MINING
Culture is mining’ s competitive edge
All of this is happening while the fight for talent grows sharper. Skilled operators, artisans and supervisors are being drawn to mines that offer safer conditions and clearer growth paths. Younger recruits, meanwhile, are looking for workplaces that feel fair and well-managed. They’ re not rejecting the work itself; they’ re avoiding environments that make it harder to do well.
Skilled operators, artisans and supervisors are being drawn to mines that offer safer conditions and clearer growth paths.
When leadership becomes the bottleneck That lack of engagement has real consequences. Across sub-Saharan Africa, OIM’ s data shows that leadership behaviour is now one of mining’ s biggest hidden constraints. When trust and recognition are missing, even the best-run shifts begin to lose momentum. Workers hesitate to speak up, ideas are lost and small issues snowball into bigger ones. The mine keeps running, but people begin to disengage from what they do.
The sites that have broken this pattern have one thing in common: they’ ve redefined how leadership shows up every day. Supervisors who make time to walk the floor, ask questions, and recognise effort, build teams that take ownership. At several of the operations OIM has worked, those small changes have lifted morale and production within weeks. Once people feel seen and trusted, they stop waiting to be managed, and start managing themselves.
This is why culture has become a business lever, not a slogan. Mines that invest in capable leaders, open communication, and visible recognition are holding on to skills and protecting performance. Those that cling to command-and-control are stuck in a cycle of turnover and short-term fixes. When culture works, operations run smoother, shifts hold together and problems get solved sooner. OIM’ s work across the region makes one thing clear: the mines that look after their people are the ones that thrive.
In the end, output still matters. Tonnes still matter. But the way people experience the mine decides whether they do what’ s required, or what makes the difference. �
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