Five years ago, our country and the rest of the world experienced the worst disruption of the century: the COVID-19 pandemic. Its impact was felt across many facets of our lives and our livelihoods. In the business sector, the vulnerability of Philippine MSMEs manifested in the temporary closure of a staggering 70.6% of such businesses in 2020. However, by 2023, many of these enterprises didn’t just survive, but the numbers even rose by an average rate of 9.3% from 2021. This brings us to an important question: How can businesses go beyond merely surviving? Have Filipino businesses learned how to be truly resilient and thrive during such trying times?
Resilience has become a buzzword, especially back during the pandemic. It loosely describes any organization that has managed to keep its doors open despite severe challenges. However, genuine organizational resilience goes deeper than just “survival.” While survival is reactive, resilience is proactive and transformative. Organizational resilience isn’t just about bouncing back, but more about bouncing forward to a better place. This is done by strengthening structures and the capacity to identify risks, preparing strategic responses, and implementing timely continuity plans — all working towards sustainability and positive transformation.
Resilience transcends the traditional crisis management mindset. Most large businesses have integrated risk management in their governance practices, but only a few have embraced the more inclusive approach of organizational resilience. The glaring difference is that risk management is defensive while resilience is both defensive and offensive, turning potential threats into opportunities for growth and innovation.
From a study I conducted among selected boards and managers of private and public institutions in the Philippines, Singapore, and Taiwan, three major dimensions of resilient organizations surfaced:
First is continuity and sustainability, or the establishment of effective processes for risk identification and response. More than just having a crisis manual, organizations should have well-oiled systems for organizations to spot red flags before they become full-blown threats. They do this through constant environmental scanning, scenario planning, and stakeholder assessment.
Next is adaptability and timing, which involve understanding and responding to the changing needs of stakeholders and employees, and not just the internal organizational capabilities. The most resilient organizations value the urgency of pivoting operations while staying grounded with their core values and mission.
Last is innovation and resourcefulness, which highlight technology-driven transformation. More than just digitization of existing processes, resilience also involves reimagining value creation and delivery, which can manifest through redesigning business models and creating new opportunities.
Organizational resilience is deeply influenced by cultural contexts. Countries with collectivist cultures, such as those in Asia, show higher organizational resilience, as shared values and group interests are prioritized over individual concerns. While this is meant to be seen as a positive trait for us Filipinos, there’s also a danger of its being overly romanticized, leading to passiveness and tolerance of challenges that could have been prevented with proper planning and management.
The most important aspect of organizational resilience is its transformative nature. Resilient organizations build their capacity for futureproofing against prospective threats; they look beyond risk identification and management, and short-term thinking. Organizational resilience espouses long-term visioning, people empowerment, and a culture of continuous learning and innovation that must be embedded in the organization’s daily operations. The most resilient organizations are those that practice resilience every day, in ordinary circumstances — building capabilities that will be put to good use in the advent of extraordinary challenges.
In these times, Filipino businesses need to be mindful of documenting and harnessing organizational learning at all levels so that best practices are continued, and mistakes are not repeated. Organizations need to continuously invest in the development of human capital and technology and to strengthen stakeholder relationships. Resilience entails championing organizational cultures that encourage innovation and experimentation — where failures are seen as learning opportunities, and continuous improvement is part of the norm. As organizations move forward in this VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous) world, they will inevitably face disruptions. And it is only when they are prepared to turn these challenges into opportunities that they can be described as truly resilient.
Dr. Glorife Soberano-Samodio is a faculty member and graduate school coordinator of the Department of Management and Organization and head of the Creative Industries Studies Network at De La Salle University.
