Posted By Alan Hewett Yes. Process mapping can be effective for several areas, mainly efficiencies but also safety and environmental issues. Not sure of any packages for this, I've got together with relevant people involved from the process being mapped and identified what actually happens using basic flow charts. From there we've then undertaken SWOT analysis and altered the process to suit. I've found microsoft visio to be useful for recording the final process electronically but I'm sure that there are other software packages available. Alan

Posted By Ian G Hutchings Duncan I think that many more H&S practitioners should familiarise themselves with the site you mentioned and the work of John Seddon. For far too long people have been wrapped up in just looking at the process and procedures. I have lost count of the number of companies I have worked with who have ISO systems / OHSAS etc. but are extremely poor at managing H&S, as well as other aspects of their businesses. Unfortunately clients and others drive companies to having to have these certifications in place, which do not always provide a return on investment. Cheers Ian

Posted By Kieran J Duignan The process model of thinking advocated by John Seddon is an advance on 'top down, command and control' as he claims. It is also very, very misleading in so far as his model limits the representation of 'motivation' to 'intrinsic' motivation. Where research on his model was conducted in a company that was at the same time using personal construct psychology (based on much more comprehensive research and practice about human motivation), the reseaarchers found clear evidence that Seddon's methodology was generally less effective. This is in no way to 'rubbish' what John Seddon advocates. Merely to rank it as sub-optimal in some circumstances.

Posted By Kieran J Duignan Yes, Ian... In many areas, John Seddon's methodology does what it intends: moves on significantly from 'top down' hierarchical styles of behaviour. Where I'm highlighting is his relative inattention to intricacies. While, strictly as a counsellor I agree with his perspective on 'intrinsic' motivation; but as an ergonomist and behavioural psychologist, I think the evidence on shaping behaviour by 'extrinsic' conditions and by reinforcement, especially what individual employees view as positive. The company I referred to was the Irish Airports Authority which in the run-up to privatisation, Seddon's firm was competing with the internal HR commitment to a sophisticated predecessor of 'third wave' behaviourism. The internal group won favour as the flavour of change management: not only by virtue of reasonable research but also thanks to a generous subsidy by the Irish government for the methodology they wanted to test out for other quangos. Take care.