How to Design for Strategic Resilience: A Case Study in Retailing

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7146/jod.7360

Keywords:

Resilience, organizational resilience, strategic resilience, organization design, mindfulness, generative doubt, slack resources, leadership

Abstract

Few firms can be said to be truly resilient by sustaining high performance for a long time. We draw on a case study of a large U.S.-based retailer to explore how an organization develops resilience – the ability to recover quickly from environmental jolts or misfortunes. The company’s CEO, concerned about the company’s ability to maintain its industry leadership and excellent performance, sought to engage the organization in a broad quest for developing resilience capabilities. Our analysis of this case suggests that generative doubt, organizational slack, and mindful engagement throughout the organization are key conditions for resilience. These three conditions need to co-exist to develop and sustain strategic resilience.

Author Biography

Georges Romme, Eindhoven University of Technology

Professor of Entrepreneurship & Innovation

Dean of Industrial Engineering & Innovation Sciences

Eindhoven University of Technology

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Published

2013-08-20

How to Cite

Välikangas, L., & Romme, G. (2013). How to Design for Strategic Resilience: A Case Study in Retailing. Journal of Organization Design, 2(2), 44–53. https://doi.org/10.7146/jod.7360

Issue

Section

Case Study