What is Job Design?

Job design is a combination of the position, duty, and task of a job description. According to Spector (2017), a position is a collection of multiple duties performed by an employee or single individual, a duty is the overall component of the job, and a task (which can be divided into activities) is a piece of work that accomplishes some part of the job duty. To properly design a job one must understand knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs). Knowledge is what a person needs to know to perform the job, skills are what a person can do on the job, and ability is the person’s capability to do job tasks or to learn them (Spector, 2017). Each job should be designed with these components while taking into consideration health and safety elements.

Spector, P.E. (2017). Industrial and organizational psychology: Research and practice (7th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wile & Sons.

Training and Development Importance - PT II

Employees more than often want the opportunity to develop new skills, new competencies and learn new job duties and tasks. These opportunities allow for growth and a high level of locus of control. High levels of locus of control lead to psychologically healthy employees. If employees are psychologically healthy they can perform better and become emotionally stable which is a win for the company and the employee. All of the mentioned factors lead to a healthy organization and great occupational health.

Training and Development Importance - PT I

Overall training and development is needed in any organization. “Employee growth and development aid in the creation of enhancing of self-awareness, self-actualization, self-realization, interpersonal skills, sense of belonging, emotional stability, and locus of control” (Zwetsloot et al., 2013). Training should be consistent, relevant, and ongoing to maintain a psychologically healthy and safe workplace. Some companies allow their culture to stray away from the core values and lack of training is the result. How is your training and development department measuring up? Is it consistent, relevant, and ongoing?


Zwetsloot, G. I., Scheppingen, A. v., Bos, E. H., Dijkman, A., & Starren, A. (2013). Original Article: The core values that support health, safety, and well-being at work. Safety And Health at Work, 4187-196. doi:10.1016/j.shaw.2013.10.001

De-escalation Training

De-escalation training should be a part of a psychologically healthy and safe workplace. Employees need to know what to do in case of an emergent situation. Each employee should attend annual training (possibly more frequent if the organization is one of the high expectant workplace violence areas) however, and there should be one-two employees that are known as “de-escalation” leaders in each department. De-escalation leaders are a group of specially trained employees throughout the organization who are ready to de-escalate any situation upon occurrence (Coss & Young, 2016). For example, the de-escalation leaders should be trained on a rotating schedule semi-annually, or quarterly, eight-ten hours per session on how to apply de-escalation tactics and techniques. The staff should be given a small card to carry for them to be aware of who the de-escalation leaders are. The de-escalation leader understands his/her role because they have the core values of the company embedded within; therefore, confidence is built to prepare for this role.



Coss, D., & Young, R. (2016). To curb workplace violence, start small, consider holistic



approaches. ED Management, 28(12), 1-4.

Training staff on company values PT 2

Displaying the values of the organization can allow employees to value their work contributions. The decisions the employee makes can be influenced by a sense of the company’s values. Values are essential and have a direct impact on decision-making. Once employees internalize the company values, they can understand how to de-escalate situations because they feel as if they are a part of company culture.

Training staff on company values PT 1

As a part of culture training, employees should be trained on the company’s values. Per Oxford dictionary (2018) values are the principles or standards of a company’s behavior and judgment of what is important to the organization. Training on values is essential because it provides the employee with the guidance of what direction the company wants to lead towards. A company’s values are the foundation of creating a psychologically healthy and safe workplace. By defining the company core values, companies give meaning to their existence and their value for society and way of doing business (Zwetsloot, Scheppingen, Bos, Dijkman, & Starren, 2013).



Zwetsloot, G. I., Scheppingen, A. v., Bos, E. H., Dijkman, A., & Starren, A. (2013). Original



Article: The core values that support health, safety, and well-being at work. Safety



And Health at Work, 4187-196. doi:10.1016/j.shaw.2013.10.001

Creating a Culture of Psychological Safety

            Safety is everyone’s responsibility in the organization, and no one is exempt. Organizational cultures are made up of individuals who have and support the values of the organization. Proper ongoing training is needed to embed these values into each employee. Employees should understand the mission, vision, values, and goals of their organization as well as their role as it pertains to psychological health and safety. Employees should know how to de-escalate potential concerns. Employees should also be aware of what career growth and development opportunities are available to them. Employees who have a clear career path can lead to strong emotional stability and a high locus of control, training and development can help. We will discuss the training of company values over the next two weeks.