The Role of Leaders in Enabling Organizational Resilience by Generating a Culture of Grit

The introduction of COVID-19 was unprecedented in modern day society. A crisis with such widespread global impact was unimaginable to many organizational leaders prior to the start of 2020. This leads to the questions: what does it take for organizations to persist through such an unparalleled global situation? What role do leaders play in enabling organizations to persist during a crisis? How can leaders foster an environment where the organization is able to be resilient through such a crisis? This chapter will propose that organizations with gritty cultures are better equipped to persist through crisis and demonstrate organizational resilience in the face of obstacles. This chapter will highlight the elements of a culture of organizational grit and how those elements contribute to resilience. Further, the chapter will emphasize the role that leaders play in establishing a culture of organizational grit, enabling their organization to be resilient when overcoming catastrophic events.