Building resilience in the face of the polycrisis

The problem

According to the UK’s Office of National Statistics, in 2022/23, an average of approximately 37% of women and 30% of men reported high levels of anxiety. Compared to data between 2012 and 2015, this percentage has significantly increased – from approximately 22% of women and 18% of men reporting high levels of anxiety at that time. Similarly, a June 2023 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report shows that nearly 1 in 5 American adults have been at some time diagnosed with depression, a 7% jump from 2015.

The polycrisis

Defined by the World Economic Forum in its 2023 Global Risks Report as a moment “where disparate crises interact such that the overall impact far exceeds the sum of each part”, and by the Collins English Dictionary as “the simultaneous occurrence of several catastrophic events”, the polycrisis is a result and legacy of the entanglement of the global Covid-19 pandemic, economic downturn, inflation, the Ukraine war, climate constraints, and a bundle of other complexities.

Steps to take

Whether we like it or not, this state of affairs needs to be tackled by all professional service organisations. In order to implement a strategy of growth in a period of doubt, (1) the first step is to ensure a two-way alignment of the firm’s values with employees. (2) The second step is to  realise that our employees and colleagues may not be at their best at the moment due to rising uncertainty in the world. (3) The next crucial step is to be aware of how to take advantage of this uncertainty, or rather, to turn a difficult period into an opportunity. (4) Step four is to implement a strategic plan of efficiency across the firm, in all departments, with buy-in from the whole team. 

As Peter Drucker says, “Efficiency is doing better what is already being done.” Thomas Edison said, “There’s a way to do it better – find it.” No ideas are off limits, and everyone can contribute. 

Resilience

With these steps in place, we can begin to shape a growth mindset throughout the firm. The narrative becomes not one of cost-cutting but one of efficient communal growth. Following recent research on resilience, Professor Ranjay Gulati of Harvard Business School tells us, “True resilience involves more than recovering from or resisting the effects of adversity. It is the ability to emerge even stronger” (Harvard Business Review, July–August 2023). 

Our four steps encourage employee empowerment, a culture of growth, a search for betterment, and a shared goal – all ideal ingredients for developing resilience, without which it is difficult to imagine rewarding work.

Raf Uzar focuses on firm-wide communication and marketing. He is a member of the UK's Chartered Institute of Marketing and supports the team at Penteris in his role as Head of Marketing, Communication and Development.