With everything that’s going on in the world at the moment, resilience in the workplace is becoming more and more important. How we react to these moments as businesses is becoming an integral part of how we view ourselves and how our consumers view our brand.

What we do during these times, and how we react to a crisis is important – resilience in the workplace is essential. Our values are being tested in these times, as a business on a whole and as the individuals that make up our business too. 

Resilience doesn’t just mean getting on with it, it means supporting one another during these difficult times and being gentle and lenient towards your people. Resilience is about supporting your customers and people through these times in a way that is in line with your values. It’s being resilient in your commitment to how you do your work – and now allowing the moment of crisis to dictate how you act. 

Here’s our take on how to build a more resilient workplace.

What is resilience in the workplace?

A resilient workplace is adaptable, flexible, collaborative, and agile in the face of challenges. This means that they are able to cope with trauma and stress and naturally thrive when times are good. 

People who work within resilient teams are able to grow and flourish, as the team remains a core unit and rides above the waves of uncertainty that every business faces.

When we think about resilience we often think about having a stiff upper lip and cracking on with things in the face of adversity, however, we believe that it is much more than that.

Resilience is about solving problems and moving forward amongst uncertainty in a way that stays true to your values. Resilient teams are supportive, positive, and ready to change in order to adapt to the current climate.

Why is resilience in the workplace so important?

Without resilience in the workplace, your business will fail when it comes up against hard times. According to the dictionary, resilience is “an ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change”.

Seeing as change is a standard part of being human and existing, it’s important that your people and your business are able to deal with whatever life throws your way. Without resilience, you’ll struggle to stay afloat and make smart business decisions when times get tough.

If you’re resilient, your business will survive the tough times and then thrive in a post-pandemic world.

How can your business be more resilient?

There are a few ways that your business can be more resilient. These include:

• Remaining in control

When things go wrong, often the first thing that happens is people panic. This normally stems from the leadership team downwards and can cause disruption and lack of productivity. 

Resilient teams trust their leaders to navigate the changes that they’re facing and spend time working on the things they can control as opposed to worrying about the things they can’t.

• Problem solving

To make your team more resilient, you’ll need to encourage a culture of problem solving. When faced with times of change and challenge, often this comes with the need for people to solve problems and think on their feet. 

The better your people are trained and prepared to solve problems, the more confident they will be at doing so in an emergency situation.

• Values

Having a sense of culture and company values to adhere to will strengthen your resilience as a business. When people have values and culture to cling on to in times of crisis, they will be able to make better decisions under pressure. 

Values and culture also give people a sense of purpose and meaning when things become challenging.

• Social support

Being resilient is about much more than just getting the job done – it’s about being supportive towards your team and understanding them as people. The depth of your relationships within the business will determine how well you are able to gel and work together to overcome challenges.

Nurturing relationships and offering social support whether your team is in-house or remote is essential.

We know that these times are especially challenging, but building resilience in the workplace will help you push through. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you want to discuss any of the points in this article, or think that we can be of assistance to you in any way.

Plus, if you’re ready to add remote staff to your existing team head over to our website.