ORGAnisational resilience analysis introduction This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement no. 653390

Why talk about Organisational Resilience? Resilience is an answer to growing industrial and societal complexity Digitalisation Automation Growing organisations Globalisation Safety science has become interested in the concept of resilience much because of the growing complexity of our societies. This complexity is driven by phenomena such as: Digitalisation – New possibilities of gathering and processing information Automation – New ways of controlling processes, really affecting work Growing organisations – more layers, subcontracting, more administration Globalisation – many enterprises work globally – economic pressures All of these conditions can create more complex working environments When workplaces become more complex we cannot foresee every possible threat, every possible combination of factors that result in an accident.

From Safety I to Safety II Traditional safety management mainly focuses on when things go wrong - identifying direct/apparent risks and countering them with rules and barriers. But, most of the time operations are successful - things go right! Making decisions about how to run the organization and how to shape the workplace based on negative outcomes is a limited approach This is the shift in focus between Safety I and Safety II - What goes wrong vs. what goes right Safety II is about understanding how people in the workplace make things work An incident not primarily a test for the crisis plan of an organization, instead it is a test for how the organisation functions under normal conditions – whether the workplace is adapted to user needs, how experience is built, whether there is working collaboration, how the workplace is managed etc. Supporting good outcomes demands an understanding of everyday working conditions and how can we reinforce everyday work

SOCIETY ORGANISATION FACILITY To be able to reach Safety II and support organisational resilience, we need to acknowledge that the technical aspects of a workplace only make up a small part of how the organisation achieves its goals This is called a systems perspective Behind the technical system (the facility) we have… the people whose work enable smooth operations Organisations, their structures, working practice, procedures etc Technology in the sense of tools, supports, information resources etc that can support or obstruct operations Organisational culture Above the organisation, other conditions will also affect operations such as economic pressures, legislation and public interest Resilience has to do with understanding why things go right, how people adapt in order to handle the situation and be successful – and how we can support these adaptations by developing the whole system. For all of these aspects of the organization, design thinking can be used to make improvements.

Organisational Resilience ”The ability to adapt and succeed under varying conditions and circumstances” Taking into account… A Systems Perspective – A system of people and technology Variability – The system will not always behave in the same way Complexity – We are sometimes subjected to unforeseen events What about ”Organisational”? What can organisations do to enable resilient action? Organisational Resilience has been defined within IMPROVER as: The ability to adapt and succeed under varying conditions and circumstances This includes: What factors enable people to succeed in the work they do, each and every day All the adaptations made by people working together, adaptations that are not always described in procedures, but that are crucial for smooth operations To understand how we can support organizational resilience we need to acknowledge… A systems perspective Variability – That working conditions vary and that work in the real world demands experience and creativity Complexity – That we cannot plan for everything and that every aspect of work cannot be standardised The “Organisational” part of organizational resilience has to do with the way we reinforce resilient abilities

What are some marks of resilient action? Flexibility in operations: actions, methods, roles, relations… Creativity Initiative Ownership Engagement Competence/experience Room for action Collaboration Autonomy Climate Support Resilient action during work is characterized by: Flexibility in unexpected situations – with respect to actions, methods, roles, collaborations Creativity and creative collaboration Initiative – that people are quick to act, something that is made possible by experience. Ownership, that employees share a sense of responsibility for the workplace and that they want to act to overcome challenges. All of these marks of resilient action can be matched against organizational traits and practices. Flexibility Buildinf of competence and experience – The foundation of resilient action Room for action – that employees can act on their understanding e.g. with regard to procedures, work design, economics Collaboration – Sharing knowledge and flexible collaboration Creativity An organizational climate promoting creativity and creative collaboration Support That people have the right tools for the job – e.g. in terms of working environments, technical/digital support tools, guides, procedures etc Initiative That workers are allowed to take initiatives and make decisions Climate – Open dialogue and broad participation is allowed Ownership Engagement – That there are opportunities for the individual to engage actively in problem-solving That employees are given the opportunity to contribute to and develop many aspects of the workplace That the organizational climate is including and that hierarchies do not inhibit the employee’s sense of ownership

The Organisational Resilience Framework FUNCTIONS Design of Roles, Tasks and Processes Artefact Design – Procedures & Tools Strengthening Collaboration Learning & Re-Design Underlying Concepts & Values The IORA framework has been structured to show how overall organisational characteristics that support resilience can be broken down into concrete goals and processes. The elements (functions) at the top level of the framework is based on research from other domains and completed by data from a case study wtihin IMPROVER Design of roles, tasks and processes Organisational design – hiearchies, information flow, task design etc Allowing for flexibility/autonomy Management – employee engagement, shared understanding Artefact design – procedures & tools The environments and tools that support us When changes are made, how that is done – participative practices, a focus on practical use That working conditions are continuously questioned and revisioned Strengthening collaboration The way relationships are built, both internally and externally That there is room for collaboration and the building of shared understanding Learning & re-design That the organisation tries to understand both crises, everyday working challenges and good outcomes That findings are used to make improvements Underlying concepts & values That the organisation and its leadership apply a systems perspective on management and operations – that many elements of the organisation must function together That people are a success factor, because experienced employees are good at handling the variability and complexity of the real world That management and operations are brought closer together A positive aspect of working with resilience is that the things that support resilient action also make for a more attractive workplace, with more engaged employees and better outcomes overall.

How is organisational resilience sustained? Organisational policies Design processes Learning processes Change processes Analytical processes By strengthening the capacity for resilient action through organizational interventions it becomes more likely that organizational resilience is sustained We do this by shaping organizational artefacts such as: Organisational policies Design processes Learning processes Change processes Analytical processes (work analysis, event analysis)

Interviews and observations Process Overview Context Awareness: Interviews and observations Optional local activities Joint OR analysis workshop IORA is a simple process where assessment based on narratives – events and experiences are viewed as important to understand what enables the organisation to act resiliently An assessor engages with people in the organisation collecting cases and narratives that can be used to understand resilient action This material is analysed for markers of resilience that can be explored, using the IORA framework as a reference Employees are gathered in a workshop facilitated by the assessor, working through on or several example cases and discussing the findings The findings are compared to framework indicators Potential changes or interventions are explored from a use-centred and systemic perspective The activity itself has a value for organisational resilience, it will allow a discussion of important issues with many voices represented and bring cohesion around them