Purpose The purpose of this research is to examine the effects of scenario planning on participant ratings of resilience. Design/methodology/approach The research design is a quasi experimental pretest/posttest with treatment and control groups. Random selection or assignment was not achieved. Findings Results show a significant difference in reports of resilience for the scenario planning treatment group and no significant difference for the control group. Research limitations/implications Limitations include the use of self-report perception measures, possible social desirability of responses and a lack of random selection and assignment. Practical implications Practical implications imply that scenario planning can be viewed as a legitimate tool for increasing resilience in organizations. Social implications Organizations with an ability to adjust quickly and recover from difficult conditions means reduced layoffs and healthy economic growth. Originality/value While there is increasing research on scenario planning, to date, none has examined the effects of scenarios on resilience.