On 22 April 2026, WTW brought together HR leaders from across the Middle East to explore how organisations are responding to sustained geopolitical and economic pressure and what it takes to shift from short-term reaction to long-term workforce resilience.
Drawing on insights from 284 organisations across 10 countries and more than 15 industries, the discussion reinforced a clear reality: disruption is no longer temporary. People strategies must now perform under prolonged uncertainty.
Workforce pressures intensify
Employee safety, travel restrictions and mental wellbeing remain the most acute challenges. Nearly four in ten organisations reported increased safety concerns, while more than 70% have strengthened security guidance and employee communications.
At the same time, HR has moved to the centre of crisis governance, balancing business continuity with workforce stability, trust and performance.
From reactive policies to resilient models
Initial responses, policy adjustments and risk mitigation are no longer sufficient. Organisations are now redesigning workforce and reward models for sustained volatility.
Recalibrating HR policies
A clear shift is underway from reactive measures to risk-aligned, flexible frameworks:
- Policies tailored by workforce exposure and criticality
- Greater HR involvement in enterprise risk management
- Movement away from uniform policies to differentiated approaches
- Faster, clearer decisions supported by stronger governance
Leading organisations are embedding agility and segmentation into policy design, rather than activating them during crisis.
Rethinking rewards for volatility
Reward strategies are also evolving. The focus is shifting from how much organisations spend to how effectively rewards are deployed:
- Governance gaps exposed by ad hoc decisions
- Annual cycles struggling to keep pace with change
- More targeted investment in critical talent and business roles
- Emerging use of flexible pay mechanisms and faster decision forums
- Growing role of total rewards, including wellbeing and career support
Adapting reward structures is becoming essential to balance fairness, affordability and retention.
Employee experience under prolonged uncertainty
As disruption persists, employee expectations are shifting:
- Safety has overtaken engagement as the primary driver
- Fairness is valued more than generosity
- Flexibility and discretion provide a sense of control
Experiences are increasingly shaped by role and exposure, highlighting the limits of a uniform EVP. Outcomes are strongest where policies, rewards, wellbeing and leadership signals are aligned.
Forward-looking organisations are putting in place exposure-based workforce insights, clear decision principles and manager toolkits to sustain consistency under pressure.
Stability in wellbeing and benefits
Most organisations have prioritised stability over frequent change. While relatively few adjusted core benefits, many expanded mental health support and reinforced communication to maintain trust. Broad financial interventions remained limited, reflecting a focus on consistency and long-term confidence in reward frameworks.
Embedding resilience by design
Organisations are increasingly testing their ability to respond consistently and at scale across governance, communication, workforce models and wellbeing support. The focus is shifting from one-off responses to repeatable capabilities.
WTW’s Resilience Index supports this approach by helping organisations assess their readiness to absorb disruption and sustain operations.
From reacting to readiness
The leading organisations are those embedding resilience into everyday people decisions.
Resilience is no longer a response capability, it is a design imperative.
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The session was led by WTW experts
