"My argument is that the company, the community, the county, the city, the town that most closely mirrors Mother Nature’s strategies for building resilience and propulsion when the climate changes is the one that will thrive in this age of acceleration." Thomas Friedman
You’ve heard us say it many times – we believe when looking to solve a problem, you must look far outside the problem at the broader vision of an organization taking all factors into account or as we like to call it the “Echosystem”. In this current climate, where organizations are having to constantly pivot, adapt & problem-solve to sustain & thrive, this concept is more important than ever. Looking far beyond a project’s lifestyle or scope at the entire ecosystem to achieve long term sustainability.
When looking at the resilience of natural ecosystems, we can learn a lot when it comes to organizational resilience in business. When we look at resilient ecosystems in nature, you notice that they all have symbiosis interdependencies & are continuously adapting to changes in their environment.
Just like when analyzing natural ecosystems and the different harmonious relationships, we
believe that you must look outside the problem you are striving to solve at all contributing factors. All these factors link together and impact each other in different ways. In nature, these components could be size, weather, or other species that can all impact what was needed to sustain. This is no different when looking to create organizational resilience in businesses. You must look at the entire ecosystem of an organization to determine a solution that will be most beneficial for the entire organization. If you take a micro approach only analyzing your project's lifecycle and the solution you are looking to gain, you will miss all the other relational components that will lead to long term success.
Resilient ecosystems in nature live in a constant state of evolution to adapt to changing elements. The same can be said for resilient businesses. This year businesses have had to adapt and transform like never before due to the impacts of Covid-19. Businesses that when faced with challenges can analyze and strategically adapt will be able to sustain and be successful long term.
One of the ways we like to help foster organizational resilience in our clients is by building self-sufficiency, not dependency. By implementing the correct systems & procedures & training on project management practices that best fit their organization giving them the toolset needed to handle any problem that may arise and adapt successfully.