Resilience is on everyone's lips, especially at a time when leaders are overwhelmed by disruptive realities and the business world is turning upside down. Literally, the term, derived from the Latin ("resilire"), means "to bounce back" or "to rebound". The author looks at what resilient leaders need to have in order to succeed in the long term.
Erik Wirz in an interview with Mensch & Qualität on the topic resilience
I'm often asked what makes a resilient leader. The answer is not as simple as that, because it's a whole set of skills - and more. In a nutshell, a resilient leader has the skills to deal with new and disruptive challenges and make the best of every situation. A resilient leader has the qualities of a marathon runner: adaptability, proactivity, perseverance and resilient thinking are essential. They must be able to think and act in stages, always keeping the next goal in mind, ready to sprint at any moment without losing sight of the bigger picture, the 42-kilometre finish line.
Strong communication skills, a healthy dose of self-confidence and empathy are also essential. This means keeping your eyes and ears open, listening, picking up on cues and always believing in yourself as you receive reinforcing feedback from your team members. Taken together, these skills enable leaders to meet the challenges of the moment, bounce back quickly in difficult situations, learn from difficult experiences and lead others to success, even under adverse conditions.
Excellence through communication and teamwork
Business resilience is never achieved through individual efforts alone. Strong, empathetic communication skills are essential for effective, rapid and goal-oriented interaction with others. Those who wish to encourage collaboration and support must first practise 'active listening'. Self-awareness is essential, as the word itself suggests what it means: a conscious approach to oneself. This includes the necessary humility at the right moment, which means being aware of one's strengths and weaknesses. It also involves the ability to learn from feedback or mistakes, honest self-analysis and a sincere desire for continuous improvement. This brings us to a key factor in resilient leadership. Empathy and a genuine interest in people are virtues we need more than ever. Those who can empathise with others and understand their perspectives tend to make better decisions and build more sustainable relationships.
Towards a resilient organisational culture
But it's not enough for leaders to practice resilience on their own. What's needed is the next step. It requires an organisational culture that builds resilience in everyone. After all, what use is a strong individual if the team is unstable and insecure? In our view, organisational culture is the lever for building resilience. To foster a resilient culture, you need leaders who are good coaches, to stay true to the sports analogy. They actively promote positive team attitudes, strengthen collaboration, offer support and encourage people to use their strengths and overcome challenges. They know that they are there to help and provide solutions.
Learning from others: Strategies from successful companies
There's nothing wrong with learning from others. At Wirz & Partners, we conducted a survey of leading strategists and asked them specifically about the adjustments they believe are needed to better embed resilience at the strategic level. We spoke to a wide range of board members from companies in industries such as engineering, high-tech, strategy and management consulting, IT, pharmaceuticals, medical technology and medicine.
The following points can be considered as universal aspects that increase the resilience of a company's strategy:
Cyber risks in focus - operational and strategic
According to our qualitative survey, cyber security is particularly important for resilience. The risk of a cyber attack is becoming an increasingly important part of risk management in day-to-day operations. In addition, the issue of cyber risk is taking on added importance due to the liability of supervisory boards.
In addition to effective risk management, appropriate and rapid communication in crisis situations is becoming increasingly important. Companies in all industries face challenges that can sometimes be completely unexpected. These include supply chain problems, changing cost factors such as energy prices, cyber attacks or new conditions for raising capital. Having the right communications strategy in place is essential if a company is to weather the storms with resilience.
Effective use of technology
New technologies such as Open AI (Artificial Intelligence) offer great potential, especially in the areas of digitalisation and process optimisation, without requiring companies to completely reinvent themselves. For example, AI can automate simple, repetitive processes such as invoicing, customer service or inventory management. Business intelligence systems also provide concrete optimisation ideas for data analysis, enabling adaptive planning. This gives management the planning scenarios they need to be more agile in responding to unplanned events. Customer data and relationship management (CRM) should not be forgotten. A modern CRM system is linked to chatbots that improve customer experience and understanding. Last but not least, AI used in the context of cybersecurity helps to proactively identify cyber risks and mitigate potential attacks. But let's not forget that a company only becomes more resilient when it integrates digitalisation and process optimisation in line with its business model and objectives - in other words, its employees, who are simultaneously its most important, valuable and scarce resource.
The Why: Cultivating a culture of resilience
How can top management improve the resilience of the whole organisation through culture? Five concrete approaches to culture change: