HRO: (8) Resilience, Repentance and Humility

Despite individual and organizational efforts, errors will occur.  HROs know this and prepare for the inevitability.  They demonstrate what is called “commitment to resilience”, exemplified by rapid identification of an error or threat to safety followed by containment and necessary adaptation to prevent future similar errors.  HROs are not debilitated by mistakes or accidents, they learn from them.  The principles already discussed contribute to this resilience—an organization which is preoccupied with failure will quickly identify an error or hazard; an organization which does not simplify observations and is sensitive to operations will not dismiss early warning signals of a possible failure; and it will not dismiss voices of concern in the organization.  

The first step is an acknowledgement that errors will happen.  This requires a system-wide humility driven by personal humility at every level.  But who among us likes to admit we are wrong?  The human response is most often one of defensiveness, blaming and finger pointing—reread the story of the Fall as a classic “pass the buck” story; human beings have been blaming each other for failure since the beginning.  To do otherwise requires intentional resistance to our instincts for self-preservation, and requires that the organization have a climate of trust wherein people are confident that their acknowledgement of a mistake will not be held against them.  

Humility and repentance should not be new behaviors for Christians; we know that “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst” (1 Timothy 1: 15).  Without an acknowledgement of sin, there is no acknowledged need for a savior and we remain dead in our sins without Him (1 John 1: 8-10).  Psalm 51 is a cry for mercy from a repentant heart; the psalmist calls to God for forgiveness and for a new and pure heart, acknowledging bluntly his sin and failure before God but coming confidently trusting in God’s unfailing love and compassion.  We say with Paul “…what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do”, acknowledging that we behave contrary to both righteousness and good sense.  The humility that leads to early identification and containment of errors can be an expression of Christian humility in the workplace.

I said earlier that “There is a mental tension that must be present to be preoccupied with failure:  we are attempting to simultaneously believe that we will fail but that we cannot allow ourselves to fail.  To hold that tension requires alertness and attentiveness, but also an enduring hopefulness and self-forgiveness.”  The same characteristics that support preoccupation with failure allow us to commit to resilience, but where preoccupation with failure emphasizes alertness, a commitment to resilience emphasizes forgiveness and hope for the future. 

If we return to Psalm 51, we will find a pattern for our commitment to resilience.  Written by David after his disastrous and destructive affair with Bathsheba, Psalm 51 exemplifies the humility and hope for a future we’ve discussed.  All repentance, forgiveness and hope belongs centered on God in Christ, and as Christians we can bring new dimensions of sincerity, justice and compassion to the workplace as we look to emulate God’s mercy and grace.  

Psalm 51 is sectioned by theme—possibly even the spacing in your Bible indicates this.  Verses 1 and 2 are a raw and impassioned cry for mercy and cleansing; verses 3 through 6 are a confession of sin and of general sinfulness.  Verse 6 acknowledges that God desires truth and requests the wisdom for self-reflection and confession.  This is at the heart of being an HRO and demonstrating commitment to resilience—the wisdom to seek out truth and to reject sin and error.  Verses 7 through 9 are a cry for forgiveness and cleansing, followed by a request for a new, pure heart and a renewed relationship with God.  A commitment to resilience demands not just repentance and forgiveness—finding and fixing an error—but it requires renewal and sustainment of the correction.

Verse 13 starts with “Then”, our transition word indicating “in light of all that precedes,” and goes on with the author promising three specific things:  to teach others to repent from sin; to sing praises of God’s righteousness; to remain contrite and humble.  For someone working in or leading an HRO, we can clearly apply these “then” behaviors to our workplace:  create a workplace where errors are actively identified and corrected, where right behaviors are desirable and rewarded, and where humility and desire for correction, improvement and growth are part of the culture.  

I think it is worth highlighting verses 16 and 17, where David discusses the difference between offering animal sacrifices versus a repentant and humble heart.  We are not just interested in a workplace where right actions are performed, we do not want a workplace full of empty sacrifices; instead, we want a workplace with a true commitment to finding and fixing errors, where humility and receptivity to correction are the norm.  This is a leadership challenge, to create a workplace full of right hearts and not only right actions.  The final prayer of the psalm, in verses 18 and 19, is that God build up His people with success and righteousness, such that their sacrifices come from right hearts and right motivations.  An organization committed to resilience will be an organization full of people humbly looking for errors, recognizing their error-prone nature, and willing to be corrected; an organization where right actions are adopted for the right reasons, not just as an outward display; and an organization that thrives and prospers.  

Is it a stretch to contrast Psalm 51 to an HRO?  Possibly. Is it a stretch to say that commitment to resilience looks like humble repentance and desire for renewal?  I don’t think so.  If commitment to resilience means that errors don’t disable an organization, then the cycle of repentance, forgiveness and renewal described in scripture is an appropriate model.  Without repentance, there is no identification of errors or opportunity to learn; without forgiveness there is only bitterness and resentment; without renewal, there is only stagnation and an endless cycle of the same mistakes.   As sinners in a sinful world, the model of repentance, forgiveness and renewal given by God in Christ fits perfectly in all areas of life, including the workplace.

1)      Read Psalm 51: 3 – 6.  What does this reality do for your understanding and expectations for yourself, the people you work with and the people who work for you?  Does this enhance or undermine your “commitment to resilience”?

2)      Verse 13 describes the psalmist’s plan to lead others toward righteousness, in response to the mercy he has received.  How does this exemplify the commitment to resilience—in particular, commitment to learning and improvement—that an HRO demonstrates?

3)      Psalm 51 tells of the psalmist’s impassioned cry for mercy, one which is simultaneously confident that mercy will be supplied and that he will be forgiven.  He says in verse 17 “….a broken and a contrite heart O God, you will not despise.”  An HRO is both preoccupied with failure and committed to resilience:  how does this duality rely upon forgiveness and mercy?  What would preoccupation with failure and commitment to resilience look like without mercy?

4)      What are you doing to sustain your personal resilience?  Do you engage in a regular practice of reflection, repentance and prayers for forgiveness?  If not, consider how you could integrate this into your spiritual life.