From Reactive to Proactive Resilience: A Lessons-Learned Framework for Latin American Oil Refineries

Abstract

This paper analyzes the development of organizational resilience in a major Latin American oil refinery, documenting its transition from reactive to proactive resilience strategies over a ten-year period (2014–2025). Employing a qualitative case study that includes semi-structured interviews with five senior managers and comprehensive document analysis, we identify critical disruptions incurring costs of up to US$8 million daily and establish an empirically grounded methodology for fostering proactive resilience. Our findings indicate that systematic capture and integration of lessons learned reduced mean time to recovery from 168 hours to 24 hours (86% improvement), yielding an 859:1 return on investment. The research extends resilience theory by demonstrating how resource-constrained refineries in emerging economies can leverage organizational learning as a dynamic capability. The proposed six-stage framework provides practical guidance for practitioners seeking to enhance operational continuity in volatile environments, while contributing empirical evidence from a context underrepresented in current literature.