2019 HPRCT Conference

My Organization Wants to Become an HRO – Now What? (Case Study: How ConocoPhillips Canada is Establishing and Sustaining an HRO)  So, you’re excited about your organization becoming a High Reliability Organization (HRO) - now what? What are the tangible steps you need to take? What role do leaders, front line workers and individuals play in making this change? What resources do you need? How do you measure success? These, and more, were the questions faced by ConocoPhillips Canada’s leadership six years ago when we decided we needed something different to take our safety performance to the next level. Since then, we have been on an exciting journey towards becoming an HRO and changing our culture.  
As we worked to answer these questions, we learned from HRO thought leaders, started learning differently and created a fit-for-purpose HRO Framework that is enabling our team to implement HRO concepts in a way that works for our business – both in the field and in the office. While working to establish an HRO, we have learned the importance of:

• Leadership commitment and engagement in creating an environment where an HRO culture can flourish. • Taking a deliberate approach to organizational change management.
• Implementing tools that enable the application of HRO concepts in a practical way. This may include aligning and enhancing existing tools.
• Patience and perseverance.

Are we there yet? No, we never will be. Becoming an HRO is about the journey. It’s a journey we are committed to, and though it isn’t a straight path, our commitment remains strong. We have seen a measurable change in our safety performance and our reliability in other areas of our business, as we continue to work to implement the concepts of an HRO in our organization.