Organizations that want to stand strong during uncertain times will have to ensure resilience is built into their foundation.
By Zee Johnson
Resilience is an important strategic factor in the strongest and most agile business models. And with mounting concerns surrounding global issues like inflation, the more prepared HR is for future challenges, the better chance they’ll have at retaining a productive and loyal workforce.
Achievers Workforce Institute’s 2022 HR Preparedness Report found that 77% of HR leaders are concerned about a possible recession, but just 26% think their organization is prepared to manage the challenges that will come from it. One of the best ways to manage it is through building resilience. Achievers’ Chief Workforce Scientist Natalie Baumgartner says being resilient is essential for sustaining and supporting organizational growth. “Organizations and individuals are going to need every ounce of resilience to survive and thrive through the challenges ahead,” she says. “A strategic and tactical plan for resilience today means the difference between struggling and thriving over the next year.”
One of the first steps to fostering resilience, the report found, was through supporting productive workforce relationships. In fact, workers who feel their company supports relationship-building are twice as likely to report high individual resilience and three times more likely to report high organizational resilience.
And while survey respondents cited a supportive manager, friends at work, and a sense of purpose as three factors that contributed to their individual resilience, there are also five pillars that indicate a strong sense of resilience and productivity within an organization.
- Connection. Employees who work where the creation of workplace friendships are supported are more than two times more likely to report being their most productive selves.
- Recognition. High productivity is closely tied to recognition; the more an individual is recognized, the more productive they’ll likely be.
- Feedback. Employees who work for companies who take meaningful action on their feedback are three times more likely to say they are their most productive selves at work.
- Effective Managers. Employees who would recommend their managers are two times more likely to report high productivity.
- Cultural Alignment. Companies with a strongly aligned culture are twice as likely to report both high organizational and individual resilience as well as high team productivity.
By utilizing these five pillars to create solid resiliency, businesses can expect highly engaged and productive employees in 2023 and for years to come.
Sidebar:
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