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Safety is a broad term and concept, and can be applied to many things. For example, safety is of course considered an essential means of protecting against exposure to danger - such as by placing a wet floor sign over walkable surfaces that have recently been cleaned. This way, your clear, consistent signage prevents someone from slipping up and injuring themselves.
But safety could also be considered as a spectrum and not necessarily in preventing injuries - for instance, a business investment could be considered ‘more or less safe’ based on the potential risk factors and rewards involved.
Contingencies are how you plan for safety outcomes that can be relied on. In other words, having a policy for most possible outcomes, performing capable risk assessments in every situation, and taking this seriously is essential. But where should you get started, as far as that’s concerned?
In this post, we’ll discuss how to consider the three key elements of business safety, and what that may mean when it comes to your operational planning:
Premises Safety
Making sure your premises is safe is an essential element of operating it correctly. Integrating fire safety evacuation measures, following the essential lift regulations for its installation and upkeep, keeping worthwhile lighting so people can find their way around, and integrating worthwhile signage are certainly the first steps.
From there you can integrate additional measures like fire doors to prevent the spread of a fire, keeping windows locked and making sure they’re strengthened correctly, and of course, making absolutely certain that this area is cleaned properly each day will make a huge difference to how your use of a rented or owned premises reflects your values as a firm.
Sensitive Data Security
Sensitive data security will make a profound difference in how trustworthy your business is. When customers use your service, and especially online, they may be trusting you with their financial and personal data, including their addresses, contact information, credit card numbers, and more. It’s important to keep that in a secure database (sometimes managed IT services can help you with this), to apply cybersecurity patches often, and to train your staff to avoid phishing attempts. This happens to the best companies, so nothing less than a proactive approach is required here.
Product Safety
While liabilities insurance can certainly help you should a product fail or difficulty arise, it’s true that the reputational damage associated with a poorly constructed or tested product can be hard to recover from. This is why essential quality assurance measures that inspect everything which is manufactured or serviced by your firm is crucial. You must also implement stringent safety features, clear instructions on how to use your products, and manufacture them in a safe and clinical environment as much as that’s possible. On top of this, following essential regulations, ensuring that ingredients or materials are listed, and working only with verified suppliers is the essential path forward here.
With this advice, you’re certain to benefit from and deliver the three key elements of business safety.
