A Guideline for Achieving Sustainable Safety Performance Through Critical Risk Management

Abstract

The traditional approach to industrial safety has been based on lagging indicators, such as injury rates and lost workdays, which states what has already happened in the system, not necessarily how to reduce risk in the first place. This paper addresses critical risk management (CRM) through a proactive holistic framework to support sustainable safety. The study employs a mixed-methods approach to (1) describe the modern industrial operations, their technology, and stakeholders and (2) develop a five-phase framework for CRM implementation. The use of system engineering models to operationalize metrics reveals the complex non-linear risk interactions modern industries are facing. Such complexities often cannot be solved with traditional safety measures. The study shows that the monitored critical control pathways explain a significant part (20.78%) of the variance in positive safety outcomes. In this manuscript, five distinct phases of operations are described, namely, identification, bow-tie, control mapping, verification infrastructure, frontline engagement, and continuous governance. This provides a practical blueprint for high-risk enterprises pursuing resilient, long-term incident prevention.