SMEs Urged to Build Resilience as Growth Alone No Longer Guarantees Survival

Small and medium-sized enterprises have been advised to prioritise resilience as a core part of their operations, with experts warning that rapid growth is no longer enough to secure long-term survival in an increasingly unpredictable business environment.

At the BusinessDay Top 100 SME Awards, corporate strategist and energy sector executive Akin Monehin emphasised that businesses must be able to absorb shocks and convert them into opportunities amid fluctuating exchange rates, shifting regulations, and workforce disruptions. He noted that the pace of change in today’s economy often outstrips even the most carefully crafted business plans.

“Growth is not enough anymore. We must embed flexibility into our organisational structures, skills development frameworks, and career paths because the world changes faster than any one business plan,” he said.

Monehin, known for his expertise in business transformation and governance, proposed alternative leadership models designed to strengthen business resilience. These include hybrid teams across regions to spread operational risk, continuous upskilling programmes that allow teams to pivot quickly, and digital-first approaches that integrate data with empathy in decision-making.

During an interactive session, he explained why many strategies fail and advised leaders to stress-test their models to ensure they can withstand disruption. “This is not future theory—it is modern business survival. Teams must breathe, adapt, learn, and scale all at once,” he concluded.