Resilience in times of crisis: lessons learnt from COVID-19, and the future resilience of businesses and society

The ability of organisations to respond to rapid changes such as those brought about by COVID-19 has been linked to the notion of resilience. The question of how organisational leaders can best build resilience is still highly contested - resilience is conceptualised differently across various research streams and contexts, thus making it difficult to generate generalisable principles for developing resilience. This chapter examines the ‘lessons learnt’ from COVID-19, and new insights that have been gleaned into how organisations can build resilience. These include (1) adaptive business models allowing for rapid innovation, (2) resilient supply chains that are less susceptible to disruptions, and (3) a focus on creating a resilient workforce, particularly in sectors such as front-line healthcare and those considered as “essential services”. The chapter concludes by offering reflections on how organisations but also society can build resilience to future crises and be prepared for future global challenges such as those arising from climate change. The creation of resilient businesses and societies will likely require substantial investment during normal times which might not pay off until a crisis emerges.