for your business?

  • Employee Induction Program –  develop a customised induction program for your business
  • Company Training Management System – including policies, procedures and tools/forms
  • Training Needs Analysis – organisation analysis, job analysis profiling, employee analysis, bottom up profiling, future skills profiling, SWOT analysis, balance scorecard, surveying.
  • Training Systems Audit – carry out training audits of employees or subcontractors.
  • Develop Training Packages – develop training packages for any topic related to safety, quality, environment, health, training, risk management or other business requirements.
  • Contractor Trainer – provide face to face classroom training services for your employees or contractors
  • Emergency Training Drills –workplace emergency and disaster drills, evaluation and feedback.

If you have any questions then get on the phone (obligation free) and contact KONA Group’s Risk Management Training Specialist Mark Hamon at info@KONA.com.au or call 1300 611 288 and you can discuss your business training and development needs.

Business Process Mapping – The 8 frustrations you can face without it

Posted on | by Sienna
By Mark Hamon, Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant Sydney. Sometimes the work environment can be a little crazy, have you ever had those moments a customer calls and wants a solution yesterday. In these times staff can be stressed, time poorly allocated, communication breaks down and quality can suffer. Do you have a work culture where you’re constantly putting out spot fires and wish you could be more organised.  Streamlining of your business processes can reduce errors, reduce costs, and save on both time and money, so ask yourself the following questions about your operating processes:
  1. Are you sick and tired of dealing with bottlenecks and missing deadlines?
  2. Stressed or frustrated with customers complaining about errors or poor quality?
  3. Having to fit rework into an already busy and conflicting task schedule?
  4. Employees in denial or blaming each other when things go wrong?
  5. Conflict or low morale from a breakdown in team communication?
  6. Costs associated with task duplication or being missed all together?
  7. Frustrated at increased costs from reactive band aid solutions?
  8. Are longer or inefficient operating processes increasing your costs and reducing your profits?
Process mapping of your business operating cycles will support:
  • Communication and better understanding of the tasks
  • Allocation staff or employee responsibilities
  • Time allocation with stages of each work task
  • Better planning of materials and resources required
  • Inspections and standards for quality checks
  • Minimisation of employee frustration, conflict and stress
  • Customer confidence in your product or service
  • Reduced wastage of time and resources
  • Reduced rework costs and errors
  • Timely invoicing and payment from customers
Examples include:
  • Sales process mapping
  • Production process mapping
  • Service process mapping
  • Mapping of internal and external business procedures
Process or task mapping involves a KONA consultant visiting your workplace to create a mapping process customised for your business, the steps involved in this task involves:
  1. Mapping of your business process for product or service
  2. Analyse the process using proven methodologies
  3. Redesign the process
  4. Incorporate new resources into the change process
  5. Rollout change and communicate the process to all key stakeholders
  6. Management review of the improved process
If you have any questions about process mapping for your business operating cycles, then contact KONA Group’s Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant Sydney Specialist.  Mark Hamon can be contacted at info@KONA.com.au or call 1300 611 288

Catastrophic Disasters – 90% chance your business won’t recover

Posted on | by Sienna
By Mark Hamon, Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant Sydney. The U.N. Office for Disaster Risk Reduction warned that economic losses from floods, earthquakes and drought will continue to escalate unless businesses take action to reduce their exposure to disaster risks. The cost the economy since 2000 has been $2.5 trillion. Reference: https://www.businessinsider.com.au/un-natural-disasters-cost-25-trillion-2013-5 . Do you have a Business Continuity Management (BCM) and Emergency Plan that is benchmarked to global standards?  Listed is 5 questions you need to seriously ask yourself if you want your business to survive. If you answer NO to any of these questions then you are at risk:
  1. Does your business have a disaster recovery plan in place to help deal with the insurance process after the event has occurred?
  2. Do you have a plan of action for the recovery of your business including the clean-up?
  3. Do you have alternative plans for managing employees and making sure you provide a safe working environment in the post disaster recovery?
  4. Have you considered the impact on your business from damaged stock, damaged plant/machinery, unsafe building condition and disruption to customer sales?
  5. Do you have a check lists for dealing with the different types of natural disasters e.g. bushfires, floods, storms?
Now consider this: 40% of businesses don’t reopen after a disaster and another 25% fail within one year according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Similar statistics from the United States Small Business Administration indicate that more than 90% of businesses fail within two years after being struck by a disaster. Reference: https://www.datto.com/resource-downloads/BackupVsBusContinuity_WP.pdf The statistics are quite sobering with up to a 90% of businesses failing within 2 years of disaster, so consider the following if you want to survive:
  • Business continuity plans, emergency evacuation plans and emergency phone contacts Protective document holder for insurance policies, finance and banking records.
  • Back up portable database storage for electronic business files and records e.g. USB sticks.
  • MSDS folders, materials and equipment records.
  • Warehousing stock or products listing and including details.
  • Employee contact details.
  • First aid kit and safety items like small radio, PPE, mobile phone, camera etc.
  • Physical security items e.g. spare keys, code pin numbers.
Insurance companies and emergency services will be in high demand and waiting times may be long. What proactive plans do you have in place so you can help your business recover? Remember it’s not a matter of IF, but WHEN. If you have any questions about BCM or natural disaster planning for your business, then contact KONA Group’s Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant Sydney Specialist.  Mark Hamon can be contacted at info@KONA.com.au or call 1300 611 288

Hazardous and Dangerous Materials – Is your workplace a potential Titanic disaster

Posted on | by Sienna
By Mark Hamon, Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant Sydney. When asked about the potential risk of a disaster in his shipping career, Captain of the Titanic EJ Smith said “it will never happen to me”. It’s very easy to put off safety commitments for another day until a problem actually occurs (reactive safety culture).  Hazardous and dangerous materials can pose a serious threat like fires, explosions, toxic release, employee injuries or fatalities. Reactive decisions after a disaster won’t help when emergency services are onsite and safety inspectors start asking you the hard questions.  If chemical related disaster happened right now in your business, would the blame be pointed at you? Workplace duty of care requires an employer to ensure they manage all hazardous and dangerous materials , so it supports employee health and safety. Any breach with Duty of Care means you as the business owner or manager could face litigation risk and possible prosecution. Hazardous substances – Where employee exposure, can result in adverse effect on health e.g. cancer Dangerous goods – substances which present a  hazard to people, environment or the property, due to their toxicity, chemical or physical properties. What can I do to fix this concern?
  • Obtain a copy of relevant legislation, standards, and codes of practice or industry guidelines for managing dangerous and hazardous substances.
  • Audit review of all hazardous and dangerous substances. Record container amounts for each class/division and packing group of each substance and storage location. Do not store incompatible substances together e.g. Dangerous Goods Segregation Chart
  • Establish a risk register for all hazardous and dangerous substances with easy access for employees or emergency services.
  • Ensure MSDS or SDS information is available for all hazardous or dangerous substances, and complete a risk review of each substance onsite.
  • Keep your chemicals or substances in approved storage facilities e.g. national standards
  • Keep appropriate resources onsite including: PPE, spills kits, firefighting equipment, HAZCHEM signage and employee emergency plans.
  • Make sure all dangerous and hazardous substances are clearly labelled.
  • Evaluate and document risk controls for all hazardous and dangerous substances.
  • Ensure all employees are trained, competent and authorised in the handling, storage and use of dangerous and hazardous substances onsite. Evaluate and review all employee training.
  • Carry out ongoing audits/ reviews for the handling and use of hazardous and dangerous substances.
If you have any questions about hazardous and dangerous substances in your workplace and looking for a solution to your needs then get on the phone (obligation free) and contact KONA Group’s Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant Sydney Specialist.  Mark Hamon can be contacted at info@KONA.com.au or call 1300 611 288

Internal Business Audit – How sick is your business?

Posted on | by Sienna
By Mark Hamon, Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant Sydney. “99 percent of success is built on failure.” — Charles Kettering Have you ever considered an audit like a health check-up of your business, to identify and put right what might be a hidden risk or going wrong in your business? All business owners need to make sure they manage their risk, customer needs, and litigation and business activities. Do you really know if they are operating efficiently or leaving you at risk?  Auditors will never assume, their role is to find the facts (objective evidence). For an auditor the 3 main areas they focus on is management commitment, quality / business objectives and customer satisfaction. An internal audit will help you understand the following:
  1. Is your employees doing what your processes, policies and procedures say they are meant to be doing? If not an audit can determine areas of improvement.
  2. Are your processes, policies and procedure, out dated or obsolete and need to be changed? If something goes wrong how do you know you won’t be held liable?
Areas of risk to your business can be: Commercial/ legal issues, management activities/controls, economic circumstances, technological issues, human behaviour, natural events, political issues and individual events. Impact issues from risk can include: Organisational behaviour, asset / resources base, direct and indirect costs, people, performance, community issues, environment, intangibles (e.g. good will, quality of life, reputation), revenue and entitlements. So what evidence or bench marking can be used during an audit?
  • Customer requirements including contracts, orders, specifications and briefs · Strategic business plans and project management plans ·         Legislation and regulations e.g. business law, safety law. ·         National and international standards e.g. Safety, Quality, Risk, HACCP, IT Security, BCM, Risk Management. ·         International or domestic conventions e.g. World Health Organisation ·         Industry codes of practice e.g. specific to your industry ·         Company policies and procedures ·         Work instructions
Internal Auditors are trained in a methodology of auditing, including how to plan, prepare, lead and complete an audit and trained to international professional recognition e.g. QSA International. If you have any questions then get on the phone (obligation free) and contact KONA Group’s Risk Management Training Specialist Mark Hamon at info@KONA.com.au or call 1300 611 288 and you can discuss your internal business audit and improvement needs.

Business disaster prepardness, why risk a nervous breakdown

Posted on | by Sienna
By Mark Hamon, Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant Sydney.
“Private-sector preparedness is not a luxury; it is a cost of doing business in the post-9/11 world. It is ignored at a tremendous potential cost in lives, money and national security.”  ? The 9 11 Commission Report
Let’s face it, we are now living and working in a time where business managers are facing increased uncertainty, and more companies are embracing business emergency preparedness. Over the recent years we have been bombarded with media news about natural and man-made disasters, economic instability, poverty, disease, political unrest, cyber risk, terrorism and criminal activity. It tough to run a business when times are challenging and puts a huge amount of stress on managers and owners. Are you laying awake at night worrying about your business, knowing the stress isn’t good for you or your business? Anxiety and depression now impacts 1 in 4 people, a simple phone call to a Risk Management consultant can give you a solution and peace of mind. Ask yourself the following questions.
  1. Wouldn’t you prefer peace of mind, knowing you have a solution in place for emergencies?
  2. If you had a disaster or an unexpected emergency could you cope, and would your business survive?
  3. How would you generate an income, support your employees or family, do you even have a plan?
  4. What are the legal ramifications or duty of care if something goes wrong?
  5. What is the real consequence and costs for failing to plan?
You might ask, OK you have my attention so where do I go from here? The good news is that with the right consultant, you can have instant peace of mind.  You can have a system in place that will support your business, family and employees, especially when unexpected emergencies or disaster’s happen. An emergency management plan can be customised for your business, using national and international standards for emergency benchmark excellence. Once a plan has been established then it’s vital to carry out a test drill of your emergency management plan to determine its effectiveness. It’s not enough these days to have a bit of paperwork in a folder titled “Emergency Management” simply collect dust, you need to know it work. By consulting with Mark Hamon, the Sydney based Risk Management Training and Safety Consultant from KONA Group, you can discuss your concerns or needs regarding emergency and disaster preparedness, so you can have peace of mind. Mark’s background in emergency management comes from real world experience including:
  • Military service and operational training with both Navy (aviation) and Army service
  • Frontline hospital trauma experience as a Registered Nurse
  • Industrial health and rescue (ambulance responder) in the power industry
  • Safety management roles across mining, civil construction, manufacturing and engineering sectors.
If you have any questions then get on the phone (obligation free) and contact KONA Group’s Risk Management Training Specialist Mark Hamon at info@KONA.com.au or call 1300 611 288