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1. Expect error, and design for it
In my years as an airline captain I never worked with a perfect crew, because there is no such thing. Aviation accepts that skilled, conscientious people will make mistakes, and designs procedures, cross-checks and training to catch those mistakes before they matter. Businesses often take the opposite view: errors are treated as individual failings, which encourages people to hide them.
2. Anticipate threats before they arrive
Before every flight, crews brief the threats they expect: weather, terrain, a tired crew, an unfamiliar airport. Naming them in advance means everyone is watching for the same things. A business equivalent is a short pre-task or pre-week briefing for anything high-consequence — a product launch, a system migration, a peak trading period. I describe the habit of staying ahead in more depth in staying ahead through handovers and preparation.
3. Build layers, not a single barrier
No single control prevents every failure. Aviation relies on layers: procedures, a second pilot cross-checking, automated warnings, training and air traffic control. Each layer has gaps; together they rarely line up. In a business, a clear SOP, a colleague's check, a system alert and a named escalation point can work the same way.
4. Separate abnormal from emergency
Aviation distinguishes between situations that need careful handling and those that need immediate action. That distinction lets people respond proportionately. I explain how to apply it to company procedures in abnormal versus emergency procedures in a company.
5. Have a method for when the checklist ends
Some situations are not covered by any procedure. Crews then use a structured decision method — D.O.D.A.R.: Diagnose, Options, Decide, Act & Assign, Review — so that pressure does not drive a rushed or unilateral choice. It is covered in when the checklist ends. The decision always remains with accountable people; the AI SOP Captain in your Company Operations Hub can help people find relevant approved procedures, but it does not make decisions for them.
6. Report, learn, update
Aviation learns systematically from incidents and near-misses, and procedures are updated as a result. For a business, the lesson is to make it easy to report a problem with a procedure and to give the owner a clear route to change it. Without clear ownership that loop breaks, which is why SOP governance matters.
These lessons are drawn from aviation practice as analogies for business. They are not aviation, safety or compliance certification, and your own approved procedures and specialist obligations come first.
Frequently asked questions
Is aviation risk management relevant to a small business?
- Yes. The habits — briefing threats, cross-checking, reporting without blame — scale down well and cost very little to introduce.
Does this replace our risk register or compliance framework?
- No. It complements them by changing how people behave day to day. Your existing obligations and specialist advice still apply.
Where should we start?
- Pick one high-consequence activity, write a clear procedure for it with the people who do it, and add one cross-check. Then review how it performs.
Can AI make risk decisions for us?
- No. In my approach, AI helps people find approved procedures quickly; accountable humans make the decisions.
Read the full methodology, or book a discovery call to discuss your own operational risks.
