risk management – Page 20 – Risk Management 365

Benefits of Risk Management

Risk management provides a clear and structured approach to identifying risks. Having a clear understanding of all risks allows an organization to measure and prioritize them and take the appropriate actions to reduce losses. Risk management has other benefits for an organization, including:

Saving resources: Time, assets, income, property and people are all valuable resources that can be saved if fewer claims occur.
Protecting the reputation and public image of the organization.
Preventing or reducing legal liability and increasing the stability of operations.
Protecting people from harm.
Protecting the environment.
Enhancing the ability to prepare for various circumstances.
Reducing liabilities.
Assisting in clearly defining insurance needs.

An effective risk management practice does not eliminate risks. However, having an effective and operational risk management practice shows an insurer that your organization is committed to loss reduction or prevention. It makes your organization a better risk to insure.

via Risk Management: Introduction.

The Dangers of Arc Flash Incidents

The flash is instantaneous, almost too fast for the eye to comprehend. But the end result of this incident could be more than $15 million in direct and indirect costs to a company.

What is arc flash?

An arc flash is a short circuit through the air. When insulation or isolation between electrified conductors is breached or can no longer withstand the applied voltage, an arc flash occurs. As employees work on or near energized conductors or circuits, movement near or contact with the equipment, or a failure of the equipment, may cause a phase-to-ground and/or a phase-to-phase fault.

The temperature of an arc can reach more than 5000 F as it creates a brilliant flash of light and a loud noise. An enormous amount of concentrated radiant energy explodes outward from the electrical equipment, spreading hot gases, melting metal, causing death or severe radiation burns, and creating pressure waves that can damage hearing or brain function and a flash that can damage eyesight. The fast-moving pressure wave also can send loose material such as pieces of equipment, metal tools, and other objects flying, injuring anyone standing nearby.

via The Dangers of Arc Flash Incidents – MAINTENANCE TECHNOLOGY.

Risk Management in Human Resources

There are two types of roles in Risk Management. People are a source of risk. Shortage of right kind of employees at a right time, attrition of experienced employees, employee leaving after completion of a one-year training program, employees doing sloppy work due to lack of competencies, handling customers very badly, an employee unwilling to take on additional responsibility or high absentee employees.

People are important in handling risk. People using their skill to solve unexpected problems, employees going the extra mile for the organization, an employee becoming multi-skilled, redesigning his own job to avoid unnecessary delays in getting work done, or evolving new process to resolve the problem or an employee persuading a talented friend to apply for a position and join the organization.

via Devising risk management in human resources.

Insurance is NOT Risk Management

Risk management includes the following five processes:

Identification: The process of identifying exposures (whether financial, social, physical, juridical, political, or otherwise) that face the organization.
Analysis: Determine how these exposures impact or could impact the organization.
Control: Determine how to control these exposures by eliminating them or reducing their effect.
Finance: The step where it is determined how will these exposures be dealt with as they arrive? Through insurance premiums paid in advance, or through internal funds, etc.
Administration: The final step in the process is to put all the above work together into practice, and ultimately to start over.

Risk Management is a process that builds on each step. Insurance falls into Step 4 Finance…it’s critical to implement the first 3 steps to be rewarded in Step 4 with lower costs.

Bloodborne Pathogens and Needlestick Prevention

What are bloodborne pathogens?

Bloodborne pathogens are infectious microorganisms in human blood that can cause disease in humans. These pathogens include, but are not limited to, hepatitis B (HBV), hepatitis C (HCV) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Needlesticks and other sharps-related injuries may expose workers to bloodborne pathogens. Workers in many occupations, including first aid team members, housekeeping personnel in some industries, nurses and other healthcare personnel may be at risk of exposure to bloodborne pathogens.

via Safety and Health Topics | Bloodborne Pathogens and Needlestick Prevention.

Succession Planning – Protecting the Family Business

88% of current family business owners believe the same family or families will control their business in five years, but succession statistics undermine this belief. Only about 30% of family and businesses survive into the second generation, 12% are still viable into the third generation, and only about 3% of all family businesses operate into the fourth generation or beyond. The statistics reveal a disconnect between the optimistic belief of today’s family business owners and the reality of the massive failure of family companies to survive through the generations. Research indicates that family business failures can essentially be traced to one factor: an unfortunate lack of family business succession planning.

via Succession Planning.

2013 – the year of disease prevention and health promotion!

The New Year holds much promise for Total Worker Health™. In fact, 2013 may well become the year of disease prevention and health promotion! This abundance of opportunity can be credited to the Affordable Care Act and its provisions related to wellness programs.

The provision that focuses on employer wellness programs has the most potential to directly affect the Total Worker Health™ community. This proposed rule will expand the ability of employers to reward workers who achieve health improvement goals. Beginning in 2014, the health care law will allow employers to increase incentives for participation in programs that require an employee to achieve an agreed-upon wellness goal (health-contingent wellness programs). Specifically, employers will be able to increase incentives from the currently allowable 20% to as much as 30% of an employee’s insurance costs, and in some cases as much as 50%. Examples of health-contingent wellness programs include: programs that provide a reward to those who do not use, or decrease their use of, tobacco; programs that provide a reward to those who achieve a specified cholesterol level or weight. To protect employees from unfair practices, the proposed regulations will require health-contingent wellness programs to follow rules designed for employees who need wellness-related accommodations. Employers may continue to support “participatory wellness programs” which generally are available without regard to an individual’s health status. These include, for example, programs that reimburse for the cost of membership in a fitness center; that provide a reward to employees for attending a monthly, no-cost health education seminar; or that provides a reward to employees who complete a health risk assessment without requiring them to take further action.

via CDC – NIOSH – Total Worker Health™ in Action – January 2013.

Human Capital Importance in an Organization

Capital is defined as resource or the input into a business. Human capital can therefore be defined as an input in employees, the ability to perform a task with the aim of producing economic value. Human skills are needed to implement a business idea. Hence human capital importance is non-ignorable in a business. The ability to perform a task is gained by an individual through learning and experience.

via Human Capital Importance in an Organization.

The Employer’s Affordable Care Act – Your Pre-Game Warm-Up for “Pay or Play”

For many “large” employers, determining whether to “pay or play” may not be an easy process. The ACA’s employer shared responsibility provision goes into effect in 2014, making advance preparation even more important if you have part-time, seasonal or “variable hour” employees. Since you are only required to either potentially pay (a penalty for) or play (offer coverage to) those individuals who are considered your full-time employees, your ability to substantiate whether an employee is or is not “full-time” will be critical to successfully navigating the “pay or play” provisions of the ACA.

via The Employer’s Affordable Care Act (ACA) Compliance Playbook: Your Pre-Game Warm-Up for “Pay or Play” | Thorp Reed & Armstrong.

Protecting Your Eyes at Work

Eye injuries in the workplace are very common. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) reports about 2,000 U.S. workers sustain job-related eye injuries that require medical treatment each day. However, safety experts and eye doctors believe the right eye protection could have lessened the severity or even prevented 90% of these eye injuries.

via Protecting Your Eyes at Work | American Optometric Association.