About the Author
Steven Shorrock is an interdisciplinary humanistic, systems and design practitioner interested in human work from multiple perspectives.
Chartered Psychologist (CPsychol) & Chartered Ergonomist and Human Factors Specialist (CErgHF)
Tag Archives: work-as-prescribed
Proxies for Work-as-Done: 2. Work-as-Prescribed
In this series of short posts, I outline briefly some proxies for work-as-done. This post concerns work-as-prescribed. Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, Safety, Systems Thinking
Tagged work-as-done, work-as-prescribed
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Learning About Healthcare Work in a Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has had one of the biggest effects on work-as-done in healthcare in living memory. So what might we learn about work from the perspectives of frontline workers? I asked a variety of practitioners to give a short … Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, Safety, Systems Thinking
Tagged change, COVID-19, learning, work, work-as-done, work-as-imagined, work-as-prescribed
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System Safety: Seven Foes of Intervention
In this short series, I highlight seven foes and seven friends of system safety, both for explanation and intervention. Each is a concept, meme, or device used in thinking, language, and intervention (reinforced by more fundamental foes that act as barriers to thinking). They are not the only foes or friends, of course, but they are significant ones that either crop up regularly in discussions and writings about safety, or else – in the case of friends – should do.
In this post, I outline seven foes of intervention. Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, Safety, Systems Thinking
Tagged culture, incentives, just culture, never events, performance targets, safety, systems safety, Systems Thinking, targets, work-as-done, work-as-imagined, work-as-prescribed, zero harm
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The Real Focus of Safety-II
Safety-II has become a talking point. It is discussed not only among safety professionals, but – perhaps more importantly – among front line practitioners, managers, board members and regulators in a wide array of industries. Its practical and inclusive focus … Continue reading
Posted in Safety, Systems Thinking
Tagged accidents, archetypes, congruence, holism, local rationality, normal work, practice, safety, safety-I, safety-II, Systems Thinking, the messy reality, work-as-done, work-as-imagined, work-as-prescribed
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Work and how to survive it: Lesson 2. Understand variation inside your organisation
In this sporadic series of posts, I share a few insights, as they might apply to work and organisations, from ‘Life and How To Survive It’ and ‘Families and How to Survive Them’, by psychotherapist (late) Robin Skynner and comedian John Cleese. Continue reading
Work and how to survive it: Lesson 1. Understand ‘how work goes’
In this sporadic series of posts, Icshare a few insights, as they might apply to work and organisations, from ‘Life and How To Survive It’ and ‘Families and How to Survive Them’, by psychotherapist (late) Robin Skynner and comedian John Cleese. Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, Safety, Systems Thinking
Tagged deformation professionelle, fantasy, ignorance, normal work, safety-I, safety-II, systems safety, the messy reality, trained incapacity, work-as-done, work-as-imagined, work-as-prescribed
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Work-as-Imagined Solutioneering: A 10-Step Guide
Have you ever come across a ‘problematic solution’ that was implemented in your workplace, and wondered, “How did this come to be?” Wherever you sit in an organisation, the chances are that you have. Many problematic solutions emerge from a top-down … Continue reading
Posted in Human Factors/Ergonomics, Safety, Systems Thinking
Tagged archetypes, archetypes of human work, change, design, healthcare, implementation, seven samurai, technology, varieties of human work, work-as-disclosed, work-as-done, work-as-imagined, work-as-prescribed
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The Archetypes of Human Work: 7. Defunct
This is the seventh and last in a series of posts on The Archetypes of Human Work, which are based on the interactions or relationships between The Varieties of Human Work. For an introduction, see here. The seven archetypes are: … Continue reading
The Archetypes of Human Work: 6. P.R. and Subterfuge
This is the sixth in a series of posts on The Archetypes of Human Work, which are based on the interactions or relationships between The Varieties of Human Work. Continue reading
