BACKGROUND:
Minera Escondida Ltda, located in northern Chile’s Atacama Desert, is the largest copper mine in the world. Vanto Group was brought in to impact the organizational and cultural issues underlying a significant increase in injuries.
THE CHALLENGE:
The company had concluded that a safety system built on a command-and-control philosophy in a large organization like Escondida was never going to lead to a zero-harm workplace. For the company to accomplish its safety objectives, every worker would need to be actively responsible for his or her own personal safety and the safety of his / her coworkers.
THE APPROACH:
Vanto Group designed a three-phase engagement to introduce the possibility of a Zero Harm Workplace, mobilized the commitment to safety among the workers, and developed projects that engaged the whole workforce to achieve their goal.
The three-part engagement began with establishing a team of 80 opinion leaders representing unions, contractors, and management. Together they developed and managed six breakthrough zero harm projects targeted at improving workforce safety. The final phase focused on mobilizing the workforce through participation in a leadership program in which each participant saw his or her role as critical to achieving this objective.
BUSINESS OUTCOME:
Within three months of initiating the engagement, Escondida recorded a 44% decrease in the number of safety issues as compared to the previous period. Within five months, the company experienced its first month free of lost-time injuries in more than three years. Safety management has continued to meet the company’s expectations for improvement.
It was a wild four days but at the end of it, I had a group of people completely aligned to achieving a zero harm workplace. I am convinced that Vanto Group’s technology can be used effectively to align an organization and generate the committed conversations that are necessary to achieve breakthrough performance in business.”
Former President, Minera Escondida Ltda.
