In many ways, today’s workplace is not for the faint-hearted. Corporate restructuring and rounds of redundancies can create extended periods of uncertainty for workers. Likewise, increasing workloads mean that a 9-5 job is a thing of the past. According to research by Dale Carnegie adversity in the workplace can include facing exhausting workloads, having little control over one’s job, being denied recognition, working in isolation, unfair working conditions or values conflicts on the job.
Resilience is a psychological quality that allows some people to recover and “bounce back” from challenges, adversities, and difficulties. So why is resilience so important, and how can HR leaders find new employees with a strong level of resilience? How can resilience be built into all levels of the organisation? Here are our top five tips:
1. Get informed – Understand why resilience is so important
Organisational leaders increasingly understand the importance of investing in the health and wellbeing of employees, as it leads to improved engagement and retention. According to HireRoad partner Revelian, research reveals that resilient employees:
- Score higher on performance appraisals
- Perform more effectively
- Feel more satisfied with their work and report greater accomplishment
- Can find meaning in and overcome stressful situations
- Are better equipped to deal with stressful events or conditions at work
- Are more committed to the organisation
- Are more engaged with the organisation and their job
- Are likely to stay with the organisation for longer
2. Assess the candidate’s resilience during the recruitment process
Recruitment software and technology, together with structured interview questions, can be used to identify candidates with a high degree of resiliency. One example is a psychometric assessment called ‘Emotify’, developed by Revelian. It is an interactive, ability-based measure of emotional intelligence that assesses a candidate’s ability to accurately perceive emotions and understand the connection between situations that may lead to specific emotional reactions.
3. Build resilience at an organisational level
To act as a baseline, an employee engagement survey is recommended to gain an understanding of the current mental wellbeing within an organisation. Once insights are gained from the survey, executive leaders must make a visible, long-term commitment towards the lasting changes required to improve the mental health of employees. Organisational leaders can also ensure employees have access to adequate work resources (often a cause of stress) and commit to an ongoing learning culture.
4. Improve resilience at a team level
Team managers can contribute to this by making sure all employees feel valued in the work they are performing, through formal or informal recognition. Amongst team members, creating a sense of trust and connectedness is also important. When you trust that your team members ‘have your back’, you feel much more connected to the broader team. Lastly, empowered employees feel more control over their work, reducing negative feelings of stress. Empowered employees feel they can be successful in their role and can take calculated risks where required without fear of negative consequences.
5. Strengthen resilience within individual employees
Recognising the value of learning from mistakes is a key ingredient of resilient employees. A positive attitude and feelings of self-confidence can facilitate this learning process. Whilst not everybody is naturally a positive person, leaders can model confidence and positivity with staff. Managers can also boost their employee’s self-confidence by offering genuine praise for their contribution and a job well done.
When it comes to building resilience within a company there are multiple ways that leaders can facilitate this – from choosing the right staff, through to building it into the DNA of the organisation. Although today’s workplace is tough, a resilient workforce is up for the challenge.