diff --git a/drivers/net/ethernet/ibm/ibmvnic.c b/drivers/net/ethernet/ibm/ibmvnic.c
index 5ce9f70984ee..d4d40b349788 100644
--- a/drivers/net/ethernet/ibm/ibmvnic.c
+++ b/drivers/net/ethernet/ibm/ibmvnic.c
@@ -2241,6 +2241,14 @@ static void __ibmvnic_reset(struct work_struct *work)
 				rc = do_hard_reset(adapter, rwi, reset_state);
 				rtnl_unlock();
 			}
+			if (rc) {
+				/* give backing device time to settle down */
+				netdev_dbg(adapter->netdev,
+					   "[S:%d] Hard reset failed, waiting 60 secs\n",
+					   adapter->state);
+				set_current_state(TASK_UNINTERRUPTIBLE);
+				schedule_timeout(60 * HZ);
+			}
 		} else if (!(rwi->reset_reason == VNIC_RESET_FATAL &&
 				adapter->from_passive_init)) {
 			rc = do_reset(adapter, rwi, reset_state);