Strategic Leadership for Resilience in a Business School in South Africa

Background: Strategic leaders play a pivotal role in navigating organisational crises; however, limited research has examined how such leaders in South Africa’s business schools foster academic resilience, particularly during complex and prolonged crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic. This qualitative study aimed to investigate how strategic leadership in a selected South African business school influenced institutional activities and strategic direction during the pandemic, with the goal of sustaining academic continuity and resilience. Methods: This descriptive study employed a qualitative research design, drawing on an interpretive, subjective approach to capture participants’ lived experiences. Six experienced academic leaders from a South African business school were purposively selected. Data were collected through semi-structured virtual interviews and analysed thematically. Results: Findings indicate that strategic leadership shaped institutional activities and strategic direction through several mechanisms: strategic thinking, a holistic transition of teaching and learning from face-to-face to online modalities, agile resource mobilisation and utilisation, transparent strategic communication, and fostering multi-level strategic commitment during the COVID-19 crisis. Conclusion: Overall, resilience manifested primarily as reactive, with strategic leaders facilitating coping and adaptive capacities rather than proactive measures prior to the pandemic. The study underscores that effective crisis response depends on strong strategic leadership, reinforced by the commitment of tactical and operational leadership. Moreover, the findings highlight the critical role of internal and external stakeholders in managing crises and safeguarding organisational resilience during and beyond such events. It is recommended that leadership development practitioners adopt an integrative approach to cultivate the multidimensional influences of strategic leaders and strengthen three key resilience capabilities—anticipation, coping, and adaptation—to proactively enhance academic resilience in business schools during times of crisis. Directions for future research are also identified.