In the previous article, I discussed the three-tiered approach organisations take to the management of wellbeing. I mentioned that organisations need to think of resilience as a primary strategy and noted that the starting point for building resilience is the introduction of a suitable diagnostic. In this article, I want to discuss the components of a suitable resilience audit.
A good resilience audit will adhere to four critical criteria. Firstly, the audit must be reliable, which is to say, it must be a stable and consistent measure of resilience. We need to know that we can rely on the results derived from the assessment. We need to know that while a snapshot, the results will have some longevity and not vary too much over time. Without reliability, we can’t substantiate decisions from the assessment.
Secondly, the measure needs to be valid. We need to know that the assessment measures what it purports to measure and relates to real-world outcomes. We need to know that the results measure the resilience factors they claim to measure, and the results relate to work outcomes such as performance, absenteeism, and sick leave.
Thirdly, we need appropriate benchmarking data to compare organisation and individual results. Understanding resilience is comparative, and we need to compare the results of individuals and organisations to establish resiliency strengths and weaknesses.
Finally, we need a robust model of resilience. Any conclusions related to resilience must cover the core, most essential areas for assessing resilience.
The Talogy resilience questionnaire is one of the few resilience diagnostics that meet guidelines for both reliability and validity, as well as having one of the world’s largest resilience comparisons groups, ensuring that an assessment of resilience using the RQ is both robust and benchmarked internationally. Our proprietary model of resilience is based on contemporary resilience research, and I would like to conclude by reviewing the model developed by Talogy, outlining what a comprehensive measure of resilience will need to cover.
The Talogy Resilience Questionnaire measures three global resilience factors that compromise a person’s resilience quotient. The first factor is cognitive and involves assessing a person’s self-belief and optimism. Self-belief refers to individual confidence; the ability to address problems and obstacles one encounters. In addition, optimism is the extent to which an individual believes they will experience good outcomes in life and the way they explain setbacks.
The second cluster of resilience strategies is behavioural. Behavioural strategies will result in a person making moves to enhance their level of resilience and focus on motivational strategies such as goal setting and habit formation. Through the adoption of effective behavioural strategies, individuals can develop purposeful direction, adaptability, challenge orientation, and ingenuity, all key factors to the development of resilience.
Finally, we have the interpersonal strategies; Emotional regulation and support-seeking. Unlike the first two factors, interpersonal factors are secondary strategies needed when one experiences stress. However, by being aware of scores on these factors, individuals and organisations can put in place strategies to become more resilient, thus increasing their ability to cope with difficult times.
Together these three resilience factors provide a comprehensive assessment of a personal and organisational resilience quotient. The scores on each resilience strategy provide a starting point for understanding resilience strengths and where intervention is required. Having assessed resilience accurately, we are in a position to raise resilience levels. In the final article in this series, we will look at the interventions required to raise organisational and personal resilience in line with the RQ assessment.
