The past few months have proved the test of a lifetime for HR leaders
If 2020 taught us anything, it’s that adaptability is the key to survival. The past few months have proved the test of a lifetime for HR leaders, as organizations battled disruption after disruption. And, according to emerging research, that disruption is here to stay.
2021 Deloitte Global Resilience Report found 60% of C-suite executives believe we’ll see regular disruptions moving forward – and that only the most resilient of businesses will have the tenacity to overcome these challenges.
HRD spoke to Roxana Greszta, national organizational resilience leader with Deloitte, who explained what the report means for employers across Canada.
“Leaders generally have understood that disruption is absolutely going to become more commonplace,” explained Greszta.
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“And we’re not just talking about COVID-19. In the upcoming years, it’s likely that we’ll see disruptions such as climate change, political and social disruption, and cyber-attacks.
“From a Canadian perspective, the report shows that at the onset of the pandemic, Canadian executives were less confident about their organization's ability to adapt and lead through uncertainty compared to their global peers. However, there was a silver lining to the chaos – namely that organizations have gained confidence in their ability to adapt to disruptive events and to lead through uncertainty.”
The disruptions that seem to concern C-suite executives the most are;
The key to succeeding in 2021 will be resilience – both organizationally and personally. So, how can employers help build personal resilience in their teams? Well, according to Greszta, this will be a foundational element of any HR strategy.
“Since the unexpected events of 2020, organizations have come to understand they're not as self-sufficient as they thought,” she told HRD. “The enormous pressure on individuals due to this type of disruption made employers realize the overwhelming importance of mental health and wellbeing of their people – and how this helps to build resiliency.
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“Personal resilience comes down to keeping your people safe and ensuring they’ve got the trust in you as their employer. One interesting concept that’s emerged from the pandemic is flexibility – allowing your people the ability to work remotely has helped enormously with issues such as child and elder care. This is essential in creating high functioning, high performing organizations.”
