Lunch-and-Learn Seminar: The Neuroscience of Human Behaviour and Its Impact on Workplace Safety

Lunch-and-Learn Seminar: The Neuroscience of Human Behaviour and Its Impact on Workplace Safety

Duration: 60 minutes (45 minutes content + 15 minutes Q&A) Location: Hosted Via Zoom

Let's start with the Why? Why do we need to understand How the Human Brain Works?

Our people are the heart of every business and often the source of frustration for many leaders and safety professionals. Working in safety for over 21 years, I frequently hear leaders and safety professionals say things like, 'Why did they do what they did?' 'Why did they make the decision they made?' 'Why were they so stupid?'. 'Why did they put themselves in the line of fire?' 'Why didn't they keep their mind on the task?', 'Why didn't they follow procedures?' Why did they see that hazard or identify that risk? Why didn't they remember what they learnt in training?.....the list goes on. 

As a result of these and many other questions, we often come to incorrect conclusions in incident investigations or implement complex systems and processes to mitigate the risk, which inadvertently creates another risk—cognitive overload. Why? Because we fail to acknowledge or understand how the human brain works and its impact on workplace safety and engagement, which can have a significant impact on workplace safety. 

Safety shouldn't be (and doesn't need to be) complicated, but it does need to be human-centred. Join us for this interactive and informative hour of power and gain insight into how the human brain works, how it influences behaviour, the practical implications for workplace safety and how understanding fundamental neuroscience principles can transform your approach to safety, making your workplace safer and more productive. 

What we cover:  Welcome and Introduction (5 minutes) 

• Introduction to the topic and its relevance to workplace safety

Understanding the Brain (10 minutes)

• Fundamental neuroscience: How the brain works, including how it processes, retains and retrieves information
• The brain's role in decision-making and behaviour

Selective Attention and Its Implications (10 minutes)

• How selective attention works
• The impact of selective attention on safety and incident investigations
• Strategies to manage and improve selective attention in the workplace

The Role of Emotions, Stress, Fatigue and Gut Health on behaviour (10 minutes)

• The impact of emotions on behaviour
• How stress and fatigue affect brain function and behaviour
• The effect of diet, nutrition and gut health on behaviour

Behavioural Biases and Safety (10 minutes)

• Common cognitive biases and their impact on safety decisions
• Recognising and mitigating biases in safety practices
• Creating a culture that supports unbiased, safe behaviours

Integrating Neuroscience into Safety Practices (10 minutes)

• Practical applications of neuroscience in workplace safety Case studies or examples of successful implementation Tools and techniques to apply neuroscience insights in your organisation

Q & A Session (10 minutes) 

• Open floor for participants to ask questions and discuss the topics covered
• Facilitated discussion to deepen understanding and practical application

Key Takeaways

• A deeper understanding of how the brain, including how it influences behaviour and decision-making
• Awareness of the impact of selective attention, stress, fatigue, and biases on workplace safety
• Practical strategies and tools to integrate neuroscience principles into your safety practices
• Enhanced ability to create a safer, more productive workplace environment

Materials Provided:

• Seminar handouts summarising key points
• Links to further reading and resources
• Access to a recording of the seminar (if virtual)

Your Facilitator:

Deanne Boules, Founder & Chief Enabling Officer Insync Workplace Solutions & The Centre for Human-Centred Leadership®

I have been working in safety for over 21 years (including five years with the regulator); before that, I was a police officer. Early on in my career, I attended many workplace fatalities and serious injury incidents, and those experiences had a profound impact on my career. 

Like most safety professionals, when faced with a workplace fatality, serious injury incident, or near miss or when conducting incident investigations, I often asked the questions: Why did they do what they did? Why did they make the decision they made? Why didn't they remember the training they were provided? Why did they put themselves in the 'line of fire'? Why didn't they keep their minds on the tasks? etc.  

Many safety professionals, leaders and managers I have worked with over the years would accept the action or inaction as simply being 'human error', 'complacency', etc. However, I couldn't accept that; I naturally have a curious mind, I always have, so when faced with these situations, I always felt that I was missing something, so I studied psychology and neuroscience and a whole host of other human-centred courses, which have enabled me to understand human behaviour better and have transformed the way I approach workplace safety. They have made me a better safety and HR professional, coach, leader, facilitator, trainer and investigator. It has also transformed how I work, including how I design, develop, and deliver people, safety, leadership, change management and employee engagement programs and initiatives. 

If you work with people - and let's face it, we all do, understanding how the brain, including its limitations and how it impacts our actions and behaviour, is critical for every leader and safety professional if we genuinely want to engage our people, improve our safety performance and build high-performing, inclusive, physically and psychologically safe workplaces where everyone thrives and goes home safe, well and fulfilled each day.  

Known for my practical, integrated, human-centred approach to health and safety, I have been named #12 in the Global Thought Leaders and Influencers on Workplace Safety, in the top 50 in Coaching, the top 100 in Human Resources, and the top 25 in Creativity by Thinkers360. Additionally, I was honoured as one of the Top Voices in the APAC Region in 2023 by Thinkers360.