Behavioural Safety Campaign Examples That Actually Work
Behavioural safety campaigns broken down by objective — reporting, intervention, stop-work authority — with the exact tactics teams use to get uptake.
Most behavioural safety campaigns fail for the same reason: they try to change everything and end up changing nothing. The examples on this page each target one specific behaviour, with tactics that make the behaviour easier, more visible, and more rewarded than the alternative. Pick one, adapt it, and run it end-to-end.
What makes a behavioural safety campaign work
- One behaviour, named specifically. "Speak up" is a value, not a behaviour. "Interrupt a colleague using the wrong glove" is a behaviour.
- Visible leadership modelling. The first time a leader publicly does the behaviour, permission spreads.
- Frictionless mechanics. If the behaviour needs a form, the form is one field.
- Recognition, not gamification. Named thanks beats a leaderboard every time.
- A metric that follows the behaviour, not the outcome. Injuries are lagging; observed behaviours are leading.
Four behavioural safety campaign examples
Speak Up Week
Build this campaign →Objective: Increase peer-to-peer safety interventions without escalating to management.
Tactics
- Leadership video modelling a real intervention they received (and thanked the person for).
- Peer-recognition wall — anyone can nominate a colleague who spoke up.
- Supervisor scripts for accepting an intervention gracefully.
- Weekly stand-up prompt: share one intervention you gave or received.
Leading metric: Reported peer interventions per 100 workers per week.
Every Near Miss Counts
Build this campaign →Objective: Shift the reporting mindset from injuries only to learning opportunities.
Tactics
- Reframe near misses as gifts — the messaging should thank, not investigate.
- One-touch reporting — a QR code and a two-field form.
- Public close-out log — visible, jargon-free, one line per near miss.
- Recognition for the highest quality report, not the highest count.
Leading metric: Near miss reports per 100 workers, and time-to-close-out.
Stop the Job
Build this campaign →Objective: Normalise stop-work authority so it is used without fear of blame.
Tactics
- Leadership commitment poster co-signed by senior leaders.
- Toolbox talks featuring real stop-work stories from your own site.
- Debrief protocol — every stop-work is reviewed with the person, not about them.
- Recognition explicitly for stops that turned out to be false alarms.
Leading metric: Number of stop-work events, and proportion resulting in a control change.
Take Five
Build this campaign →Objective: Build the habit of a two-minute pre-task risk check.
Tactics
- Pocket cards with the five prompts (people, plant, environment, energy, escape).
- Supervisor coaching moments — observe and give feedback on real Take Fives.
- Video vignettes of good and bad Take Fives from the crew's own trades.
- Include Take Five compliance in leadership site walks.
Leading metric: Observed Take Five quality score during supervisor coaching walks.
Why most BBS campaigns stall
- They target a value, not an observable behaviour.
- They ask supervisors to add work without removing anything.
- They rely on posters instead of leader modelling.
- They measure sentiment surveys instead of observed behaviour.
- They stop after eight weeks. Behavioural change needs six to twelve months of steady reinforcement.
Related resources
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