PREPARE AND PERFORM IN A DANGEROUS WORLD - TWO STUDIES OF ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE IN HAZARDOUS CONTEXTS

Abstract

The world is an extraordinarily dangerous place with an array of escalating threats. Reports of terrorism, natural disasters, and political unrest are stark reminders of the dangerous context in which businesses must perform. To learn more about what firms can do to perform despite these dangers, we conduct two studies about the relationship between organizational preparedness and performance. The research question addressed by our first study is whether international businesses somehow convert previous terrorism exposures and/or experience operating in high-risk locations into an ability to bounce back quickly from future terrorist attacks. Our second study looks within the firm to see whether efforts to ensure workplace safety translate into performance. Our research addresses gaps in the literature concerning how firms maintain performance in a dangerous, uncertain world, and specifically into what organizational preparedness efforts help firms maintain performance despite unexpected disruptions. Our research contributes to a theory of organizational resilience and suggests to managers that business continuity planning and safety preparedness enhance resilience and performance in a dangerous world.