Accountable Executive

Q11. At what level of detail does the accountable executive really have to be involved during an SMS assessment? To what extent are front-line personnel expected to understand and use SMS terminology to frame explanations of their roles and activities?

The accountable executive operates at a level higher than the individual certificates. For example, within a large air carrier, a single accountable executive will have overall responsibility for all activities conducted under the Air Operator Certificate (AOC), Approved Maintenance Organization (AMO) certificate, Airworthiness Engineering Organizations (AEO) certificate, and Approved Training Organization (ATO) certificate. The applicable functional heads, the certificate managers, for each of those certificates will be responsible to the accountable executive for the proper management of their particular operations.

In particular, the individual certificate managers are responsible for notifying the accountable executive of any safety related problems, and the actions necessary to correct or mitigate them. This includes, where applicable, the requirement for additional financial or other resources. The accountable executive is responsible for establishing and maintaining the overall corporate culture, and for providing the functional heads with the necessary resources to comply with the regulations and maintain the necessary levels of safety.

The accountable executive should understand how the SMS works, who the key personnel are and what are the significant safety issues in the organization. The extent to which the accountable executive will be involved in the system will depend on the individual and the size and complexity of the organization.

In regards to individual personnel they must have an awareness of the safety management system. They must understand their role, function and the companies SMS philosophy and approach. The depth of their knowledge will of course be a function of their role in the system. For example, an event analyst would be expected to be able to describe in their corporate SMS language how the system works. Whereas a line worker would be expected to have a less in depth knowledge but should for example know how to file a safety report, what the companies policies are and how the company provides communications.

The accountable executive and front-line personnel must know enough about SMS to be able to confidently and successfully complete the aforementioned required duties. Transport Canada is committed to having resources available to assist in this learning process. All personnel linked to a certificate holder are invited to participate in Transport Canada’s Civil Aviation Safety Management Systems Information Sessions. These sessions occur bi-annually all over the country, with the next one being held May 2006 in Montreal. The objectives of these sessions are to provide registrants with: basic information on SMS implementation, an overview of the regulations, exemptions, and implementation phases; and the opportunity to exchange information and best practices. For more information on SMS Information Sessions—past and present—please visit our Web site: www.tc.gc.ca/CivilAviation/SMS/Info/menu.htm.

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