Mining – UGRs

We help mines to be safe and productive with UGRs

Download your free ebooklet!

In the ebooklet we will share with you the 5-step approach for embedding a workplace culture that improves safety, productivity and drives performance.

What are UGRs?

UGRs stands for “Unwritten Ground Rules”, and they are the perceptions people have about ‘the way things get done around here’. UGRs drive people’s behaviour. We are not talking about your mining company’s official value statements, like communication, respect or customer service; UGRs are the unspoken culture of an organisation, such as:

“It’s not worth making suggestions because no-one listens”

“Everyone says that safety is important, but when we are under pressure with production targets, supervisors take shortcuts – so it’s ok to break the rules”

“When things go wrong, everyone points fingers – so no-one owns the problem, and nothing gets done”

“The only time the boss speaks to anyone is when something has gone wrong”

UGRs are the real driving force behind employee behaviour and are the key to workplace culture transformation which directly impacts safety, productivity, performance, and ultimately profit.

Safety in mining

Build a safe, productive mine by embedding a safe mining culture with the breakthrough UGRs concept.

Regulation alone cannot ensure a safe workplace: the right culture must be in place for safety initiatives to really lock in. Workplace culture drives the extent to which people follow safe and productive working practices and for this to happen, employees must have a real, practical, and accessible understanding of culture. UGRs can do this.

FACT

Culture is the raw material that drives performance & safety

PROBLEM

Leaders often don't have the know-how to manage culture

SOLUTION

UGRs and mining safety

“The way to improve the safety of miners is through creating a positive safety culture”
(US National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health: NIOSH)

UGRs can help you create a workplace culture where every employee is committed to safety and everyone is responsible for safe behaviour and practices. Where peers and leaders hold one another accountable for safe behaviour and do what they say they are going to do. UGRs can help you to create your own winning culture: where your people are safe whilst being personally accountable for reaching production targets.

Don’t just take our word for it

UGRs 5 step model

Envision

We work with your leadership team to affirm the Key Cultural Attributes (KCAs) necessary to ensure a safe, productive and successful mining operation. Together we clarify the type of culture required to ensure safety while maintaining productivity.

Assess

We evaluate your organisation’s current culture through a UGRs Stock Take by identifying the prevailing UGRs in your organisation (in relation to each of the KCAs), and then explore strategies to address areas of concern highlighted by the Stock Take.

Teach

We take the UGRs concept to as many people in the organisation as possible, especially leaders. We know that many people unconsciously subscribe to less-than-positive UGRs, but after learning about UGRs, many negative, cynical people choose to change their attitude and their behaviours. We have seen the most negative people turn 180 degrees on many occasions!

Involve

We get people involved in creating the aspirational positive UGRs (linked to the KCAs) that they would like to see in their organisation. This powerful stage changes employees’ mindsets from being victims of their present culture to being 'shapers' of it.

Embed

This stage involves identifying and implementing strategies to embed the aspirational positive UGRs that everyone has had a hand in creating.

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+ 50

mines

+ 20

Companies

+ 25

Years

+ 20

Countries

continents

Testimonials

Ian Cockerill

(then) President, Gold Fields Limited

“UGRs initiated a corporate ‘Road to Damascus’ experience, creating the foundation for our future sustainable success.”

Dana Roets

(then) Senior Vice President, Beatrix Gold Mine

“UGRs played an integral role in the development of our people at all levels, without which it is unlikely that we would have managed to sustain our high levels of excellence on all fronts, during a particularly trying time in our industry.”

Gareth Taylor

(then) Vice President for Barrick: Africa

“There is no doubt that our UGRs programme dramatically improved both our safety and operational performance, UGRs is a sure formula for success because the process engages employees at all levels.”