Presenting a two-phase model of organizational resilience and growth in the face of industrial crises: From operational stabilization to post-crisis innovation

Mehdi Majid; Matin Norouzi

doi:10.63053/ijmea.82

Authors

Mehdi Majid Master of Industrial Engineering, Systems Optimization Major Mobarakeh Steel Venture Fund, Isfahan
Matin Norouzi Master of Business Administration, Operations and Supply Chain Management Mobarakeh Steel Venture Fund, Isfahan

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.63053/ijmea.82

Keywords:

organizational resilience, crisis management, business development, supply chain, digitalization, risk management.

Abstract

In today’s volatile and high-risk environment, industrial organizations face crises that can disrupt their operations, supply chains, energy resources, liquidity, and growth trajectory. Infrastructure disruptions, geopolitical shocks, market volatility, unforeseen events, and resource constraints demonstrate that traditional crisis management approaches, which are largely focused on short-term response and recovery, are insufficient to maintain organizational sustainability and competitiveness. Therefore, organizational resilience is emerging as a strategic capability that, in addition to maintaining survival in a crisis, can also pave the way for learning, redesign, and business development in the post-crisis period. The purpose of this paper is to present a strategic framework for organizational resilience and business development in industrial crises. The proposed framework is based on a two-phase model: the first phase, Stabilization and Survival, emphasizes maintaining a minimum level of operations, managing liquidity, focusing on critical activities, controlling costs, and rapidly reallocating resources. The second phase, Growth and Innovation, focuses on using the crisis as an opportunity for transformation, digitalization, market development, redefining the business model, and creating a sustainable competitive advantage. In this model, supply chain resilience, energy and infrastructure resilience, digitalization and data-driven decision-making, manufacturing and operational flexibility, and enterprise risk management are introduced as key capabilities. The analytical findings of the paper show that organizations that balance short-term survival measures with long-term transformation investments will perform more sustainably in the face of crises. In this approach, resilience is not simply a return to the pre-crisis state, but the ability to learn, redesign, and create new growth paths.

References

1-Christopher, M., & Peck, H. (2004). Building the resilient supply chain. The International Journal of Logistics Management, 15(2), 1–14.

2-Deloitte. (2015). Industry 4.0: Challenges and solutions for the digital transformation and use of exponential technologies. Deloitte AG.

3-Duchek, S. (2019). Organizational resilience: A capability-based conceptualization. Business Research.

4-Hirt, M., Laczkowski, K., & Mysore, M. (2019). Bubbles pop, downturns stop. McKinsey & Company.

5-Ivanov, D. (2020). Viable supply chain model: Integrating agility, resilience and sustainability perspectives—Lessons from and thinking beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. Annals of Operations Research.

6-Ivanov, D., & Dolgui, A. (2020). A digital supply chain twin for managing the disruption risks and resilience in the era of Industry 4.0. Production Planning & Control.

7-Laczkowski, K., & Mysore, M. (2019). Stronger for longer: How top performers thrive through downturns. McKinsey & Company.

8-Lengnick-Hall, C. A., Beck, T. E., & Lengnick-Hall, M. L. (2011). Developing a capacity for organizational resilience through strategic human resource management. Human Resource Management Review, 21(3), 243–255.

9-Pettit, T. J., Fiksel, J., & Croxton, K. L. (2010). Ensuring supply chain resilience: Development of a conceptual framework. Journal of Business Logistics, 31(1), 1–21.

10-Smit, J., Kreutzer, S., Moeller, C., & Carlberg, M. (2016). Industry 4.0. European Parliament, Directorate-General for Internal Policies, Policy Department A: Economic and Scientific Policy.

11-Wieland, A., & Wallenburg, C. M. (2013). The influence of relational competencies on supply chain resilience: A relational view. International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, 43(4), 300–320.