Designing Safety Systems That Work in the Real World.

In Part 1, I talked about what good really looks like when it comes to safety systems – from leadership that walks the talk, to systems that people genuinely want to use because they make work better, not harder. These aren’t lofty ideals. They’re grounded in years of real-world experience across industries, roles, and regions. But getting to that place doesn’t just happen. You have to design it. You have to build it intentionally. And you have to make sure the system fits the people – not the other way around.

So in this post I wanted to go deeper and talk about what actually makes a system work – how to design it, how to evolve it and how to keep it aligned with what really matters: helping people go home safe.

It Starts With Trust And That Requires Better Data.

Leaders make decisions every day that affect people’s safety, wellbeing, and business performance. But those decisions are only as good as the information they’re based on. And if that information is incomplete, inconsistent, or locked inside 20 spreadsheets – then even the best-intentioned leaders are flying blind.

Predictive analytics and AI offer massive potential. But they’re not magic. If the data going in is messy, the insights coming out will be flawed – and worse, misleading. That’s why trust matters. Trust in the system. Trust in the process. Trust in the data. And trust isn’t just about accuracy – it’s about connection. Walking the floor. Talking to people. Verifying with your own eyes. Leaders who trust the data the most are often the ones who check the most.

What do Leaders Need?

They need the right data, in as close to real-time as is possible. They need to know what's happening right now – not after a quarterly report. They need it delivered in a way that helps them take action, not buried in dashboards. Because the right information in the right hands, at the right time gets the right decisions made. That’s what great systems do.

Design Around People, Not Just Process.

A system can be technically excellent – and still fail. I’ve seen it many times. Why? Because it wasn’t designed and built for the end user. It was built to satisfy compliance, not enable work.

When systems don’t match the way people work, they get avoided. Bypassed. Resented. And when that happens, your system becomes a liability – not a tool.

At Unifii, we use what we call the Sweet Spot Model:

• Start with the user. What do they need to do their job?
• Understand the real-world context. What actually happens on the ground?
• Then, and only then, configure the technology to support that reality.

You can’t reverse engineer trust. It has to be earned from day one.

Automation Isn’t Always The Answer.

There’s increasing pressure to automate everything. Time-poor teams and louder AI marketing create a powerful pull toward removing “people steps” from safety systems. And while automation has its place, it’s not a silver bullet – especially in high-risk environments.

We’ve seen examples where teams want to auto-assign access to worksites after an induction is completed. Or automatically close permits after a certain time. Or sign someone out the day after their shift ends.

Sounds efficient. But it’s risky.

Those actions might skip critical checks – like whether someone is actually qualified to be on site, whether they’re blacklisted for prior safety breaches, or worse, whether someone is still in a confined space and unaccounted for.

And here’s the irony: the more serious the step, the more technically difficult it is to automate well. You end up needing complex rules to account for every possible scenario, which becomes costly, time-consuming, and often unmanageable. And the risk is that a rule or combination of rules is missed and users believe everything is covered. Trust in the system becomes misplaced, and someone gets hurt. It is critical to keep a human in the loop.

Automation should never replace good judgement. It should enhance it.

What Makes a Good System?

A good system:

• Helps people do their jobs more easily and more safely.
• Provides feedback loops – people see their input lead to action.
• Is flexible enough to evolve.
• Shows early wins that reinforce its value.

It doesn't have to be complicated. I once had a tradesperson getting frustrated about constantly walking to a bin on the other side of the workshop. So we bought them one to keep by their station. Problem solved. Small thing. Big impact.

That’s what good systems do. They fix the little things that frustrate people every day and in doing so, build trust and momentum to tackle the big stuff.

Building Maturity Over Time.

You’ll know a business is maturing when you start hearing new types of questions:

• What if we tried this?
• Is there a better way?
• Why are we doing it like that?

People start owning problems, collaborating, bringing energy into the conversation.

The shift often starts when a leader has an experience that changes their perspective. Hopefully this happens before an incident forces that change. It's always better to lead proactively than reactively

So Where Do You Start?

Not with the tech... you start by asking:

• What outcome do we want?
• Why is it important?
• What do we need to know, right now, to move toward it?

That’s your foundation. From there, you can build something that lasts.

Final Thought: Make it Human.

The best systems aren’t built to tick boxes. They’re built to help people. When you focus on enabling great work – safe work – the outcomes will follow. Because ultimately, great safety systems aren’t about dashboards or features. They’re about trust. They’re about decisions. And they’re about people.

Until next time, stay safe and lead well.

Cheers,

Paul