The past four years have brought higher levels of volatility, complexity and ambiguity than any time in recent memory. The companies fostering resilience in their workforces are the ones that are succeeding in the face of environmental, political and technological uncertainty.
Derived from the Latin verb for “to leap or spring back” or “to rebound,” resilience is most often defined as the ability to bounce back from setbacks. Resilience requires three things: a clear understanding of and ability to accept reality; strong values that give work meaning; and an ability to imagine possibilities and invent solutions.
Researchers have found that individual and organizational resilience are self-reinforcing: Individual resilience has a positive effect on work satisfaction, engagement, overall well-being, mental and physical health. But resilience is not just an internal trait; it’s enabled by strong networks and relationships.
“Resilience is not something we need to find deep down inside ourselves: we can actually become more resilient in the process of connecting with others in our most challenging times,” according to researchers writing in the Harvard Business Review at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The ADP Research Institute’s Global Workplace Study 2022 found that the state of worker engagement and resilience vary widely by country. Engagement captures how proactive individuals are in delivering their best work, and resilience captures how people respond when challenges arise. You’ll see that many of the countries with the most engaged workers also display the most resilience.
Employee engagement and resilience by country
In fostering individual resilience, leaders need to reinforce the meaning in our work, maintain perspective when setbacks happen, help workers see a path forward, and keep a sense of humor, the researchers writing for Harvard Business Review found. In engaging work environments, you’ll find supportive supervisors and competent and collaborative colleagues.
At the same time, organizations should be implementing resilient systems. This means planning for the worst-case scenario, however unlikely. Business continuity planning is crucial for every organization, but especially for payroll departments. A business continuity plan should consider what happens for any scenario from natural disasters to cyberattacks to pandemics. And the frameworks and guidelines will need to be updated on a regular basis, adapted from worksite to worksite, division to division and country to country.
It’s during moments of crisis when investments in employee engagement and business culture pay off. Strong organizational values and good planning give resilient individuals a common roadmap to follow when confronting challenges. In times of crisis, that is a good recipe for teamwork instead of panic. When resilient individuals meet resilient systems, the odds of success skyrocket.
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