How organisations can design resilient teams and strategies

We love talking about inspiration in marketing. It's the part of our industry that gets credited for the big ideas and campaigns that make the headlines. But behind the scenes, it's usually a lot messier.

Budgets get cut. Priorities change halfway through a project. A plan that might have looked good on Monday feels outdated by Friday. Add a sprinkle of AI and it all gets even more confusing.

Like it or not, this is the new normal, and the challenge isn't avoiding the chaos – it's learning to work within it. And that's where resilience comes in: not just coping with uncertainty, but thriving in it.

Less focus on job titles

When things go pear-shaped, whether it's timelines, budgets or goals, structure is everything, but not in the traditional sense. 

Teams built around fixed roles and processes are often the ones that grind to a halt waiting for answers or clarification. The ones that keep moving look different. Fewer fixed job titles, more capability. Clear ownership, but flexibility when it comes to how the work gets done. It's the balance between structure and adaptability that's important.

As Advita Patel Chart, founder of CommsRebel and CIPR 2025 President, explains: "The most effective marketing functions aren't structured around rigid job titles, inflexible systems or multiple processes; they're built around capabilities and roles that can flex to help stay ahead. Teams need agility to prioritise ruthlessly, so they can focus on the long-term picture rather than immediate tactics."

When everything feels urgent

We've all been there. The client wants one thing, the designer's pushing for another, and you’re under pressure to keep things moving. Everything feels urgent, so you start making rushed decisions. Worse still, you might avoid them altogether.

The teams that can cope with this kind of pressure don't wait for perfect information. Instead, they get what they need to start and then trust the people closest to the work to make the right call.

Megan Johnstone-Mackie, Head of Marketing & PR at allpoints, explains how this works in her own team: "When a quick decision is required, the person closest to the project is empowered to advise on the best course of action. While I am always there to provide support, empowering the team to evaluate potential solutions and their rationale before presenting a challenge ensures greater efficiency and autonomy."

Sometimes it's also just as important to know when not to act: "We weigh every short-term 'fire' against our long-term strategy. If a quick win risks compromising our brand integrity or the team's well-being, we pass. For us, resilience is as much about having the discipline to say 'no' as it is about saying 'yes',” adds Johnstone-Mackie.

Teams need to be on the same page as well and understand what they're actually trying to achieve. Naomi Regan, Co-Founder of CAPE People Development, explains: "They notice when priorities are drifting, when expectations aren't clear or when something isn't quite right, and they address it early rather than letting it quietly grow into something bigger."

A simple way to do this is through regular check-ins: "Short check-ins during projects allow teams to reflect on what's working, catch issues early and adjust in real time," she adds.

Flexible strategies

Most marketing strategies are built with stability in mind: annual plans, fixed budgets, neatly mapped-out campaigns. They all make sense on paper – until they don't.

Uncertainty exposes the cracks here, and there's a lot of that about. When things need changing, all those fixed plans start to feel a bit fragile.

Resilient strategies work differently. They make sure flexibility is there from the very start. Clear priorities, but enough room to change how they're delivered. As Patel explains: "They're building in flex points from the start by scenario planning, tiered budget structures, and regular 'what if' conversations, which means change feels less like a crisis and more like a variable that was planned for."

Author and speaker Allister Frost suggests using a 70/20/10 decision framework "where 70% of resources are dedicated to proven, data-led actions, 20% to calculated bets, and 10% to radical experimentation." The real benefit is what happens over time. Some of those smaller bets become what works, so things naturally move on rather than staying the same.

The role culture plays

No structure or strategy in the world will work if the culture isn't right to begin with. Uncertainty puts pressure on teams, and pressure exposes what's already there – whether that's trust, communication, or a lack of both.
As Regan explains: "Psychological safety – the shared belief that it's safe to speak up, challenge ideas, admit mistakes and ask for help without fear of negative consequences – isn't created because a set of values is written on a wall. It builds through the small interactions leaders have every day, such as whether they respond with criticism or curiosity, whether they ask questions or make assumptions."

And it's not just about feeling good – it makes teams more confident in how they work. Problems are flagged earlier and decisions are made faster, making it less likely that things will quietly spiral out of control before anyone speaks up.

Resilience isn't about pushing harder, as Chris Tamdjidi, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Awaris and co-author of The Resilient Culture, puts it: "Instead of trying to remove stress entirely, the better approach is to strengthen the very habits that help regulate it – which we refer to as key resilience skills. Marketing professionals have strong social connections and optimism, which helps them stay in a positive, growth-oriented zone. However, they also need to prioritise their own recovery too. We've helped teams introduce habits such as regular rest breaks and genuine digital downtime in the evenings."

Final thoughts

When stripped back, resilience is the outcome of lots of smaller decisions – how you structure your team, how you make decisions when things get messy, how you treat people.

It might not be rocket science, but when the pressure's on and everything around you is changing, it's easy to slip back into old habits.

The teams that can handle this aren't working harder. They've prioritised flexibility from the very start, and that's not something you can add later down the line.

High-performing businesses are built by high-performing people. At CIM, we help you unlock your team’s full potential through targeted development, aligned to your goals and powered by real-world marketing expertise.