I read an article called “hanging tough” while I was flying back from the ERE Conference in San Diego last month. The article hit the nail on the head and I’d like to share my thoughts.

Think of all the companies that have hit a bump in the road. Some of them bounced back, seemingly against all odds. Others faded away. Does anyone remember Peoples Express? What about Apple? They both faced tremendously difficult odds. I studied the massive Peoples Express failure in 1988, just as I was completing my MBA. However, Apple is still around. You see, Apple came to terms with the changing landscape, recognizing they wouldn’t be able to recapture their market share as a manufacturer of personal computers. If I recall correctly, they used to have 20 percent of the market share, or close to it. They looked beyond what had previously defined their organization and decided to take advantage of an incredible new market trend.

Now Apple has redefined the way we “view” the concept of music entertainment. Apple is a digital media powerhouse. Think about it, consumers’ preferences were changing, so was technology and then there was Steve Jobs’ cancer scare. God knows how many times the general public expected to see Apple fail, but their organization took all of the unexpected adversities in stride. A less resilient organization would have surely succumbed to the pressures and met the expectation to fail. Not Apple!

Apple, along with many others, is a shining illustration of “adaptability” and “flexibility,” demonstrating they can recover when they hit a bump in the road. The organization is connected and well-integrated. In other words, the left hand knows what the right hand is doing. They also happen to be masters in execution and getting the job done. They are resilient.

To be continued…Check back tomorrow for tips to ensure your organization is resilient.

Nick Tubach, Founder, President and CEO of Q4B