3.1 Chapter overview

Cross reference to ISO31000; ISO45001; Annex SL clauses 6.1 and 8.1; and SafePlus (section 2.2.5).
Definitions of italicised terms are in the Glossary.
Check for key readings, webinars, interviews, and videos for complementary resources.

Relevant law

• Health and Safety at Work Act 2015
• Health and Safety at Work (Worker Engagement, Participation, and Representation) Regulations 2016
• Health and Safety at Work (General Risk and Workplace Management) Regulations 2016
• Health and Safety at Work (Major Hazard Facilities) Regulations 2016

3.2 Understanding the organisation and its context

Useful management techniques

Understanding the external and internal context of an organisation and the organisation requires the use of structured management techniques. The following management techniques can be used to help understand the context of a PCBU and where uncertainty may occur.

• 5W1H (section 21.3.1)
• Fishbone or Ishikawa analysis (section 21.3.12)
• Literature or document review (section 21.3.22)
• PESTLE analysis (section 21.3.27)
• Porter’s Five Forces (section 21.3.28)
• Porter’s Value Chain (section 21.3.29)
• SWOT analysis (section 21.3.39)

External context

The external context of an organisation or PCBU includes the external Political, Economic, and financial, Social, and cultural, Technological, Legal, and regulatory, and Environmental context, whether international, national, regional, or local. “Culture” includes the national culture and (in New Zealand) Te Tiriti o Waitangi and related bicultural issues. These factors suggest use of the management technique PESTLE analysis and Porter’s Five Forces to help understand the external context.

Internal context

Internal factors that may need to be considered include:

• PCBU governance and culture
• business objectives, policies and strategies that are in place to achieve them
• strengths and weaknesses of the PCBU (eg, capital, time, people, knowledge, processes, systems, and technologies)
• information flows and decision-making processes
• standards, guidelines, and models adopted by the PCBU
• lifecycle of the PCBU’s products and services.

These suggest use of document review, SWOT analysis and Porter’s value chain. It may also be necessary to analyse the products or materials and lifecycle of structures handled during a business activity.

A structured process

These techniques can be applied in a structured process such as that shown in Figure 9. Each of the suggested techniques is a well-recognised management technique that OHS professionals should be familiar with. See also Figure 4 on page 5 for further ideas about an open organisation and the external and internal influences.

3.3 Understanding the needs and expectations of interested parties

ISO45001 suggests that “Interested parties” (the preferred International Standards Organization term) or “stakeholders” may include those shown in section 21.3.9 and:

• academics and researchers
• competitors
• Māori and other ethnic groups, and neighbours and community groups
• customers and suppliers
• employees and their representatives
• industry, trade, and professional associations
• investors
• non-governmental organisations (eg, in relation to voluntary codes of practice or similar, voluntary labelling or environmental commitments)
• other duty holders who share a duty (eg, joint venture partners and contractors)
• parent organisation and its requirements
• courts or administrative tribunals, licencing or permitting agencies
• regulatory agencies (international, national, regional, or local).

This diverse range of interested parties suggests the use of a formal approach to stakeholder engagement as set out in section 21.3.9. Note that engagement and representation include communication and consultation mechanisms. See the report on obstacles to worker engagement in the UK by Ecotec Research and Consulting (2005).

3.4 International, national and PCBU culture and any need for change

The safety culture within a PCBU is one part of the culture of the organisation and that, in turn, is part of the national culture. There is a large body of research on culture, including safety culture (eg, Casey et al., 2015; Geiger, 2003; Hammerich & Lewis, 2013; Reader, 2019; Reader et al., 2015; Schneider et al., 2013).

3.5 Scope of a management system

When establishing, reviewing, or changing a management system it is important to set or know the scope of the system. The scope might be:

• the whole PCBU
• (in a multi-site organisation) a single site
• (in a multi-business unit or activity) a single business unit or activity.

When establishing the scope all workplaces occupied by the PCBU should be considered, including permanent, temporary, mobile, or peripatetic workplaces.

Within a PCBU the management system may apply to all parts of the PCBU or to selected parts. For example, a documented management system may include the management of hazardous substances. However, the part covering hazardous substances might be excluded from the part covering administrative offices and vice versa.

The techniques set out in Figure 9 should now be applied working with stakeholders to gather information about the context of the PCBU.

The purpose of a management system is to help a PCBU achieve its objectives or goals. For work health and safety identify a specific goal that is Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Timely – SMART. Mapping what is already in a management system and identifying what is missing will help develop an action plan for improvement. This can be done using Fishbone or Ishikawa analysis (section 21.3.12).

3.6 Chapter summary

Failure to understand the context of a PCBU will result in development of a management system that is not well-suited to the PCBU. Time spent investigating the context will be well spent, helping to reveal issues that were not previously obvious.

3.7 References used in this chapter