The COs project
Facilitators and obstacles
FACTORS THAT FACILITATED OR HINDERED THE PROCESS
By the end of the COs project, we were able to document all the factors that had facilitated or hindered implementation of the measures aimed at reducing violence in the correctional facilities and implementation of the process as a whole.
These factors fall into two categories:
1- Some factors pertain to the workplace context, that is, the characteristics of the workplace and the events and circumstances that arise and change the workplace dynamics. Sometimes the stakeholders’ power to act on these factors is quite limited and they simply have to “make do.” Example: The revamping of the management team, which resulted in a change in their respective mandates. 2- Other factors pertain to the process, or its implementation per se. Organizations have the greatest control over these factors and can use them to ensure the success of their process Example: Employee involvement in all steps of the process. |
FACTORS FACILITATING THE PROCESS
Factors pertaining to the workplace context
- A genuine willingness to work “together” and openness to working as partners
- A support culture among senior executives already present in the workplace
- The presence of stakeholders with strong leadership skills, people ready to get involved (both managers and employees)
Factors pertaining to the process (to process implementation)
- A formal commitment from management and from each level in the organizational hierarchy, as well as from the workers and their représentatives
- The employees’ participation in all steps of the process
- Open and transparent communication and providing all workers with feedback
- Rigorous prior evaluation of the risks (overview) to allow for development of interventions adapted to the organization
- Methodological and scientific support for the process (rigour)
- Adherence to commitments and monitoring of actions taken
POSSIBLE HINDERING FACTORS
Factors pertaining to the workplace context
- Generalized mistrust in the organization as a whole, right from the outset
- A tense industrial relations context (e.g. difficult collective bargaining)
- The lack of human and financial resources
- The adoption, during the project, of new orientations, policies, or practices
- A deterioration in working conditions during the process
Factors pertaining to the process (to process implementation)
- Changes in committee membership
- The organization’s difficulty in taking charge of the process
- The lack of power of those participating in the process
- Results contrary to or different from those expected (e.g. the results or data collected during employee consultation do not confirm the results anticipated by the researchers), which can destabilize or undermine the process
- A use of the results in other forums, for example, for political purposes, or application of “political” pressures in order to hinder the process
- Failure to implement the measures announced (creates expectations that are unmet)