Organizational Architecture, Resilience, and Cyberattacks

This article develops a unique model of organizational resilience architecture with an emphasis on the ways in which organizations respond to cyberattacks. The model elucidates the dynamics and approaches through which organizations mobilize and utilize expertise and resources to combat the effects of cyberattacks on normal business operations. Drawing on recent cases of cyberattacks against organizations, the article identifies a host of strategic and tactical responses victims used to aid recovery and return to daily activities. The responses are grouped into three stages to demonstrate the steps that organizations can take to enhance their resilience: Stage 1 focuses on proactive environmental scanning and locating potential threats and attacks, Stage 2 emphasizes neutralizing threats and attacks, and Stage 3 focuses on redesigning, upgrading, and updating human, technological, and financial resources. On this basis, the article sheds light on levels of organizational resilience and strategies for organizational design in withstanding cyberattacks and security breaches. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.