Marina Davis, Vice President of Organization Effectiveness, has helped many leaders, teams and organizations as they navigate how to help those they lead and work with when implementing a culture change. Lisa Rice, Director of Corporate Marketing, sat down with Marina to learn why resilience is an essential component of a thriving workplace culture and how companies can foster resilience among their employees.

LR: What does resilience have to do with company culture?

MD: First, let me give a quick definition. Resilience, to me, is one’s “bounce back” ability when going through change. This also applies to culture. Organizational cultures are constantly changing. Some changes are major and obvious; others are small and incremental. So, employees must be able to evolve, too, which requires a certain amount of resilience.

LR: How does resilience form in a culture?

MD: From my perspective, resilience must be a championed organizational value where leaders role model resilience, underscore the need for it and reward it when displayed. Though it’s important for the C-Suite to do this, ultimately, a resilient culture is built by individuals strengthening their “resilience muscle” by doing some “inside work.” What I mean by “inside work” is that resilience is built by actions we often don’t see. For example, when change is introduced, to respond with resilience I could first think about the change, what it means to me, what my reaction is and why.

This will not be overtly visible to others initially but will begin to shift a culture when those resilient individuals start asking questions before reacting and giving the benefit of the doubt, which can positively influence those who are not as resilient. Resilience doesn’t keep individuals from experiencing concerns and fears in the workplace, but it enables them to approach challenges with a sense of opportunity and curiosity. This, of course, positively impacts a culture.

LR: How can a lack of resilience hamper culture and, as a result, workplace productivity?

MD: A lack of resiliency means we’re more focused on self-preservation. When we look through this lens, it begins to sap positive energy from the workplace, and our focus narrows. We can lose sight of the organization’s purpose, which can lead to a brutal cycle of self-focus and decreased productivity. For example, I worked with a client’s executive team who was struggling with some cultural changes. Their focus on wanting to go back to what “was” had been so intense that they’d lost sight of their goals, negatively impacting the company’s effectiveness and culture.

LR: How can leaders foster resilience in their workforce?

MD: I believe parts of resilience can be taught, for example, what’s “normal” when experiencing change. However, some elements like curiosity may not be teachable but, interestingly, can be learned. A leader can help someone learn curiosity (for example) through modeling, encouragement, coaching and mentoring. Ultimately, that means there’s a responsibility for all — leaders and those who report into them. Bottom line, each of us needs to decide how we will approach a change, and that’s the good news/bad news of resilience and change: We each get to decide for ourselves.

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