-- Data from Sphera's latest Safety Report reveals a persistent gap between the 
intent and reality of process safety management, while ESG is a growing 
consideration for PSM and ORM professionals 

While there has been continued expansion of corporate ESG efforts, and most 
companies have embraced safety as part of their corporate culture, there are 
still shortcomings to address in improving process safety performance, Sphera's 
new 2022 Safety Report reveals.

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Sphera, a leading global provider of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) 
performance and risk management software, data and consulting services, 
surveyed 280 process safety and operational risk management professionals from 
around the world on the current state of process safety management (PSM) and 
operational risk management (ORM). Results show that 69% of respondents 
indicate there is a gap between their companies' process safety goals and 
process safety as they experience it. This is a significant increase from the 
2021 survey, in which 21% of respondents reported a gap between safety intent 
and the reality of what happens. The finding that only 67% of safety-critical 
maintenance is achieved in a typical month illustrates the disconnect between 
intent and actuality.  

Persistent challenges, such as limited resources and limited budgets, could at 
least partially account for the widening gap. Trends such as The Great 
Resignation could also be a contributing factor, because process safety may be 
compromised when employees leave and their expertise is lost.

The top three challenges identified by respondents as hindering effective PSM 
are management challenges (46%), training and competency (45%) and insufficient 
engagement of the front lines to improve awareness (34%). Respondents indicated 
that the top three key safety performance drivers are reducing operational and 
major accident hazard (MAH) risk exposure (66%), operational excellence (57%) 
and regulatory compliance (49%).

For seven years, Sphera's annual Safety Report has examined the current state 
of PSM and ORM in the context of global events and macroeconomic trends. 
Respondents came from several global industries, such as Manufacturing, Oil and 
Gas, Chemicals/Petrochemicals, Energy, Construction and Engineering.

The adoption rate of technology solutions is identified as a particular area 
for improvement in the Safety Report. Virtually all respondents (96%) said that 
technology enables effective PSM and ORM. However, adoption rates don't yet 
reflect the perceived value, with only 11% of respondents indicating that their 
company utilizes the full range of technology solutions available. A number of 
factors, such as lower maturity levels and the challenges involved with 
connecting disparate systems and data, could be attributed to this slow rate of 
adoption.

"The 2022 Safety Report reveals a persistent gap between process safety goals 
and reality, and the disconnect between awareness and adoption of technology 
solutions is an additional hurdle for organizations to overcome," said Scott 
Lehmann, Sphera's vice president of product management for operational risk 
management. "Technology that provides real-time data and actionable risk 
assessments can help connect the dots across the organization to reduce the gap 
and drive safety improvement efforts. Relying on a range of tools for 
compliance and improved, predictive decision-making can help businesses keep 
their people safe and operations productive."

Safety is the foundation of any strong organization, and PSM and ORM play a 
vital role in a company's ESG performance. Within the context of the ESG 
framework, PSM is about keeping people—and the communities in which businesses 
operate—safe. For the first time in the Safety Survey, PSM and ORM 
professionals were asked where PSM fits within their company's ESG program. 
While an overwhelming majority (87%) said PSM does fit into their company's ESG 
efforts, there is some slight division over which aspect of ESG—environment, 
social or governance—applies most clearly to their PSM program. However, when 
asked which impact scenarios are the most concerning for their business, 71% of 
respondents said environmental impact scenarios.

"It has become increasingly clear that ESG is no longer a nice-to-have, but a 
must-have," added Paul Marushka, Sphera's CEO and president. "A company's risk 
mitigation efforts are intrinsically tied to ESG performance, and 
operationalizing ESG across the organization will drive informed 
decision-making and help PSM and ORM professionals manage and reduce ESG risk."

About the Safety Survey

Sphera surveyed 280 process safety and operational risk management 
professionals on the current state of PSM and ORM within their organizations 
for the 2022 Safety Report ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=3680560-1&h=646495979&u=https%3A%2F%2Fsphera.com%2Freport%2Fsafety-report-2022%2F&a=2022+Safety+Report 
). Respondents came from several global industries, such as Manufacturing, Oil 
and Gas, Energy, Chemicals/Petrochemicals, Construction and Engineering, among 
others.

About Sphera

Sphera is the leading provider of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) 
performance and risk management software, data and consulting services focusing 
on Environment, Health, Safety & Sustainability (EHS&S), Operational Risk 
Management and Product Stewardship. For more than 30 years, we have served over 
6,700 customers and a million-plus users in 80 countries to help companies keep 
their people safe, their products sustainable and their operations productive. 
Learn more about Sphera at https://sphera.com. Follow Sphera on LinkedIn ( 
https://c212.net/c/link/?t=0&l=en&o=3680560-1&h=2560236372&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fcompany%2Fsphera%2F&a=LinkedIn 
). 

For media inquiries, please contact:
Astrid Dickinson
sphera@aspectusgroup.com

SOURCE  Sphera