Adaptive capacity – four capabilities for organisations in change

At A Sustainable Tomorrow 2026, Anna Engqvist spoke about organisational resilience. In her session, she chose to focus on what she calls adaptive capacity.

"To me, adaptive capacity is a proactive concept. It means that, as an organisation, you stay ahead of the curve and pick up on changes in the environment at an early stage, rather than having to react and act once the change has already become a reality," Anna explains.

To build that capability, Anna Engqvist highlights four elements that need to work together: the organisation, the employees, the working tools and the leadership.

1. The organisation – build for adaptive capacity

According to Anna Engqvist, an organisation with a high degree of adaptive capacity needs to have order and structure at its core. Clear routines, well-functioning processes and clear expectations mean that employees know what is expected of them, while at the same time creating better conditions for the organisation to act when the environment changes.

Structure needs to be combined with "keeping an ear to the ground" in order to pick up on changes early.

"But just because something becomes a trend doesn't mean it's relevant to your own business. What matters is picking up on what's happening and making conscious choices about which changes we want to follow and act on," says Anna.

Once a relevant change has been identified, an organisation with adaptive capacity will be able to adjust quickly, regardless of whether the change represents an external threat or opens up a new market opportunity.

2. Employee resilience – a prerequisite for adaptive capacity

For Anna Engqvist, resilient employees are a prerequisite for the organisation as a whole to be able to demonstrate strong adaptive capacity. This means that each employee needs the tools, the working arrangements and the coaching required to feel secure, thrive in their work and perform at their best.

At the same time, employee resilience is not a static state. As both the business and the external environment change, employees' conditions also need to be followed up and developed on an ongoing basis.

"Employee resilience is never something you finish building. It requires constant follow-up and improvement so that employees have the right conditions over time," Anna emphasises.

3. Working tools – challenge how you work

New technology is a clear example of how organisations may need to adapt their ways of working. Anna Engqvist highlights AI as an area where organisations should dare to challenge existing processes and consider how the business can be built around the new tools, rather than simply applying new technology to existing ways of working.

"We constantly need to challenge our ways of working and ask ourselves whether we are working in the best possible way given the tools and technology available," says Anna.

This also requires the organisation to invest time in training employees in how new tools can be used to optimise their working day. Just as important is ensuring that the knowledge built up is shared across the organisation.

4. Transformative leadership – show the direction

The fourth key in Anna Engqvist's reasoning on adaptive capacity is transformative leadership. This means that the leader or leaders need to formulate a clear vision and act as role models, while giving employees room to influence how the path to get there should look.

"The leader needs to show the direction, while the 'how' can largely be left to the employee. The leader's role then becomes to act as a mentor and coach based on each employee's unique needs," Anna explains.

In this way, a shared direction for the organisation is combined with room for employees to take responsibility themselves for how they contribute to getting there.

Adaptive capacity requires continuous development

Common to all four elements is the proactive perspective. For Anna Engqvist, adaptive capacity is about building an organisation that can pick up on changes early, determine which of them are relevant, and have the ability to act on them.

At the same time, this is not static work. The organisation's structure, employees' conditions, working tools and leadership need to be developed together and continuously challenged as circumstances change. In this way, adaptive capacity becomes not a reaction to a single change, but a capability built into the organisation.