The Importance of Holistic Safety Management
The workforce management software sector has seen tremendous growth and change in recent years; there are a large number of providers within this sector, with each promoting their solution as the one to match the ever-changing needs of workforces. Companies have faced significant challenges recently and none more so than the recent economic downturn felt across the world. This has been evidence by the mining boom slowdown and mimics the nature of the industries’ boom and bust cycle. The need to manage a workforce and ensure the safety of all employees & contractors however does not correspondingly shrink, if anything, it gains more criticality. A challenge which pervades in this operating climate is that the budget to manage this does seem to diminish as operational budgets are slashed causing further challenges.
For these and other reasons, a few questions are often asked by people looking for a safety management solution:
- Will the solution grow with us?
- Is the solution functionally rich enough to cover not only my department’s needs but those that work in conjunction with us?
- Does the solution ensure efficient and effective management of safety issues?
- Can the solution reduce human resource effort and operating costs?
- Can the company withstand the same pressures we are facing and continue to evolve?
We have put together a short check-list to help companies select the right safety software solution for their needs.
10 questions to ask when considering a safety software solution
- Does it offer web and mobile capabilities?
- Is the safety solution all-inclusive or restricted by the individual components or modules that we must select?
- Is the solution configurable so that we can make system changes without having to get the provider company to do it for us therefore adding to our costs?
- Are there supporting solutions should other departments have workforce management requirements (e.g. training, health, travel, logistics, environmental etc.) that would improve our overall efficiency and effectiveness as a company?
- Is the solution multi-language?
- Does the solution offer configurable and templated reports and graphs?
- Does the solution encompass requirements and functionality around workers compensation and insurance?
- Can the solution be managed and accessed from various locations and sites?
- Is support offered for our local and international operations?
- Is the solution proven (e.g. are there case studies and references available)?