Counter-Errorism - Episode 17 - Stephanie Moore

Get to know Stephanie Moore: Profile https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephaniemoore763/ Email: [email protected] In her conversation on the Counter Errorism podcast, Stephanie Moore shares several practical strategies for improving organizational learning, emphasizing that performance improvement requires abandoning "one-size-fits-all" solutions. Instead, practitioners must tailor their approaches to the unique nuances and cultures of each specific group. Here are the key insights and lessons from her approach: Disarming Frustration and Building Trust Moore notes that frontline workers often deeply resent individuals coming down from the "glass palace" to fix their problems. To build immediate trust, she actively disarms their frustrations by shifting the conversation entirely away from corporate metrics, goals, or performance indicators. Instead, she focuses strictly on how to get them home safely. This genuine, human-centric concern bypasses defensive barriers, allowing passionate and frustrated workers to finally open up about the actual operational issues they face. Humility and "Planting the Seed" Rather than acting as the ultimate authority, Moore approaches the frontline with profound humility, recognizing that while she may know the safety theory, the workers are the true experts of their own environment. She advocates for patiently "planting the seed" of new ideas, acknowledging that people rarely adopt changes immediately. By giving workers the space to let concepts marinate without forcing an agenda, they can organically discover how these performance tools fit into their daily work. Translating Between Academia, Leadership, and the Frontline A major part of Moore's success lies in her ability to act as a vital translator across the different layers of an organization: For the Frontline: Complex academic concepts often go over workers' heads because they are already mentally taxed by a demanding operational environment. To fix this, she translates theory into highly relatable, tangible exercises. For example, she teaches the academic concept of a "cognitive walkthrough" by having workers describe how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. She notes that hands-on guidance and participation in workgroups is far more effective than pulling distracted workers away for web-based computer training. For Leadership: Conversely, she must translate the frontline's operational struggles into the language that executives actually speak—money and efficiency. She bridges the communication gap by showing leaders how investing in these safety and performance improvements ultimately saves resources that can be effectively utilized elsewhere. Empowerment Over Blind Compliance Finally, Moore operates on the foundational belief that people are inherently good and do not want to make mistakes. Rather than forcing workers to follow rules simply because of compliance or because "academia said so," organizations must empower employees by explaining the why behind their policies. Even if a worker thinks a policy is foolish initially, understanding its actual purpose allows them to apply critical thinking and make safer choices on the fly, rather than resorting to dangerous shortcuts because a rule didn't make sense to them. Please check out the amazing people doing amazing things on these podcasts we listen to and love: Leading Safely Podcast with Georgina Poole Were We Lucky, or Were We Good Podcast with Steve Smith The Safety Bros with Brad and Dan Ruiz Punk Rock Safety with Dr. Ben Goodheart, Dr. Dave Provan, and Dr. Ron Gantt Counter-Errorism in Diving: Applying Human Factors to Diving with Gareth Lock How Did It Make Sense? with Gareth Lock The HOP Nerd with Sam Goodman A HOP Podcast (With No Name) with Andrea Baker and Matt Florio Health & Safety Conversations with Tom Bourne Pre-Accident Investigations with Todd Conklin Safety on Tap with Andrew Barrett Hop Into Action with Brent Sutton The Safety of Work with Dr. David Provan and Dr. Drew Rae Illusion of Safety with Allison Short, Joshua Russell, and Gabe Encarnacion Be Empowered with Dr. Santoshi Billakota and Dr. Shahla Moghbel (Not HOP-related, but an AMAZING untold history podcast) The Missing Chapter Podcast with Philip Horrender and Phil Schoff