Practices for Psychological Safety

We have been doing action research with a range of leaders across health and social care to explore a different approach to one-to-ones. This has involved using Confirmation Practices around the person's roles, and around building psychological safety within the team. In this episode Lyse Edwards, Head of Operations with the Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust, describes her experience of being part of this research.

We have been doing action research with a range of leaders across health and social care to explore a different approach to one-to-ones. This has involved using Confirmation Practices around the person's roles, and around building psychological safety within the team. In this episode Sam Jones, Regional Director with The Stroke Association, describes her experience of being part of this research.

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Visit helensandersonassociates.co.uk for information on the initiatives discussed in this episode.

I spent the day with Vicky and her team supporting them to create their Team Agreements and decide on ways to keep them alive.

If you want to know the steps you can take to create Team Agreements, from individual, team to organisation, then this is the podcast to listen to.

Vicky Ferrier is the Chief People and Commercial Officer at Konsileo. Konsileo is an innovative, self-managed brokerage team. You can find them at Konsileo.com.

To talk more about using Team Agreements please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

What are values and why do they matter in the workplace?

Jackie and Alan are the leading thinkers and practitioners around values in the UK. Jackie was one of our national advisors in Wellbeing Teams and helped us to identify and embed our values in the teams.

In this podcast we talk about what values are (and are not) and what they can mean in practice in teams and organisations.

You can find Dr Jackie Le Fevre at magmaeffect.com, and Alan Williams at servicebrandglobal.com.

To talk more about values and Psychological Safety and what they mean in practice please connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

What is psychological safety, why does it matter and what practices can help?

In 2024 I completed an in-depth programme on psychological safety with Tom and Jade and love their informed, considered and practical approach. I highly recommend their newsletter (sign up at psychsafety.com). In this podcast we talk about the importance of social contracts, like team agreements in building psychological safety.

To talk more about Psychological Safety and Team Agreements and how they are used in practice please connect with me on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/ and there is more information on what we do at helensandersonassociates.com.

Confirmation Practices are simple routines for systematic reflective practice. They were developed by Andy Brogan and help individuals and teams hold themselves to account and set goals to keep improving.

Confirmation Practices are a way to transform how organisations approach accountability and performance management. They replace what Andy Brogan calls ‘traditional scorekeeping with sense-making’.

I have been using them with individuals and teams to reflect on roles, team agreements, meetings, development, implementing learning and values.

In the podcasts in this series we talk about Confirmation Practices as a fresh approach to one-to-ones.

The key principles underpinning Confirmation Practices are:

1. Psychological Safety

Ensuring that individuals feel safe to express ideas, concerns, and challenges without fear of judgment or blame. This creates an environment where people can learn and grow.

2. Reflective Learning

Confirmation Practices start with the person's or team's reflection on how they are doing, instead of a manager giving feedback.

3. Human-Centered Accountability:

The focus of Confirmation Practices is on the meaningful conversations about commitments and outcomes, based on shared expectations.

4. Collaborative Sense-Making:

The practice seeks to "put the elephant in the room" by openly addressing critical issues in a constructive way.

To talk more about Confirmation Practices and how they are used in practice please come and connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/

What do you do when you get stuck on a goal you have been working on? Or a team agreement that the team is struggling with? Could it be that your/their mindset is getting in the way?

The Immunity to Change approach developed by Harvard’s Robert Kagan and Lisa Lahey is a way to identify the assumptions (mindset) that gets in the way of making progress, and how to overturn them.

This is crucial for leaders at every level.

“Many, if not most of the changes you face today and will face tomorrow will require something more than incorporating new technical skills…these are ‘adaptive challenges’ and can only be met by transforming your mindset.” Kegan and Lahey 2009

This year I completed nearly three years of study in Immunity to Change and became a certified Immunity to Change coach. I have working with leaders and teams and in my podcasts in this series I talk to people are their individual or team Immunity to Change Maps, how they developed them and the impact it has had.

To talk more about Immunity to Change Maps and practices for psychological safety please come and connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/

Team Agreements are a co-created list of statements that describe the behaviours that the team commits to in their work together.

They are a foundation of psychological safety.

In these podcasts we talk about the impact of team agreements on how teams work together and how to ensure that they are living, and make a difference to peoples relationships and work, and not just words on a file.

To talk more about Team Agreements and how they are used in practice please come and connect with me on Linked In https://www.linkedin.com/in/helensandersonhsa/