Prioritizing Organizational Resilience
Organizational Resilience is a process that enables organizations to absorb complexities, preserve functioning and transform during adversity (Burnard & Bhamra, 2011). This seems important considering organizations are currently facing an unprecedented turbulent environment: the current crisis’ of Covid-19 alongside a sustained racial justice movement. But disruptions and discontinuities are not new; organizations continuously experience unstable economic, social and environmental conditions. Thus, the current crises are a reminder that building features of organizational resilience is fundamental to operating in today's and tomorrow's business ecosystem.
Risk management is integral to successful organizational strategy and operations. However, risk focuses on analyzing and planning for potential risks and outcomes, remaining only hypothetical until it manifests itself in an event. Instead of a prescribed approach, Organizational Resilience, which in simplicity is defined as 1) the presence of adversity AND 2) the ability to positively adapt, is a process that is focused on enabling adaptive capacity (Masten, 2001). Thus Organizational Resilience is a wholistic mechanism to manage uncertainty because it enables systems to develop a tolerance to risk by cultivating innate ability to proactively respond and adjust to threats (Burnard & Bhamra, 2011). But when the nature of risk is borderless (cancel culture, natural disasters, market fluctuations, regulatory changes), why and how does organizational resilience prepare, adapt and transcend these events? What organizational capabilities are necessary for organizational resilience?
Understanding Organizational Resilience
I am not a risk management or crisis intervention expert -- so why am I interested in Organizational Resilience. It is because organizations are systems connected by technical, social, financial components that interact to create distinctive cultures and organizational identities (Burnard & Bhamra, 2011). The key to Organizational Resilience is that in the face of adversity the system is capable of changing in order to sustain functioning and retain an advantage. So, resilience is about organizational systems adapting, coping, recovering and advancing through organizational transformation. This is what I am passionate about.
Without the system's ability to change, organizations manage these environmental fluctuations with a recovery-based approach which introduces maladaptive cycles of development. Maladaptive cycles include a rigid response during a disruptive event that results in control that is restricted to a central authority and organization function through its traditional channels (Burnard & Bhamra, 2011). Instead of this recovery-based approach, it is imperative for organizational systems to create dynamic, emergent behavior that cultivates positive adaptation. According to Burnard (2011), to create an emergent response, the aim is to
· improve situational awareness
· reduce vulnerabilities
· restore efficacy following events of disruption
This adaptive response resides in individuals, systems, structures, infrastructure, procedures, and parameters of an organization. I love exploring and analyzing the intricacies of dynamic systems, while understanding driving forces behind individual behaviors. Utilizing organizational assessment and design, we can target the right levers and operationalize solutions that balance the dichotomy of survival and thriving through disruptive environments. This is why I love Organizational Resilience; it aligns with my own mission as a consultant and coach that focused on promoting wellbeing, enabling growth and increasing performance – from the system to the team to the individual.
Exploring Components of Organizational Resilience
Critical components of organizational resilience are detection and activation. In order for organizations to take a proactive, response-based approach, the organization needs to have the ability to recognize or detect potential disruptions. The ability to environmentally scan both internal and external conditions is only helpful if it is interlinked with the organization's capability to decipher and feedback vital information to the applicable system or authority(Burnard & Bhamra, 2011). This assessment of a potential event results in the perception of the event as a threat or opportunity, which has yet to manifest. Thus, organizations must also develop an awareness of potential vulnerabilities and an analysis of operating conditions to accurately characterize these perceptions (Burnard & Bhamra, 2011). Lack of accuracy in organizations detection will create problematic alignment in activation.
Detection of a threat, the ability to intelligently absorb both internal and external system signals, is not enough to create positive adaptation. Value is unable to be placed on the recognition of the event unless organizations have the capacity and capabilities to respond to the threat (Burnard & Bhamra, 2011). The ability for mobilizing resources (cognitive, emotional, relational and structural) and capital is all about the second critical phase of a resilient response - activation. To account for the activation phase, organizations can focus on organizational flexibility factors (e.g. decentralized decision making, low formalization, and low embeddedness of culture) (Hatum & Pettigrew, 2006). Operational flexibility enables resilience by enhancing organizations quick and effective responses to adversity. So, although having a “plan” pre-crisis is critical, activation is not just about implementing prescribed strategies. Instead, activation is about having an operating system, leadership, teams and people that are capable of absorbing complex information, self-deploying changes and learning & adjusting to feedback in times of stress and uncertainty.
The Adaptive Capacity Checklist
Transactional and technical responses to adversity through operational functions (e.g.risk, financial and supply chain management) are necessary components that help organizations mitigate adverse effects in the face of adversity. However, focusing on transactional factors is not enough for positive adaptation. Instead, organizations need transformational capabilities that lie within the very fabric, the heart of an organization.
Is your organization resilient? Learn about the following concepts (and these are big concepts) to see if your organization has an adaptive capacity.
Operational Flexibility creates, retains and rearranges knowledge, competencies and resources in a flexible, storable, convertible and malleable form. This embedded intelligence enables organizations to effectively process internal and external feedback while properties of self-organization link resource to outcomes.
Individual and Team Resilience increases the ability of individuals and teams to effectively respond to adversity. Organizations are a combination of human and technical elements, so the need to enhance individuals’ external behaviors like composure and internal feelings like efficacy is critical to performance during and post-crisis. An organization can only be as resilient as their teams and people.
Inclusive Strategic Planning Process cultivates explicit high-level thinking and awareness around organizational vulnerabilities and operational environments. This process prepares and re-prepares organizations to respond rather than react. Strategic planning should include traditional decision-makers and leaders while incorporating other employees like front line workers to facilitate dialogue and learn from diverse experiences and expertise.
Psychological Safety, Transparency, and/or a Learning Culture facilitate learning and upward voice. These concepts create an environment where
the right information gets to the right people at the right time; people are not blamed; criticisms are not weaponized; voices are heard and valued.
individuals are open-minded, a willingness to try new ideas and learn from internal and external feedback
organizations create trust through thoughtful communication channels
As organizations deal with major disruptions with widespread implications, it is imperative that businesses think about the current efficacy driving their systems, teams and individuals. As these crises impact everyone, we need to recognize that they will never be truly behind us. This is because the memory of this experience will live on, consciously and unconsciously impacting feelings and behaviors. Thus, the way we process and perceive the experience will drive organizational behaviors for years to come. It is time to prioritize building organizational resilience a concept that enables positive emergent behavior -- an organization that lives in the present but embraces the unknown.
Organizational Resilience Framework (Burnard & Bhamra, 2011)
Resources Burnard, K., & Bhamra, R. (2011). Organisational resilience: Development of a conceptual framework for organisational responses. International Journal of Production Research, 49(18), 5581–5599. https://doi.org/10.1080/00207543.2011.563827
Hatum, A., & Pettigrew, A. M. (2006). Determinants of Organizational Flexibility: A Study in an Emerging Economy. British Journal of Management, 17(2), 115–137. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2006.00469.x
Masten, A. S. (2001). Ordinary magic. Resilience processes in development. The American Psychologist, 56(3), 227–238. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11315249
Comments