Robust Organizations

Robust Organizations

Enabling organizations to master uncertainty and revolve stronger from disruption and crises

The world has become an uncertain place – climate change, accelerating economic and financial crises and pandemics create a new and complex environment for companies to take decisions in. Predictability belongs to the past. The unknown and unexpected are now the rule rather than the exception.

"A Robust Organization successfully adapts, develops and evolves itself to navigate uncertainty, changes and disruption, thereby ultimately preserving its functioning, competitive stance and long-term growth."
Portrait of Ina Wietheger
Senior Partner
Frankfurt Office, Central Europe

Disruptive trends, crises and changes in business paradigms are impacting companies around the globe more frequently than ever. From sustainability to glocalization in value and supply chains, from the race for innovation and disruptive technologies to geopolitical tensions and evolving regulatory frameworks - these are only a few of the many challenges that organizations need to face and navigate through to preserve their future.

Data shows that the average lifespan of companies keeps decreasing. Strategic management concepts have been addressing the secret around business longevity over decades. Now, they seem to struggle to find the answer to the future's challenges.

However, there are and there will always be organizations mastering uncertainty and revolving stronger from disruption and crises. We assign a core characteristic to these organizations: robustness. But what makes them special? How do they become and stay robust? Do they anticipate, plan better? Do they operate better? To which extent do they adapt, maintain, replace?

Companies need to build and secure their capability to manage uncertainty, to adapt, develop and evolve, ultimately preserving their competitive stance and growth. Long lasting companies are underpinned by a holistic thinking for sensing risk and opportunities. They need resources and capabilities, along with the right mix of leadership and courage to act upon them.

Roland Berger has dedicated itself to create a holistic approach for robustness on the base of industry and consulting insights as well as renowned academia. We go beyond mere principles of organizational structure and processes. We don’t believe just "agile" or "holacracy" will help you manage navigate an uncertain and complex future.

And while we know that there is no single, static recipe for success, we want you to focus on what will help you gain the ability to act: by minimizing your weaknesses and maximizing your options. Re-innovating the business and the organizations has become more important than ever, but we also know the importance of balancing adventurousness and stability. We believe that in order to persist, more flexibility is key.

For these reasons, we provide our clients with a comprehensive solution for robustness along the full set of dimensions that strengthen organizations in the long run: Purpose, Strategy & Culture; Leadership & Talent; Processes & Organizational dynamics, Finance & Investments, Ecosystems & Networks; Technology & Data

Publications

Roland Berger regularly publishes studies on the topic of robust organization. Below you will find a selection of our current publications containing the latest research findings and expert assessments.

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