Westminster, Colo. – September 8, 2022 – Today, KPA and EHS Today released a new industry report looking at the trends in company Environment, Health, and Safety (EHS) programs. The “State of the Market: EHS Program Performance” found that in the next year, EHS programs are extremely focused on reducing incidents. Additionally, there is a strong tie between the importance of a company’s EHS program to employee engagement and positive workplace culture.

“The report shows us that the focus on reducing incidents, workplace culture, and employee engagement are all connected,” said Jade Brainard, Product Director of KPA EHS Software. “If EHS software can help reduce workplace incidents and encourage more employee engagement with improved technology processes and training, it will contribute to a greater culture of safety, ensuring people feel safe and more engaged at work.”

Methodology For Identifying Trends in EHS Programs

Between May 13 and May 30, 2022, Endeavor Business Intelligence issued an online survey to members of the EHS Today database. Qualified survey responses used in the report were those individuals who were directly involved in their organization’s EHS program, resulting in 361 survey responses. The survey covered topics including areas of focus, reporting and analytics, technology usage, mobile access, and program capabilities and performance. Questions also focused on what programs are doing currently and what they plan to focus on over the next year. Responses were broken down by company size and by industry.

Reducing Incidents is the Top Focus for EHS Programs Over the Next 12 Months

When asked about the key areas that companies will focus their EHS programs on during the next 12 months, reducing incidents is the priority regardless of company size, with 58% reporting that this is an extreme focus. Over a third of respondents attributed this priority to lowering OSHA recordable incidents and over a quarter said it was to improve morale/culture. Other top areas of focus for EHS programs include training.

Reducing Incidents is the Top Focus for EHS Programs Over the Next 12 Months

When asked about the key areas that companies will focus their EHS programs on during the next 12 months, reducing incidents is the priority regardless of company size, with 58% reporting that this is an extreme focus. Over a third of respondents attributed this priority to lowering OSHA recordable incidents and over a quarter said it was to improve morale/culture. Other top areas of focus for EHS programs include training effectiveness, regulatory compliance, and increasing participation, although the level of importance varies by industry.

The Importance of EHS Programs’ Strong Tie to Engagement & Workplace Culture

When asked about why companies were focused on reducing incidents, the top two reasons were related to employee safety and morale/culture. Lowering OSHA recordable incidents was the leading motivation for 34% of employees with employee morale/culture not far behind at 26%. “Seeing the priority on OSHA recordable incidents might be about regulations and compliance, but it even more basic than that it’s about keeping employees safe,” stated Brainard.

When asked about the current challenges that they’re facing, employee adoption/culture and workforce shortage were among the top challenges. Over 60% of respondents report that employee adoption and culture are the biggest challenges for their program and EHS initiatives. Interestingly, those companies that use EHS software are more likely to rate their engagement as “good” in contrast to their counterparts who don’t use EHS software. “EHS software helps with employee adoption but there is more to explore and understand better so we can keep the software evolving,” commented Brainard.

Additionally, the report looked at the technology that companies are using to manage their EHS Programs, whether software, paper, or spreadsheets, why they use it, and mobile access. Companies were also asked to rate their EHS program performance in areas including incident reporting and tracking, inspections and audits, employee training, and more. You can download the full report here.

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About KPA

KPA provides Environment, Health, and Safety (EHS) software, consulting, and award-winning online training to help organizations stay compliant with state and federal regulations and maintain a safe and productive workplace. The KPA EHS software platform is easy to use, highly configurable, and designed for a mobile workforce, which encourages broad adoption and an improved culture of safety across the organization.