Masterclass 2/3: Resilient Mindset (Ruth Crick)

The UK Government, in its Resilience Framework (UKGRF), underscores the need to centralise local leadership:

"A whole-of-society approach will be central to strengthening the UK's resilience, with a revived effort to inform and empower all parts of society who can make a contribution."

The UKGRF promotes a shift from emergency response to building societal resilience and expanding the roles of  Local Resilience Forums (LRFS) to do this with the appointment of a Chief Resilience Officer (CRO) for each region. The CROs will play a pivotal role in shaping the future resilience of our society, so it is vital that they possess the right skillsets. Traditional crisis response skills are necessary, but they are no longer sufficient. To actively build resilience at the societal level, leaders must possess a unique blend of values, skills and dispositions, with a critical shift in mindset from reactive to proactive. The CROS must empower others to lead within their communities and be the coordinator between LRF-led (top down) and community-led (bottom up) resilience building initiatives.

So what are the characteristics of those that can step up to this challenge? A resilient leader must be both resilient in themselves, lead during adversity, change and challenge but also build trust, consensus and capacity across a wide variety of systems and with a diverse range of people. Resilient leaders are the linchpins of societal resilience. They possess resilient agency for themselves, the awareness and leadership presence to navigate complexities, paired with the clarity of direction and resilient decision-making skills to learn with and lead their communities. As we reflect on the UK National Resilience Framework, particularly the Stronger Local Resilience Forums (LRFs) programme and the role of Chief Resilience Officers (CROs), it becomes evident that this is a pivotal moment in our nation’s approach to resilience and an opportunity to “bounce forward”. This will require cultivating the right leaders for this moment – those that can collaborate and empower others to step up in their communities to build societal resilience.

As part of our leadership programme we are providing 3 summer masterclasses for members - one on resilient leadership, one of resilience mindset and one on systems leadership. We will then be offering a resilient leaders programme in the autumn for resilience practitioners.

Please find the recording for Ruth's masterclass on Resilient Leadership below,