Holistic Approach to Human Performance Improvement

Abstract Despite technology and digital developments, human performance continues to be the most determinant organizational success factor. Authors have successfully developed a business ecosystem that speeds up the maturity of the management system with statistically significant improvements in the organization's culture, and business performance. The paper shows three interdependent methods implemented by three organizations over the last three years in Latin America, including methodology, leading and impact indicators. Building on previous quasi-experimental research, authors continue to evolve a business ecosystem that elicits sustainable human performance improvements (Lopez et.al. 2022, 2023). The ecosystem encompasses three interdependent solutions, all based on organizational and industrial psychology scientific research and extensive hands-on experience. Leading with purpose coaching program guides leaders to adapt transformational behaviors, in line with their organizations' vision and values, and support the other two solutions, Situational Awareness training provides front-line crews with suitable and sufficient competencies to manage dynamic risks, and the Engineering Human Performance methodology achieves procedural adherence by employees' engagement and conviction. Results in three oil and gas organizations including workover, drilling, asset integrity, construction, and production facilities operation and maintenance are presented. Results include leading and impact indicators. Suitable statistical models are used to measure the impact of the solutions in the business performance, per solution and per organization. Leading with Purpose uses Bass and Avolio (1995) Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire to assess leaders' behavioral profile, to foster alignment with the corporate vision and values. This psychometric tool is applied before and after the coaching sessions. ‘Repeated measures – ANOVA’ model determines whether the coaching has statistically significant impacts on the leaders' profile, individually and collectively. Situation Awareness Global Assessment Technique, SAGAT (Endsley, 2003) measures the impact of situational awareness training. SAGAT is applied before and after training workshops. ‘Repeated measures – ANOVA’ model determines whether the training program has statistically significant impacts on trainees' non-technical competencies, individually and collectively. Engineering Human Performance uses Heat Maps to identify teams with concerning procedural adherence trends and intervene before an accident occurs. Regression curves are used to measure the levels of procedural adherence and variance per behavior, so front line teams improve adherence where they specifically need to improve. The paper shares a holistic, integrated approach to human performance improvement, using three interdependent solutions, developed from authors' experience and industrial psychology scientific research. Another novel element in the paper is the adaptation of best practices from highly advanced industries in human performance, to the oil and gas sector. An essential element of the paper is the demonstration of the return on the investment by doing predictive safety through statistical models.