Shifting the safety culture at Rio Tinto
Creating an aligned safety culture across a global metal and mining company
CHALLENGE
Rio Tinto’s global mining operations spans multiple continents, each with distinct cultural contexts, languages, and regulatory environments. This complexity made it difficult for leadership to gain a clear, consistent view of the company’s safety culture. Site teams faced challenges translating safety protocols across languages, aligning local norms with global expectations, and navigating varying national safety regulations and standards. Without a unified picture of what safety culture looked like across the organization, efforts to improve safety performance remained fragmented. Rio Tinto recognized the need to create an aligned culture to enhance safety outcomes across all operations worldwide
SOLUTION
To tackle the complexity of building a unified safety culture, Rio Tinto partnered with JMJ to take a diagnostic-led, strategic approach. A global safety culture assessment provided critical insights that shaped a new direction for the company’s safety efforts. Rather than applying a uniform solution, the approach prioritized understanding local context and adapting interventions to meet the needs of each site.
Pilot programs were launched in diverse regions—including Hope Downs 4 (Australia), Simandou (Guinea), and Benga (Mozambique)—to test the adaptability of Incident and Injury-Free™ (IIF™) principles. These pilots informed a broader integration of IIF practices into both major capital projects and day-to-day operations. The collaboration extended to initiatives such as expansions, upgrades, and operational sites like Oyu Tolgoi in Mongolia, with a focus on embedding strong safety leadership and driving cultural alignment at every level of the organization.
CLIENT GOALS
To develop a unified understanding of safety culture across all operations, enabling aligned practices and stronger performance globally.
RESULTS
Rio Tinto’s safety culture transformation delivered measurable impact across multiple projects, both in performance outcomes and organizational recognition.
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Comalco Boyne Smelter Expansion: Delivered a $100M improvement in Net Present Value (NPV)
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Hope Downs 4: Named Rio Tinto’s ‘Most Improved Safety Record’ project
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Simandou Project: Achieved 4.5 million consecutive work hours without a Lost Time Incident (LTI)
JMJ’s partnership helped Rio Tinto navigate the challenges of operating across diverse cultural and regulatory environments. By aligning leadership and tailoring safety interventions to local contexts, the transformation fostered a more consistent, values-led safety culture. The result was stronger performance, enhanced engagement, and a renewed sense of shared commitment across global teams.
Injury-Free Operations
Simandou Project achieved 4.5 million work hours without a Lost Time Incident (LTI).
Safety Performance Recognized
Hope Downs 4 named Rio Tinto’s ‘Most Improved Safety Record’ project.
Value Increased
Delivered a $100M uplift in Net Present Value (NPV) at Comalco Boyne Smelter Expansion