𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐒𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐒𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐄𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡?
René Amalberti, in his book "Piloter la Sécurité" (translated as Navigating Safety), discusses safety imperatives for operational performance. It’s a valuable book for professionals in high-risk industries like aviation, healthcare, nuclear energy, and finance.

Amalberti lists five phases of the historical evolution of safety practices. In each phase, safety priorities changed because of technological, economic, and social pressures:
1. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘳; efficiency-driven methods like Taylorism and Fordism.
2. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺; early systemic safety practices driven by catastrophic industrial incidents.
3. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵; emphasis on user-centric safety in transport and consumer industries.
4. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘧𝘦𝘵𝘺 𝘮𝘺𝘵𝘩; realization of diminishing returns from safety investments.
5. 𝘜𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘧𝘶𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘬𝘴; addressing ecological, chronic, and generational risks.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐱 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲
Amalberti challenges zero harm and sees safety as a compromise amidst competing priorities. The paradox of safety is that improved safety fosters higher societal expectations, which leads to:
- Economic tensions; stringent safety measures versus productivity and innovation.
- Lifecycle challenges; escalating safety demands in a system’s decline when risks are lower but regulatory pressures intensify.
- Increased fragility; optimized systems are less tolerant of rare but catastrophic failures.

𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐤 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭
Amalberti advocates for sufficiency - setting realistic safety thresholds that maintain operational flexibility. Dynamic adaptation to evolving risks has to be chosen over rigidity. People on the workfloor have to be empowered to detect and recover from errors (micro-level). Safety measures have to be aligned with organizational and economic realities (macro-level). Cultural and legal differences in safety approaches still exist worldwide.

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠
Modern safety challenges require a systemic view beyond compliance and procedures. This is about:
-      Building systems capable of adapting to and recovering from unexpected events;
-      Bridging technical, cultural, and economic priorities to foster holistic safety governance;
-      Balancing immediate risks with long-term sustainability.

𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧
The book is insightful for all industries facing high-risk scenarios. Amalberti combines theoretical models with practical examples, to teach us how to manage safety in dynamic environments. The book avoids prescriptive solutions, but encourages critical thinking and adaptation to real-world challenges.

𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞:
Amalberti, R. (2013), Piloter la sécurité - Théorie et pratiques sur les compromis et les arbitrages nécessaires, Paris: Springer Verlag.