5 Things Managers Can Do to Prevent Employee Burnout

While one pandemic has (understandably) garnered most of the headlines over the past year and a half, another epidemic has simmered quietly in the background: job burnout. More and more employees are stressed, anxious, and fatigued... plain old sick-and-tired of their jobs, with COVID-19 concerns in many roles adding a new layer of danger and disturbance.

Eighty-four percent of millennials have experienced job burnout.

Source: Zachary Kadolph/Unsplash

Emerging data is consistent. A 2020 Gallup survey showed 23 percent of workers feeling burned out "more often than not," plus 44 percent more feeling "burned out sometimes." A Deloitte study reported that 77 percent of respondents had "experienced employee burnout at their current jobs," with the figure rising to 84 percent among millennials. Another survey from FlexJobs and Mental Health America placed the burnout rate at 75 percent, with 40 percent of those calling it "a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic." These findings are sadly consistent with what I've heard from individuals I know in my own personal and professional life: Job burnout has become pervasive and intense.

Burnout is defined as "a state of emotional, mental, and often physical exhaustion brought on by prolonged or repeated stress." Throw in a dash of sleep trouble and other physical manifestations... and in the workplace, add frustrations and conflicts with management, and you have a toxic recipe that makes many people want to (this is a technical term) get the heck out of their current jobs.

The most important question from my perspective (one who has a longstanding interest in effective management) is: What can managers do about it? What tangible steps can managers take to help reduce employee burnout on a day-to-day basis? Following are five suggestions:

1. Don't make vacations a battleground.

Americans have developed a tortured relationship with vacations. They love them but feel guilty about taking them, often because their management is loath to let them. Or they have to check in constantly while away because a lean operation may (allegedly) fall apart in their absence.

There are all kinds of obvious compelling reasons why vacations are a necessary way to relax and recharge. Managers who actively encourage their people to take all of their vacation time will be liked and respected for it.

2. Recognize the importance of work-life balance.

Beyond vacations, a reasonable level of personal equilibrium is plain old helpful. Just because the term "work-life" has become a cliche doesn't mean it's unimportant.

One highly talented employee who worked for me wanted nothing so much as to be able to arrange his schedule to regularly attend his sons' baseball games. We worked this out, and it was greatly appreciated. On game days, he'd routinely log in and be doing excellent work at 11 that night. Which brings me to my next point...

3. Small things make a big difference.

On the face of it, who would think that being able to attend occasional ballgames would be a big deal? But the reality is, it was. I know it; I saw it. For this employee it provided a valued family connection and engendered a positive attitude that from a management perspective was worth far more than the minor scheduling changes it caused.

During my years in the corporate world, I often observed this "small things" dynamic in action. One rather excitable executive I worked for early in my career routinely kind of barked at employees. It didn't mean anything; she was a thoughtful, decent person, and this was just her way of handling stress. One of her employees had the hide of an armadillo and couldn't have cared less. Another more sensitive individual couldn't stand it; it disturbed her greatly, and she quickly left the organization.

4. Create a "psychologically safe" environment.

By this, I mean an open atmosphere where employees feel safe expressing honest opinions and taking occasional reasonable risks without fear of reprisal. It's amazing how much energy is spent and how much stress is accumulated by keeping candid feelings inside and trying to be someone we're not, all day, every day. It's a burnout fast track. Good managers realize the genuine openness of a workplace environment matters (a lot); it can make the difference between a job someone enjoys or detests.

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5. Be remotely flexible.

In terms of shedding old paradigms about workers having to be in the office. If there's been one substantive benefit from the cataclysmic tragedy of COVID-19, it's that many businesses have empirically learned that large numbers of employees can, in fact, work from home much more successfully than they ever believed possible. The reality is many employees simply like working from home... and avoiding hours of needless, frustrating, wasted commuting time. Naturally, some jobs lend themselves to remote work more than others. But as the pandemic diminishes, management would be well-advised not to play old tapes and just assume everyone needs to be back in the office 24/7 because "this is the way we've always done it here."

The bottom line is that employee burnout is widespread but by no means inevitable. There's an old saying: "People leave managers, not companies." This may be a slight overstatement, but there's truth to it. Management matters. It always does.