Critical Steps happen every day at work and at home, purposefully. Work does not happen otherwise. If an operation has the capacity to do work, then it has the capacity to do harm. Work is energy directed by human beings to create value. But people are imperfect-we make mistakes, and sometimes we lose control of the work. Therefore, work is the use of force under conditions of uncertainty. A Critical Step is a human action that will trigger immediate, irreversible, and intolerable harm to an asset, if that action or a preceding action is performed improperly. Whether the human action involves clicking on a link attached to an e-mail message, walking down a flight of stairs with a newborn baby in arms, engaging the clutch on a gasoline-driven chain saw, or administering a medication to a patient in a hospital, these all satisfy the definition of what constitutes critical risks in our daily lives, professionally or personally. The overarching goal of managing Critical Steps is to maximize the success (safety, reliability, productivity, quality, profitability, etc.) of people's performance in the workplace, to create value for the organization without losing control of built-in hazards necessary to create that value.
About the Author: Tony Muschara, CPT, is a specialist in the field of human and organizational performance (H&OP), principal consultant and owner of Muschara Error Management Consulting, LLC since 2008. Tony is a Certified Performance Technologist (CPT) awarded by the International Society for Performance Improvement (2006). Tony is the author of Risk-Based Thinking: Managing the Uncertainty of Human Error in Operations (2018). He authored several nuclear industry publications while employed with the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO), most notably Excellence in Human Performance (1997) and the Human Performance Reference Manual (2006), the latter adopted with revisions by the U.S. Department of Energy as the Human Performance Improvement Handbook (Volume 1). Tony served seven years on active duty in the U.S. Navy submarine service (1975-1982), and while on active duty, Tony qualified in submarines (1978) and certified as an Engineer of Naval Nuclear Propulsion Plants by Naval Reactors (1979). Tony holds a Master of Business Administration degree (MBA) from Kennesaw State University (1989) near Atlanta, Georgia, and a Bachelor of Science degree in general engineering (mechanical) from the United States Naval Academy (1975) in Annapolis, Maryland.
Ron Farris is a H&OP specialist, principal consultant and business partner of HOPE Consulting, LLC since 2016 and the Chief Operations Officer at High Reliability Training, Inc. He has authored several department human factors publications and technical documents while employed with the Idaho National Laboratory (INL). Ron was previously an adjunct professor at the University of Idaho teaching courses in support of Industrial Technology degree programs and Human Performance Certificate Program. He has provided both practical and classroom support for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), Electrical Power Research Institute (EPRI), Department of Energy (DOE), commercial nuclear and fossil fuel energy sectors, mining, and the fuel and petrochemical industry. Ron spent twenty-seven years at the INL where he was an accident investigator, safety engineer, manager of the Center for Human Performance Improvement, and human factors research scientist. He was as a senior reactor operator at Argonne National Laboratory's Experimental Breeder Reactor II. Ron served eight years on active duty in the U.S. Navy nuclear program (1981-1989). While on active duty, he qualified on four different navy reactor types and as a Chief Machinery Operator (1985) while aboard the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier. Ron holds a Master of Science degree (MS) with a focus on industrial safety from the University of Idaho (2006) Moscow, Idaho.
Jim Marinus specializes in high-risk operations management, high reliability, and resilience, and is principal consultant and owner of Jamar Operations, LLC (2015-present). When not consulting, Jim is actively involved with the international communities of practice for H&OP, high reliability, and resilience. Prior to his time as a management consultant, his professional career spanned time with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) (1983-2012) and in the U.S. Navy nuclear submarine service (1974-1983). While employed with the DOE, Jim directed high-risk and multidisciplinary research operations at the Idaho National Laboratory. He also assisted the National Laboratory community with application of the practices and principles of high reliability, H&OP, and safety culture. Early on, Jim assisted leaders at DOE's Washington, D.C. headquarters with the development and implementation of technical requirements and guidelines that spanned the operations, weapons, global security, science/technology, ESH, radiation protection, and training communities. On temporary assignment to the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations in Atlanta, Georgia (1986-1987), he assisted with the training and accreditation of power plant training programs. Way back, Jim rode nuclear-powered submarines as a mechanical equipment operator. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in nuclear technology from Excelsior College (1996) in Albany, New York and is a Registered Radiation Protection Technologist (1984).
