Why is safety leadership assessment necessary?
Leadership commitment to health and safety shapes an organization’s safety culture.
As the saying goes, “I care about what my boss cares about.” Leaders set the tone, and their actions—or inaction—strongly influence employee attitudes and behaviors. This impact can drive or hinder safe practices and plays a critical role in shaping safety culture.
That’s why developing strong safety leadership is essential.
The 360° Safety Leadership Assessment helps leaders understand and improve their safety-related behaviors. It also offers insight into broader leadership trends and supports strategic planning to enhance organizational safety culture.
How to assess safety leadership?
What should we improve—and which safety leadership competencies matter most?
Assessment tools like surveys and questionnaires can help identify strengths and gaps in safety leadership. They show which skills are well developed and which need improvement.
But even with good tools, one important question remains: Are the results accurate and honest?
Is the person answering truthfully—or just trying to look good?
That’s why we use the 360° Safety Leadership Assessment.
This method collects feedback from several people who work closely with the leader and observe their real behavior.
Who gives the feedback?
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Supervisors, who see how committed the person is to safety
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Colleagues, who understand what motivates their behavior
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Subordinates, who notice whether they follow safety rules when no one is watching
Each group sees a different side—and when combined, their input gives a more complete and realistic picture.
How is the 360° Safety Leadership Assessment Carried Out in Practice?
The process typically includes the following steps:
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Selection of Participants and Reviewers
The leader being assessed selects a group of reviewers: their direct supervisor, peers, and subordinates. These reviewers should know the person’s work behavior well. -
Anonymous Survey
Each reviewer completes an anonymous questionnaire focused on observable safety behaviors and leadership traits. The leader also completes a self-assessment. -
Data Analysis
Responses are collected and analyzed to identify patterns, strengths, and gaps. Differences between self-perception and peer feedback are highlighted. -
Individual Feedback Report
The leader receives a detailed report showing how their leadership behaviors are perceived across groups. Strengths, blind spots, and development areas are clearly outlined. -
Coaching or Follow-Up
Often, the process includes a debrief session with a coach or facilitator to help the leader interpret the results and create a personal development plan. -
Optional Group Insights
When used across a leadership team, aggregated results can help organizations identify trends and design broader culture or training initiatives.
The assessment is conducted on a dedicated online platform designed specifically for anonymous 360-degree evaluations.
To ensure effective use of the 360° method, the following participants are invited to provide feedback:
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The leader (self-assessment)
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Their direct supervisor (if applicable)
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At least two colleagues
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Three to five direct reports
All participants receive an email invitation with a link to access their personal dashboard. Once logged in, they can see the list of individuals they are expected to assess.
After both self-assessments and peer evaluations are completed, a confidential individual report is generated for each leader. Additionally, an aggregate group report is prepared if the assessment involves a team.
Each leader is encouraged to review their results, develop a personal leadership improvement plan, and regularly track their progress toward that plan.
Safety Leadership Competencies Are Assessed Across Four Key Dimensions
Scale 1: Leadership Commitment to Safety
Leaders shape safety culture through their actions and priorities. What they say, what they focus on, what they measure and monitor, how they allocate resources, and what they reward or penalize—all of these signal what truly matters. A leader’s visible commitment, especially in how they respond to incidents and crises, has a direct impact on employees’ safety attitudes and behaviors.
Scale 2: Engaging Others and Motivating Safe Behaviors
Strong safety culture is built through collaboration. Leaders must actively involve employees in safety decisions, encourage their input, and create a sense of shared responsibility. At the same time, they should recognize and reinforce safe behaviors, and respond constructively to unsafe actions. This combination of engagement and motivation drives positive safety habits and builds trust across the organization.
Scale 3: Communicating Effectively on Safety
Effective communication is essential for building and maintaining safety culture. Leaders should ensure that safety messages are clear, consistent, and understood at all organizational levels. Open two-way communication helps reinforce expectations, address concerns early, and promote a culture where safety is part of everyday conversations—not just compliance checklists.
Scale 4: Integrating Safety into Operations
In high-risk industries, safety cannot be an add-on—it must be embedded in how work gets done. Leaders must respond to safety issues proactively, model the behaviors they expect, and visibly prioritize safety in operational decisions. By integrating safety into planning, processes, and performance management, they create a culture of prevention rather than reaction.
Results of the 360° Safety Leadership Assessment
Assessment results are analyzed in two ways:
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Automatically, by comparing self-assessment scores with average ratings from others
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Expert review, by our organizational psychologist who interprets patterns across different respondent groups
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Each leader receives an individual report showing how their self-perception compares to feedback from their supervisor, peers, and team. The report includes targeted recommendations for improvement. Optional one-on-one feedback sessions with a psychologist are available.
The client coordinator receives an anonymized group report highlighting overall strengths and gaps across the leadership team.
We also offer moderated strategy sessions to review group findings, identify development priorities, and build a roadmap for strengthening safety leadership and culture.
Why Our 360° Assessment Tool Is Scientifically Reliable
Our 360° Safety Leadership Assessment is based on internationally recognized best practices and research in occupational health and safety (OHS), process safety (PS), and environmental protection (EP). Its design draws on the following sources:
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Best international practices, including those from the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, and safety culture guidelines from major global regulatory and oversight bodies such as the IAEA, INSAG, UK HSE/HSL/IOSH, US BSEE, Canada’s NEB, and Norway’s Petroleum Safety Authority. It also reflects insights from industry groups such as the Energy Institute and IOGP, and from applied research in high-hazard sectors (oil and gas, nuclear, and chemical industries).
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Leadership development research by leading experts from the U.S., Canada, the UK, and the EU on safety leadership competencies across management levels. These include the works of K. Weick, R. Westrum, D. Zohar & G. Luria, D. Parker, P. Hudson, J. Reason, M. Fleming & N. Scott, R. Flin, E. Hopkins, and E. Schein.