viii
Introduction
a richer insight into accident causation, enabling safety recommendations to be made
at different levels and directed to a wider range of authorities.
3 – WHAT MAKES A TASK SAFETY CRITICAL?
A BARRIER-BASED AND EASY-TO-USE ROADMAP
FOR DETERMINING TASK CRITICALITY
Several approaches to risk and barrier management integrate the contribution of human
performance and factors by addressing safety critical tasks. As demonstrated by investigations of disasters such as the Macondo well blowout, human interaction with modern safety critical systems can be highly complex. Consequently, risk management
practitioners are commonly faced with the challenge of pinpointing which tasks should
be devoted the most attention and resources. As such it is often necessary to determine the level of task criticality to decide on the need for more in-depth analysis and
follow-up by use improvements in design, procedures and training. When dealing with
a large number of tasks, this process needs to be efficient enough to not be overly time
consuming and costly. At the same time, it needs to be accurate enough so that critical tasks are not incorrectly categorized (and prioritized). This chapter discusses what
characteristics defines a task as safety critical and suggests an easy-to-use roadmap for
screening and identifying safety critical tasks based on their level of criticality.
4 – MAKING SENSE OF SENSEMAKING IN
HIGH-RISK ORGANIZATIONS
Sensemaking – the human quest for meaning – has been an influential perspective in
organization studies over the last decades. Ultimately, safety in high-risk organizations
is created by the everyday behaviour of all employees in the organization – at all levels –
as they go about getting their job done. Sensemaking is about how individuals and
organizations make sense of or give meaning to events and experiences. Sensemaking
informs and constrains identity and action and has a central role in the understanding of
human behaviour. Sensemaking has been the subject of considerable research that has
become scattered over several different domains with differing approaches. In relation
to the extensive literature on sensemaking this chapter is a brief review of sensemaking to establish an understanding of the concept, especially how it is understood in the
context of sharp-end operators in high-risk environments. This context is exemplified by
the work performed on the bridge of maritime vessels, especially focusing on how the
development in ship bridge design and automation influence sensemaking.
5 – PROSPECTIVE SENSEMAKING IN COMPLEX
ORGANIZATIONAL DOMAINS: A CASE
AND SOME REFLECTIONS
In late 2018 the Norwegian frigate KNM Helge Ingstad collided with an oil tanker
sailing on an intersecting course. The accident occurred in an area where ship traffic
was monitored by a shipping control centre. Afterwards, critical questions were asked
Introduction
a richer insight into accident causation, enabling safety recommendations to be made
at different levels and directed to a wider range of authorities.
3 – WHAT MAKES A TASK SAFETY CRITICAL?
A BARRIER-BASED AND EASY-TO-USE ROADMAP
FOR DETERMINING TASK CRITICALITY
Several approaches to risk and barrier management integrate the contribution of human
performance and factors by addressing safety critical tasks. As demonstrated by investigations of disasters such as the Macondo well blowout, human interaction with modern safety critical systems can be highly complex. Consequently, risk management
practitioners are commonly faced with the challenge of pinpointing which tasks should
be devoted the most attention and resources. As such it is often necessary to determine the level of task criticality to decide on the need for more in-depth analysis and
follow-up by use improvements in design, procedures and training. When dealing with
a large number of tasks, this process needs to be efficient enough to not be overly time
consuming and costly. At the same time, it needs to be accurate enough so that critical tasks are not incorrectly categorized (and prioritized). This chapter discusses what
characteristics defines a task as safety critical and suggests an easy-to-use roadmap for
screening and identifying safety critical tasks based on their level of criticality.
4 – MAKING SENSE OF SENSEMAKING IN
HIGH-RISK ORGANIZATIONS
Sensemaking – the human quest for meaning – has been an influential perspective in
organization studies over the last decades. Ultimately, safety in high-risk organizations
is created by the everyday behaviour of all employees in the organization – at all levels –
as they go about getting their job done. Sensemaking is about how individuals and
organizations make sense of or give meaning to events and experiences. Sensemaking
informs and constrains identity and action and has a central role in the understanding of
human behaviour. Sensemaking has been the subject of considerable research that has
become scattered over several different domains with differing approaches. In relation
to the extensive literature on sensemaking this chapter is a brief review of sensemaking to establish an understanding of the concept, especially how it is understood in the
context of sharp-end operators in high-risk environments. This context is exemplified by
the work performed on the bridge of maritime vessels, especially focusing on how the
development in ship bridge design and automation influence sensemaking.
5 – PROSPECTIVE SENSEMAKING IN COMPLEX
ORGANIZATIONAL DOMAINS: A CASE
AND SOME REFLECTIONS
In late 2018 the Norwegian frigate KNM Helge Ingstad collided with an oil tanker
sailing on an intersecting course. The accident occurred in an area where ship traffic
was monitored by a shipping control centre. Afterwards, critical questions were asked