True Resilience Is Built Beforehand or Not at All

A Personal Letter from the COO of Silicon Valley Innovation Center

Intimes of crisis, the winners are decided long before the storm hits. I learnedthis lesson firsthand on Wall Street in 2008,in Silicon Valley during 2020 andlearning this in 2025. Whether it was a global financial meltdown or a pandemiclockdown, the organizations that prevailed were those that had quietly preparedfor turmoil in advance. The companies that made it through didn’t just respondbetter—they had already built for uncertainty. Today, amid trade wars, inflation, and political rifts, the sameprinciple holds: the best way to navigate tomorrow’s uncertainty is to startbuilding ability to change now.

A Tale of Two Crises

My first real exposure to how organizationshandle uncertainty came when I joined Goldman Sachs just after the 2008financial crash. It was an intense time—markets were in free fall, confidencehad evaporated, and yet here I was, sitting in a over airconditioned roomoverlooking the Hudson river. The grey interior room was full of new analystshearing from then-CFO David Viniar – 30 year GS veteran by then.

He told us something that I still remember15 years later:

“When you are in bad times – remember, theywill pass; but when you are in the good times – remember, they will pass too”

That mindset—always expecting thechange—shaped everything Goldman did. People often assume Goldman came out ofthe crisis unscathed. That’s not quite true. There was pain. Viniar himselfadmitted that their models hadn’t accounted for a 25 standard deviation move—statistically speaking, something soimprobable it shouldn’t have happened in the lifetime of the universe.

But here’s what made the difference:Goldman could respond faster than almost anyone else.
Their systems—especially around pricing, sales, and risk—were built for speedand agility. Again, not for regulation or headlines—but for the ability to movefast and trust what’s being done.

They had poured resources into what many atthe time saw as “low-value” infrastructure: complex pricing engines,back-office automation, tight data pipelines. These weren’t “cutting-edge”.They didn’t win awards. But when liquidity vanished and the market for complexportfolios turned opaque, Goldman’s infrastructure let them reprice portfoliosin hours, not days. That speed gavethem options. That speed saved them. The lesson was simple: by the time acrisis arrives, it’s too late toinvent a playbook.

True resilience is built beforehandor not at all.

Fast-forward a decade, and I was on theother side of the country in Silicon Valley, watching the pandemic upendeverything again. This time it was a different kind of chaos—offices shut down,global demand collapsed in some sectors and exploded in others, every companywas scrambling. But again, a familiar pattern emerged: the companies that haddone the real work beforehand adapted best.

Amazon is the obvious example. Almostinstantaneously, Amazon became a lifeline for millions stuck at home, and itsrevenues and profits exploded. The company reported a near 200% rise in profitsduring the pandemic as online shopping demand surged​ . But Amazon’s successwasn’t because its leaders suddenly devised brilliant emergency tactics inMarch 2020—it was the product of years of investment in adaptable, scalablesystems. Long before anyone heard of COVID-19, Amazon had bet heavily one-commerce infrastructure, cloud computing capacity, and a decentralized“two-pizza team” architecture (microservices) that allowed it to scale quicklyand innovate on the fly. Those pre-pandemic decisions meant that when crisishit, Amazon could expand rather than contract: in 2020 it expanded itsfulfillment network by 50%, adding 250,000 employees to meet skyrocketingdemand.

I remember startups here in the Valleyscaling 10x overnight—not because they had genius responses, but because their systems could handle it. It camefrom the culture – when VCs give you millions of dollars, they expect you toscale tomorrow, not in a year. It was the difference between hoping your engine holds at high RPMsand having already tested it on the track.

What I’ve Found Interesting About How Organizations Thrive Under Pressure

Working with companies to prepare forhigh-pressure situations, a clear pattern emerges those that thrive underuncertainty usually laid groundwork well before any changes come. They investedin resilience during the good times – whether in their supply chains, systems,or culture – so that when disruption came, they could adapt instead of panic.And, again, that disruption does not need to be negative to destroy yourcompany – can you handle 3X more business tomorrow?

Luck plays a big role in business, but areyou prepared to seize that luck? Do you have adaptability and foresight to growwhether your competition grows or struggles?

A few recent examples really drive thishome:

●      Apple’s Supply Chain Safety Nets: Apple saw the writing on the wall years agoregarding U.S.-China trade tensions back in 2017 that pays off in 2025. Ratherthan remain over-reliant on Chinese factories, Apple quietly began diversifyingproduction to other countries. In the past few years, it has shifted chunks of iPhone assembly to Indiaand Vietnam​. This wasn’t a trivial move; it was a strategic bet to mitigate tariff risks and supply shocks.In short, Apple’s foresight in spreading out its production meant that a hit toone country (be it from tariffs or a virus) wouldn’t knock the whole companyoff course.

●      British Airways’ Tech Upgrade Triumph: It’s not only manufacturing – sometimes an infrastructure upgrade can avert acatastrophe. British Airways learned this the hard way after several ITmeltdowns over the past decade grounded flights and enraged customers. So theairline committed £750 million to overhaul its aging IT systems, building inredundancy and backup capacity. That investment paid off in late 2024 when acritical system fault struck. In the past, such a glitch might have canceleddozens of flights for days. But this time, BA’s backup network kicked in immediately and core systems were restored withinan hour, avoiding any cancellations​.

Quick insight into the above: almost all ofthis emphasizes the boring stuff.Not bold vision. Not a crisis PR plan. Just solid fundamentals. Speed. Clarity.Trust. Data that’s real, and people who can act on it fast.

The Questions I’m Asking Now (And You Probably Should Too)

Rather than focusing on “what ifs,” I’mmore interested in questions that expose readiness:

●      How can we build and ship code 3X faster?

●      How can we hire and onboard talent 5X better?

●      How do we create feedback loops so tight that we know we’re off course withindays, not quarters?

●      If we spend 10X more, can wemove 10X faster—or just burn money 10X faster?

These aren’t futuristic goals. They’retable stakes for any organization that wants to thrive, not just survive, inthe next disruption—whether it’s geopolitical, technological, or macroeconomic.

Practical Steps to Prepare for Uncertainty in People, Processes, and Technology

When people talk about resilience, theyoften jump to tech. But in my experience, resiliencestarts with people.

1. Resilient People

When the pandemic hit, or when thefinancial system cracked, the organizations that held together were the oneswith strong internal trust and distributed decision-making. It wasn’t justheroic leaders at the top—it was middle managers and frontline teams who hadthe autonomy and judgment to act. Resilience begins when your team doesn’t waitfor permission. When they know how to make good decisions because they’ve beentrained to do so, and you’ve built a culture that supports that. Empower yourpeople by:

●      Cross-train and upskill yourworkforce. Allow as many individuals wear multiple hats and get to know asmany people within your organization as possible.

●      Foster a culture of adaptability and continuouslearning. Encourage employeesto experiment (and fail), learn new skills, and stay curious.

●      Prioritize well-being and psychological safety. Make sure your employees feel safe to speak upwith concerns or idea – that way leaders get both early warnings of problems,and a diversity of solutions proposed

2. Resilient Processes

Next comes the structure. Do your systemslet people move fast—or are they trapped in bureaucracy? Can they reroute asupply chain, reallocate marketing dollars, shift customer messaging in realtime? The goal is flexibility with focus. You don’t want chaos. But you needroom to respond. The companies that over-index on efficiency (with no room forerror) usually find themselves stuck when plans go sideways. Improve yourprocesses by:

1. Tighten your     feedback loops and communication. Overcommunicate,     create protocols and forums where you can get information as fast as     possible. Most of the time it will be boring and mundane, but it will save     you more than once.
2. Build slack     into your systems. Introduce a bit of     breathing room – whether it’s extra inventory of critical materials, a     backup team that can be activated, or budget set aside for unexpected     event.
3. Embed scenario     planning and war-gaming into your strategy cycle. Normalize the act of pivoting plans on the fly. What if demand     spikes 50%? What if a key supplier disappears overnight?

3. Resilient Technology

And yes, the tech matters. Can you trustyour data? Can your product handle 10X or 100X the scale without imploding? Inventure circles, we often ask: if we give a startup $1M for marketing tomorrow,while they’re spending $10K today, can their system handle 100X the business inthree months? Often, the answer is no—and that tells us they’re not ready. Truetech resilience isn’t just uptime. It’s performance under pressure:

1. Invest in     robust, redundant systems before they’re mission-critical.  Look into “boring”     systems like accounting, finance and tax. If it takes you 25 days to     report your financials, it’s not about regulations—it’s about broken data     and broken processes.
2. Embrace     modular and flexible tech. Track how many     changes you make in a month. Hint: the more modular systems are, the more     changes you can introduce.
3. Keep an eye on     emerging tools. Most of them will be useless,     but finding one gem will make all the difference for you.

How Leaders Can Build Resilience.

You, as a leader, can take immediate actiontoday to be better prepared for the change (good or bad) tomorrow. We, at SVIC,found the few things to be most effective in getting your leaders ready. Withor without our help try to do the following:

1. Immersive     visits to innovation hubs: We believe exposure     is a powerful teacher. SVIC regularly hosts immersive visits for     executives to places like Silicon Valley (and across the globe), where     they can meet with companies at the cutting edge of technology and new     business models. These visits aren’t just business tourism – they’re about     shaking leaders out of the     day-to-day mindset and inspiring them to see challenges through a new     lens. It’s essentially stress-testing one’s thinking by seeing how the     most inventive organizations operate. Leaders return from these visits     with fresh insights and a broader toolkit for problem-solving under     pressure.
2. Time to slow     down and think: In a world of Slack messages,     back-to-back meetings, and crisis du jour, it’s rare for executives     (especially in large corporates or public offices) to get dedicated time to pause and reflect.     SVIC deliberately carves out this space. Through our engagements, we     create environments where leaders can step away from firefighting, digest     what they’ve learned, and ask deeper questions about their organization’s     direction. This could be during a multi-day executive immersion program or     facilitated roundtable discussions. By slowing down, leaders often realize     they’ve been so busy sailing the ship that they haven’t scanned the     horizon. Help them take that strategic pause – to query assumptions,     envision different futures, and reimagine “what could we do better now to     avoid disaster later?” It’s a bit like a mindfulness retreat meets     strategy session, and it’s amazing how many “aha” moments happen when     people are given permission to think deeply.
3. Scenario planning and     strategic war-gaming workshops: Perhaps the     most direct way to build resilience is by running interactive scenario and     war-gaming sessions. We set up realistic simulations – some focused on     upside opportunities (like a sudden market surge or a breakthrough     technology appearing) and others on downside crises (like a supply chain     collapse or a reputational scandal). Cross-functional teams of executives     must navigate the scenario in a compressed timeframe, making decisions     with incomplete information, just as in real life. We’ve seen companies     discover unnoticed process flaws and also untapped leadership talents     through this method. By rehearsing both the seize-the-moment scenarios and     the keep-the-lights-on crises, organizations build muscle memory for     agility.

If I’ve learned anything from Wall Streetand Silicon Valley, it’s this: the nextcrisis won’t wait for you to get ready. Build now. Move now. Test now.That’s how you end up not just surviving—but accelerating.

Everything discussed in this letter —from empowering teams and modernizing infrastructure to sharpening leadershipthinking and building operational resilience — is at the heart of our upcomingexecutive program, the C-Suite Innovation Lab: AI, DigitalTransformation, and Venture Building, taking place in Silicon Valley, June 23–26, 2025.

This immersive 4-day experience isdesigned for senior leaders ready to test, refine, and future-proof theirstrategy in an environment that mirrors the intensity of real-world disruption. If you're serious about building your organization's next-level resilience,this is your opportunity to learn from the companies that do it best.