Building a Resilient Workforce
- Jenay Rhoads
- Mar 21
- 4 min read
What is resilience – think of a rubber band, it bounces back into shape, that is resilience in objects. As humans, what does that look like. In psychology it is successfully navigating and adapting to challenges we face internally and externally. As humans, we face a challenge, make adjustments to address the challenge, ultimately navigating through the challenge. get through the challenge and then adjust to the challenge to have a successful outcome related to the challenge. It then makes sense that we desire a workforce that is resilient.
Workforce resilience seems to be getting more attention now than ever. However, when we are talking about this type of resiliency, we are talking about, not only having a successful outcome in face of challenges but experiencing growth.
Growth in organizations can take on a variety of meanings. Frequently organizational leaders view growth through the lens of profits, but growth can also mean increased efficiencies, economies of scale, knowledge acquisition, workflow improvements, reduced costs, etc. Eventually all growth will result in a stronger bottom line.
How do we support this type of resiliency? Unfortunately, we cannot just require it from our team members. Organizations that want a resilient workforce must build that workforce. So just like organizations that invest in developing a winning sales team, developing a resilient workforce requires organizational support through culture, training and development.
Cultures of Well-Being
Cultures of well-being support the whole team member and employment experience. Team members are the life blood of every organization, but they are more than just workers, they are whole humans. As easy as it is to say, keep personal out of the workplace, in practice it does not happen. Organizations that promote not just well-being related to how work is done, the management of work and workload, but also promote and address personal, mental (and emotional) and social well-being.
Organizations that support, promote and practice cultures of well-being exhibit the highest levels of workforce resiliency. Organizations are as unique as the individuals that make up the organization, therefore strategies relating to culture will also look different across organizations. Organizations that have strong cultures of well-being not only have the programs and benefits that support well-being, but these programs and benefits are supported and promoted by the most senior levels of leadership and are consistent throughout all levels of leadership and supervision.
Creating strategies and the programs, policies and procedures that support team members’ well-being considers the workforce as a whole; both where your organization is now and where you want your organization to be in the future. This encompasses a thorough appraisal of current and future needs, challenges, strengths and opportunities. Without a clear picture of who your organization is and where it is going, organizations risk not only creating ineffective and potentially costly programs but attempting to create a culture that is disingenuous (this creates a whole host of workplace issues).
Common strategies, programs and policies that support well-being are:
Employee Surveys: gather and analyze team member needs, satisfaction and feedback and create strategies for improvement.
Communication: transparent and consistent communication that provides team member feedback
Wellness Programs: a variety of programs that address difference facets of well-being
Benefits and Work Arrangements: support team member work – life balance
Training and Development
Just like with any other skills, investing in training and development that reinforces resilience is critical to creating and maintaining a resilient workforce. Hard skills or technical skills have historically received most of the training and development attention and investment from organizations. However, soft skills, which tend to be more abstract in nature, have been receiving more attention and investment over the years.
Training and development may be clearly defined to build resiliency skills, it may be incorporated into current training or both. Training that incorporates resiliency skills into other job or organizational specific training has the added benefit of reinforcing the organizational culture.
Leadership that demonstrates and models resiliency skills benefits organizations. The way we lead our teams sets the example, showing team members resiliency in action. Team members typically mirror leaders. Leaders that are less resilient will contend with teams that may feel unequipped to handle organizational challenges, both internally and externally. When our leaders are resilient, they themselves are equipped to guide their teams and workforces through challenges and create an environment that allows for learning from experience. These workforces experience higher levels of confidence in not only the organization and the leader’s ability to navigate challenges to a successful outcome, but their ability to contribute to a positive outcome.
Resilience training and development examples:
Resilience Specific Courses
Stress Management and Emotional Intelligence
Communication and Interpersonal Skills
Problem – Solving, Decision – Making and Critical Thinking
Mentorship Programs
By nurturing a resilient workforce, organizations not only prepare their teams to tackle challenges head-on but also foster an environment where continuous growth and improvement thrive. Embracing a culture of well-being, investing in training and development, and demonstrating resiliency at all leadership levels are essential steps towards building a future where the workforce is not just surviving but flourishing. The journey of creating a resilient workforce is one that promises immense rewards, leading to a dynamic, innovative, and robust organizational landscape.
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