Pressure Can Burst a Pipe or Make a Diamond. The Difference is Resilience.
Companies that can navigate and succeed in times of change have one thing in common – they are resilient.
Whilst recent research by Microsoft shows, 80% of business leaders, across all industries, intend to accelerate their digital transformation; Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says…
“We’ve seen two years’ worth of digital transformation in two months.”
That’s both incredible and alarming! No wonder why many companies feel overwhelmed. A lot of “transformation” has been happening. Whilst businesses are quickly changing and disrupting, these changes can be quite taxing on the emotional and mental wellbeing, and productivity of the business.
Recent studies show that almost 1 in 2 employees in Australia experience daily stress.
One of the things that lead to stress is our inability to deal with CHANGE. Change is happening all around us and it’s inevitable.
Many of us, in our own way, are navigating change and uncertainty. And we often have little guidance or clear blueprint on how to navigate change.
With so much uncertainty, it is hard for your people to do their best work and be the role model they can be. On a collective level, this can be quite challenging and destructive for your business.
We can’t stop change!
But we can navigate it. And that’s what resilience is about.
One way to define Resilience in the business world is our capacity to adapt and adjust to change and challenging situations and the ability to thrive in the midst of unpredictable circumstances.
Easier said than done, right?
And granted, some people are naturally more resilient than others.
Ways you can help your organisation become more resilient
Enable Your People
One of the best ways to build resilience is to enable your people by giving them tools and resources they need to achieve the outcomes your business expects from them.
You can’t just throw someone in the middle of the ocean and expect them to swim back.
The bigger the change, the more support your employees need to have through the process. But enabling your people is not about giving them the answers they need. It’s about giving them direction, clarity on the objectives and the tools that will help them rise to the occasion.
Develop Your Managers
Your managers can play a major role in increasing your company’s resilience. Managers spend more time with their teams than you do. And if they are equipped with the right tools and have strong grounds to stand on, they’ll give the right support and coaching your teams need.
Reinforce Your Values
When there is clarity and alignment across the organisation on its values, everyone works towards the common goal a lot more effectively. Aligned values give people guidance and a sense of security which helps your employees make the right decisions, filter out wrong decisions and manage change more effectively. If your company values were a language, would your employees be fluent in it?
Improve Communication & Transparency
Open communication breeds trust. And trust is a key foundation for resilience. If people trust their business leaders, even when they don’t have all the answers, their faith in you empowers and motivates them to go above and beyond. This faith safeguards against workplace fragmentation and non resilient teams.
Consult a Culture Specialist
Last but least, consider seeking advice from a Culture specialist on how you can build a more resilient culture for the ups and downs that inevitably lie ahead. The investment will result in a more stable workforce, less attrition, higher engagement and ability to navigate change.
Ask a Culture specialist about how to:
- Define your organisational identity (Purpose, Values & Leadership Principles)
- Establish team building and cohesion
- Improve the Leadership skills of your executive and management team
- Design and measure your employee experience
“When the winds of change blow, some people build walls, others build windmills.” Chinese proverb
Let us help you build your windmills.
At The Culture Equation, we’ve helped several businesses transform their culture, teams and leadership. If you’d like a 30-min Free No-Obligation Consultation, we’d love to have a chat with you.