Building Resilient Teams in 2025: Strategies to Improve Retention, Reduce Burnout, and Boost Productivity
Imagine being able to handle anything that came your way. Now imagine if your employees could handle anything that came their way. Sound too good to be true? Well, for individuals and companies that are resilient, this is reality. While resiliency has been a major buzzword since the COVID-19 epidemic, it is a skill that has always been important for life and business.
As the world and business have evolved, resilience has become the cornerstone of success. How so? Well, teams that adapt, recover, and grow stronger from challenges thrive in today’s unpredictable workplace. Make no mistake; resilience is no longer a luxury—it is essential for improving employee retention, reducing burnout, and enhancing productivity. In this blog, we explore actionable strategies to help leaders build resilient teams equipped to navigate the challenges of 2025.
The Importance of Resilience in Today’s Workplace
What Is Resilience?
First and foremost, we have to understand what resilience is. Resilience is the ability to withstand, adapt to, and recover from challenges. In a business context, it means more than just bouncing back after setbacks; it’s about learning, growing, and thriving because of challenges. This quality enables employees to manage workplace stress effectively and stay focused on goals, even when the unexpected occurs.
Why Does Resilience Matter?
Employee Retention: Resilience helps employees stay engaged and committed, even in high-pressure environments. Resilient employees who manage workplace stress effectively are less likely to experience turnover.
Burnout Reduction: Resilient individuals can regulate their emotions and maintain clarity under pressure, reducing the risk of burnout and promoting better physical and mental health.
Increased Productivity: Teams that anticipate challenges and adapt proactively maintain productivity during disruptions.
Organizational Success: Creates a culture of adaptability that supports sustainable growth.
Now, imagine navigating stormy seas without a map or compass. That’s how many employees feel when faced with constant workplace challenges, from tight deadlines to shifting priorities or unexpected changes. Without resilience, individuals can quickly become overwhelmed, disengaged, or even decide to leave their roles entirely, negatively impacting their well-being and organizational commitment.
Resilience as a Tool to Combat Burnout
Burnout—characterized by emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and decreased productivity—remains a pressing issue for organizations across industries. It not only impacts an employee's mental health but also affects team dynamics, workplace morale, and overall organizational performance. Don’t think it is a major issue? In the U.S., a 2024 report by Gallup indicated that 76% of employees experience burnout on the job at least sometimes, with 28% reporting that they feel burned out “very often” or “always.” For healthcare, the burnout number is 48%.
Building resilience is a crucial strategy to combat burnout, as it empowers employees to manage stress more effectively, regulate their emotions, and recover from setbacks with greater ease. Teams equipped with these skills not only experience less burnout but also enjoy improved collaboration, higher engagement, and greater overall job satisfaction, creating a healthier and more sustainable work environment.
Identifying Resilience in Your Team
The Importance of Behavioral Assessments
Before building resilience in your team, it’s crucial to identify your employees' existing resilience level. In addition, team leaders and organizations would be best served by understanding the strengths and weaknesses of their employees. One way to get a better sense of an employee’s strength beyond the technical skills of the job is to use a personality or behavioral assessment.
Behavioral assessments such as the Predictive Index or DISC profiles can provide valuable insights into how team members respond to stress and adapt to change. These tools help you understand individual temperaments and guide resilience training efforts to create a more resilient workforce.
Key Questions to Identify Resilience in New Hires
During the hiring process, make it a priority to ask open-ended questions that go beyond yes-or-no answers. These types of questions are designed to encourage storytelling and allow candidates or employees to share real-life examples of their experiences. By prompting them to describe specific situations, you can gain valuable insights into how they have handled challenges, overcome obstacles, and demonstrated resilience in the face of adversity.
This approach not only provides a deeper understanding of their skills and problem-solving abilities but also reveals their character, adaptability, and potential for growth within your organization.". Examples include:
"Tell me about a time when you faced a significant challenge at work. How did you overcome it?"
"Describe a situation where you had to adapt to sudden changes. What was your approach?"
"Explain how you handle high-pressure situations and maintain focus on goals."
Pay attention to the candidate’s ability to reflect on their experiences and articulate their problem-solving process. This will help you gauge their resilience and adaptability, which are crucial for managing workplace stress and ensuring well-being.
Characteristics of Resilient Teams
While asking the right open-ended questions and utilizing personality assessments is a great way to uncover whether current or prospective employees have resilience within them, it is important to understand what you need to see from employees that greatly determines whether or not you will have a workplace culture that is marked by resilience.
At the end of the day, it is the behaviors that you see from employees that determines who they are and what they bring to the table. In addition, it is also important for organizations and leaders to know what they can do to foster a resilient environment that promotes work happiness and overall well-being.
Key Traits:
Psychological Safety: Team members feel safe sharing ideas and concerns without fear of judgment.
Strong Communication: Clear, open, and honest dialogue is essential for building trust, resolving conflicts, and ensuring everyone is on the same page. It fosters better collaboration and understanding in any situation.
Shared Purpose: Everyone understands and aligns with organizational goals and values, which reinforces organizational commitment.
Flexibility: The ability to adapt to changing circumstances and a willingness to pivot strategies or approaches when needed to achieve better outcomes.
Collective Problem-Solving: Tackling challenges as a team by fostering open communication and collaboration, focusing on finding effective solutions together rather than placing blame on individuals.
Strategies to Cultivate Resilience
Regardless of who you hire or who you have already hired, the key to building a culture of resilience is what you do every day, every week, and every month. While you might have to hire some individuals who have a strong sense of resilience, you will definitely have great employees who provide a ton of talent but have minimal resilience. So what should you do? Fire them! Just kidding. Act on the following plan and watch your team soar.
1. Foster Psychological Safety
Psychological safety is the foundation of a resilient team. When employees feel secure sharing ideas, admitting mistakes, and voicing concerns without fear of judgment, they are more likely to adapt and innovate.
Encourage open communication and collaboration.
Model calm and composed behavior during stressful situations.
Provide constructive feedback and recognize efforts to adapt and improve.
2. Develop Clear Values and Goals
Resilient teams align their actions with a shared purpose. Clearly defined company values and goals provide a sense of direction, even during turbulent times.
Communicate your organization’s mission and how each role contributes to it.
Reinforce the importance of teamwork and shared objectives, such as improving patient outcomes in healthcare settings or exceeding client expectations in a business environment.
3. Train for Difficult Scenarios
Preparation is key to building resilience. Regular training sessions and rehearsals for high-pressure scenarios can help employees develop the skills needed to navigate challenges.
Role-play common stressors, such as handling an influx of clients or managing last-minute schedule changes.
Create simulated situations to test adaptability and problem-solving skills.
Debrief after training sessions to discuss lessons learned and areas for improvement.
4. Promote Proactive Mindsets
Proactive individuals anticipate challenges and plan accordingly. Encourage employees to shift from a reactive to a proactive mindset.
Teach employees to identify potential stressors in their lives and develop contingency plans.
Provide resources and tools to help them stay organized and prepared.
5. Encourage Emotional Regulation
Stress can cloud judgment and derail productivity. Resilient employees understand how to manage their emotions effectively.
Offer stress management training, such as mindfulness techniques or time management workshops.
Encourage a culture of self-care, emphasizing the importance of work-life balance and overall well-being.
Recognize and reward calm, composed decision-making under pressure.
Measuring the Impact of Resilience Training
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
What gets measured gets managed. Many of you have heard this phrase and the importance of it cannot be downplayed. When you put initiatives in place and begin to train employees, you are spending time and possibly money that you would like to see turn into positive outcomes. However, how would you know if what you are doing is working? Ultimately, to evaluate the effectiveness of your resilience-building initiatives, you have to track measurable outcomes such as:
Turnover Rates: Monitor employee retention rates before and after implementing resilience training.
Productivity Metrics: Assess whether employees maintain or improve performance during high-stress periods, contributing to increased productivity.
Employee Feedback: Conduct regular surveys to gauge satisfaction and identify areas for improvement.
Stress Testing
While numbers tell you a lot, they certainly don’t tell you everything. You need to see how people will respond in certain situations and you need to gain a sense of how they will think in those situations. Therefore, you should put your team’s resilience to the test by introducing controlled challenges. For example:
Increase workloads temporarily to simulate peak business periods.
Run mock crisis drills to evaluate decision-making and collaboration.
Measure how quickly and effectively the team adapts to these scenarios.
Qualitative Feedback
Feedback from employees is absolutely invaluable. Seeing numbers on a spreadsheet and conducting stress tests are crucial to improving the resilience of employees. However, you should also conduct one-on-one check-ins and team meetings to gather qualitative insights regarding employee performance as a way to know how you can add value. As a result, you should ask questions such as:
"What challenges are you facing, and how can we support you?"
"What changes have you noticed in how the team handles stress?"
"What additional resources would help you feel more resilient?"
Leadership’s Role in Building Resilience
Resilience starts at the top. Leaders set the tone for how the team responds to adversity, demonstrating the mindset and behaviors needed to navigate challenges. A resilient leader fosters confidence, adaptability, and a sense of purpose, creating a ripple effect that inspires the entire team to stay focused and strong during tough times. Leaders should do the following:
Model Resilient Behavior
Demonstrate composure and adaptability in high-pressure situations.
Share personal experiences of overcoming obstacles to inspire your team.
Create a Culture of Learning
Embrace mistakes as opportunities for growth.
Encourage continuous learning through workshops, mentorship programs, and peer feedback.
Celebrate Resilience
Acknowledge and reward employees who demonstrate resilience.
Highlight examples of adaptability and innovation during team meetings to reinforce positive behavior.
The Long-Term Benefits of Resilience
The goal of any company is not just to go from good to great but to make themselves built to last. While there are many aspects of running a business that play a major role in helping it thrive and grow, resiliency is high on the list.
Oftentimes, companies focus exclusively on their product but then they forget that their greatest asset is its employees. That is why organizations that prioritize resilience reap long-term benefits, including:
Stronger Teams: Resilient teams are more cohesive and better equipped to handle challenges collaboratively.
Improved Morale: Employees feel valued and supported, leading to higher work happiness and job satisfaction.
Sustainable Growth: Adaptable teams maintain productivity and innovation, driving organizational success.
Building Resilient Teams in Healthcare
1. Hire for Resilience
The foundation of a resilient team starts with hiring individuals who can handle challenges with grace. During interviews, ask open-ended questions that encourage candidates to share stories about overcoming adversity.
These questions provide insight into a candidate’s ability to problem-solve, manage stress, and recover from setbacks. Hiring resilient employees ensures your team can maintain composure and productivity in the face of daily healthcare challenges.
2. Align Roles with Company Values
Resilience is easier to foster when employees understand their purpose and feel valued. Ensure that all team members, from medical providers to front desk staff, see how their roles contribute to patient care and the organization’s mission. Regularly communicate company values and reinforce how each individual’s efforts play a critical role in achieving these goals.
3. Train for Stressful Scenarios
Preparation is key to building resilience. Train employees to handle high-pressure situations, such as late or early patient arrivals, schedule changes, and workflow disruptions. Role-playing scenarios during training sessions can help staff develop problem-solving skills and build confidence. By rehearsing responses to common stressors, employees will be better equipped to maintain composure and deliver excellent service.
Key Takeaways: Resilience in Action
Building resilience requires intentionality. It starts with identifying what drives your team, acknowledging vulnerabilities, and committing to continuous growth. Resilient leaders inspire their teams to stay composed under pressure, adapt to change, and innovate through collaboration.
Antonio Garcia and Dr. Dan Neissany, hosts of the podcast All Things LOCS, offer valuable insights into fostering resilience. They highlight how leadership, clear processes, and adaptability can transform workplace culture and improve organizational success.
Resilience isn’t about avoiding failure—it’s about learning how to fall and rise again, stronger and more prepared. If you’re ready to lead with purpose, build a team that thrives under pressure, and take your life and business to the next level, start by subscribing to All Things LOCS. Each episode is packed with insights, real-world examples, and actionable advice that will inspire you to tackle challenges with confidence
Action Steps:
For those seeking a deeper dive into resilience-building strategies, Antonio and Dan are offering a complimentary 30-minute strategy call. This personalized session is an opportunity to assess your challenges, set goals, and develop a roadmap for lasting success.
📅 Book your free strategy call NOW!
