Enhancing Worker Capability Through HFE: Evidence Management Can Understand

Abstract

At the 2016 HFES Presidential Address, Bill Marras made a plea for the membership to begin thinking about demonstrating the value of HFE in terms that are persuasive to business leaders. Presentations at the 2017 HFES Annual Conference responded to that plea with discussions of case studies and business metrics linked to HFE interventions. To further this discussion, we flip the HFE business value argument from decreasing costs associated with inefficiencies and disability to increasing employee capabilities through HFE. By changing perspective, we change the focus from risk to enhanced employee wellbeing, performance and productivity. We argue that relating HFE practices and interventions to worker capability is the key to showing evidence that management can understand. Banks opens with a “logic map” that links HFE to important business outcomes. Gebhardt discusses how physical ability assessment in employee selection and work process design enhances performance effectiveness and efficiency. Rempel discusses how a systems approach to developing an effective safety culture in coordination with operations can result in uninterrupted work and higher productivity. Mosier discusses how cognitive enhancements in work and system design leads to higher performance. Larson and McGowan take a broader view and discuss from their perspectives what evidence is needed, and whether the evidence presented by panelists is sufficient to win over decision-makers. They also discuss how HFE can be positioned to play a more important role in how organizations think about work and workers as well as the importance of integrating HFE design into organizational structure and business operations to help meet company objectives.