What determines the resilience of retail business in an unstable business environment? Evidence from Harare Province

Abstract

Over recent years, a growing number of researchers and practitioners have developed an interest in the concept of organizational resilience. Amid the turbulent, complex and unpredictable business environment, organisational resilience is regarded as useful in helping organisations to thrive. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of organizational learning, innovation, organizational flexibility and business networks on the resilience of retail organisations in Harare, Zimbabwe. A quantitative approach was used in this study in which two hundred and three retail managers were randomly selected. The results indicate that both organizational learning and innovation have a statistically significant predictive effect on retail business resilience. The results also indicate that both organizational flexibility and business networks do not have statistically significant impact on retail business resilience. Therefore, to be resilient in turbulent environments, retail organizations need to create an environment that promotes learning and innovation.