Human Factors
Human factors are about ensuring a good ‘fit’ between people, the equipment they use, the tasks they carry out, and the environment in which they work. Effective use of human factors makes our work safer, healthier, and more productive.
“Everyone can make errors no matter how well-trained and motivated they are. Sometimes we are ‘set up’ by the system to fail. The challenge is to develop error-tolerant systems and to prevent errors from occurring”— (HSE, 1999, p.18).
The world has evolved tremendously in the past decade and even more so in the last two years. The human component in organizations has become an enormous challenge for management. The way we work is changing, people are asking for greater flexibility in their working arrangements, and Human Resources “people” need to onboard and support employees to adapt to this constantly shifting environment
In Agile Organizations, Human factors are a key dimension to ensuring a good ‘fit’ between people, the equipment they use, the tasks they carry out, and the environment in which they work. An effective use of human factors makes our work safer, healthier, and more productive.
Great technology combined with the best work systems can help to achieve successful businesses, meaning high productivity and quality while ensuring health and safety. The best work systems are based on having a skilled workforce, with well-designed jobs that are appropriate to individuals' abilities, and innovative ways of working that adapt to change.
Agile Human Factors underlies the importance of non-technical skills such as communication, leadership, high performance teaming, decision-making, and situation-awareness. These are not seen as soft, but rather core skills that are complementary to technical skills, methods and frameworks that increments business agility.
Are you from a non IT department and are looking for a way to grow your agile mindset?
Check our next academies: