Error is Normal... What Now? Applying Human & Organizational Performance (HOP)

Sam Goodman, The HOP Nerd, has kicked off the brand new "What Now?" mini-series on The HOP Nerd Podcast!

Tired of just talking about Human & Organizational Performance concepts and ready to actually do something? This series is for you. Each episode breaks down a key HOP principle and delivers concrete, practical actions you can take to operationalize it in your workplace.

Sam, known for blending real-life sharp-end strategy with a comedic eye for workplace absurdity, draws on his experience helping numerous businesses successfully implement Human & Organizational Performance (HOP).

So, If you've ever asked "Okay, I get the theory... What Now?", tune in as Sam guides you through some real steps to make HOP happen in real life.

On Todays episode, Sam is talking Error is normal... What Now?

Accepting "Error is Normal" Can Be Hard (But Crucial):

• The Conflict: Our desire for perfection vs. human fallibility.

• Common Traps: Hindsight bias (thinking errors were obvious after the fact), outcome bias (judging decisions based only on the result), performance pressures.

• The Cost of Denial: Hiding errors, preventing learning, creating brittle systems, focusing on ineffective "fixes" (like blame, shame, retrain, fire).

• The Goal: Not zero errors (impossible), but understanding why errors happen and building systems that anticipate and manage them.

• "What Now?" Action 1: Change Your Language & Reactions

  • Idea: How we talk about and react to errors determines how much we get to learn about errors.

    
    

  • Action: Consciously shift language from surprise/outrage ("How could this happen?!") to curiosity ("What circumstances led to this?" "How did this make sense?"). Practice responding thoughtfully, focusing on understanding first.

    
    

• "What Now?" Action 2: Start Looking for Error Traps / Error Inviting Situations

  • Idea: Errors often occur where designs, processes, tools, conditions, make it easy to fail.

    
    

  • Action: Proactively look for "error traps" in your workplace. Ask your teams: "Where is it easy to make a mistake around here?" "What steps in this process are confusing or require workarounds?" Use tools like Starting Points, Pre-Event Operational Learning, Learning Teams to identify these, learn with those nearest to the work, and co-create improvements.

    
    

• "What Now?" Action 3: Build Defenses & Improve Recovery

  • Idea: Assume errors will happen, we need systems that can catch them or mitigate their consequences.

    
    

  • Action: Review critical tasks/processes. Ask: "What defenses do we have in place for when a error occurs here? Ask: "How quickly and effectively can we recover if an error does occur?" Strengthen these defenses and recovery mechanisms.

    
    

• "What Now?" Action 4: Reframe Performance & Success

  • Idea: Defining success only as the absence of errors creates pressure to hide them.

    
    

  • Action: Start incorporating measures of resilience, learning, and system improvement into how performance is discussed. Celebrate the identification of problems and the implementation of effective improvements, not just perfect outcomes.

    
    

• "What Now?" Action 5: Shift from Preventing All Errors to Managing Error-Likely Situations

  • Idea: Focus effort where errors are most likely or consequential.

    
    

  • Action: Identify high-risk tasks or situations where errors could have significant impact. Invest resources in understanding the context of work in those situations and building robust defenses, rather than trying to eliminate every minor slip everywhere.

Need a hand with you Human & Organizational Performance journey? GET IN TOUCH!