How To Prevent Employee Burnout: 10 Strategies for Managers

Employee burnout, a state of chronic physical and emotional exhaustion, poses a serious threat to worker well-being and workplace effectiveness. It erodes job satisfaction, hampers creativity, and elevates employee turnover rates. Organizations must implement strategies like flexible schedules, clear goal-setting, rewards for achievements with growth opportunities, and open communication to safeguard against burnout and foster a resilient, high-performing workforce—more of which we’ll cover below.

By fostering a supportive work environment, promoting work-life balance, and recognizing signs of stress or exhaustion, companies can prevent employee burnout.

Defining and recognizing burnout before employees quit

In 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) included an update to “employee burnout” in its eleventh edition of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), categorizing it as an “'occupational phenomenon” rather than a medical condition. According to the ICD-11, common symptoms of burnout in employees encompass three dimensions:

• sensations of diminished energy or extreme fatigue
• heightened emotional detachment from one's work, or experiencing pessimism or cynicism towards one's job
• diminished professional effectiveness

Before COVID-19, burnout was primarily associated with high-pressure professions. Employers found themselves struggling to learn how to prevent employee burnout during COVID when many previously unrecognized and systemic symptoms of the larger issue were forced into view. However, burnout has since evolved into a broader public health concern, according to Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, the author of “Rest: Why You Get More Work Done When You Work Less.”

The primary contributors to burnout, including prolonged heavy workloads, persistent overexertion, and toxic work environments, have been prevalent practices for many years. Historically, companies often shifted the responsibility of managing burnout onto individual employees, treating it as a personal health matter rather than a systemic issue.

The onset of the pandemic exacerbated existing workplace stressors, such as daily pressure and career-related anxiety, which were further intensified by the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the health crisis. This compounding effect, as explained by Sean Gallagher, Director of the Centre for the New Workforce at Swinburne University of Technology, particularly impacted Australian employees, who often rank among the most affected by burnout in global surveys. So, many workers continue to grapple with the enduring consequences of burnout, struggling to restore their well-being across both personal and professional spheres.

Related: 9 Reasons Why Employees Leave Their Jobs

Understand the impact of burnout and toxic corporate culture

The repercussions of burnout extend beyond individual employees, impacting the very fabric of an organization. For employees, burnout exacts a heavy toll on physical and mental health, often resulting in reduced job satisfaction, increased absenteeism, and diminished productivity. The emotional exhaustion and detachment that accompany burnout undermine teamwork, stifling collaboration and creativity. As employees struggle to cope, turnover rates surge, eroding continuity and institutional knowledge.

From an organizational standpoint, burnout carries substantial financial implications. Increased healthcare costs stem from burnout-related ailments, while decreased performance levels lead to missed targets and lower efficiency. High turnover disrupts workflow and requires substantial investments in recruitment, training, and onboarding.

Furthermore, job burnout can tarnish a company's reputation, affecting customer satisfaction and loyalty. Stressed and disengaged employees may provide subpar service, leading to negative word-of-mouth and decreased trust in the brand, ultimately undermining the company's success and growth.

The cost of burnout-related turnover and reduced productivity can be staggering. A recent Gallup report indicates that burnout-related expenses account for $322 billion globally due to turnover and decreased productivity caused by employee burnout. As organizations recognize these financial ramifications, they're motivated to implement preventive measures such as wellness programs, flexible work arrangements, and improved management practices.

While healthy competition can be beneficial, a relentless and cutthroat environment poisons workplaces. According to a Bloomberg report in 2022, an examination of 1.4 million employee reviews across 38 industries on Glassdoor revealed that the impact of company culture on predicting employee departures surpasses compensation by a significant factor of 12.4. This correlation remained consistent for individuals in front-line as well as knowledge worker roles. The analysis revealed that toxic workplace culture, often fueled by cutthroat practices, led to the highest resignations last year.

Remote workers who enjoyed flexible work arrangements reported strong cultural connectedness, as the pandemic reduced interactions beyond their teams, making them the primary link to the company. Subcultures thrived as teams supported each other, shared concerns, and bonded over online hangouts with pets, providing a personalized alternative to a uniform culture—leading to a healthier work environment overall.

Related: How To Deal With Burnout and Recover From Exhaustion

10 strategies for preventing employee burnout

In a fast-paced work environment, preventing employee burnout is paramount for sustaining productivity and well-being. Employing a range of proactive strategies can foster a resilient workforce, enhance job satisfaction, and ensure long-term success for employee and organizational growth.

Below, we’ll discuss ten effective approaches to safeguard against burnout and promote a healthy work-life balance, including:

• Encourage work-life balance
• Foster open communication
• Provide regular feedback
• Promote employee autonomy
• Recognize and reward effort
• Implement employee wellness programs
• Encourage regular breaks
• Offer flexible working options
• Provide professional development opportunities
• Monitor workload

1. Encourage work-life balance

Leaders can help facilitate work-life balance by offering the following options that naturally nurture this equilibrium:

• Allow flexible schedules and remote work options
• Encourage regular breaks that allow employees to work when they can deliver their best effort and outcomes
• Communicate clear expectations and offer time management training and resources—-while maintaining equitable task distribution
• Utilize remote work tools that can aid in balancing work and personal life
  

Leaders should advocate for and foster a supportive culture. You can inspire others by demonstrating a healthy work-life balance through your actions or by actively working to enhance this aspect even if you face personal challenges in this area.

Forbes reports that flexible work options boost employee productivity. However, employees who work remotely also work an average of 1.4 more days every month than in-office workers.

2. Foster open communication

Nurturing transparent communication within a team can help prevent employee burnout. This involves open dialogues where team members feel at ease discussing concerns, redistributing workloads, and seeking assistance.

For instance, an employee openly sharing their workload challenges can lead to collaborative solutions, easing their stress and preventing burnout. Transparent conversations also build trust, empathy, and a sense of unity, eradicating feelings of isolation.

Regular discussions about expectations, workloads, and well-being pave the way for joint problem-solving, skill enhancement, and fair task allocation. Ultimately, cultivating a culture of open communication empowers individuals, fortifies team rapport, and serves as a potent shield against burnout.

3. Provide regular feedback

Regular feedback plays a pivotal role to prevent employee burnout. Constructive feedback allows employees to feel valued and supported, reducing the risk of burnout by fostering a sense of purpose and growth.

Feedback can act as an early warning system for potential burnout indicators. Managers can identify signs of excessive stress, workload, or dissatisfaction through ongoing feedback conversations. This enables timely interventions and adjustments to workloads, responsibilities, or support systems—preventing burnout from escalating and indicating improvements for management to make based on employee feedback.

Feedback encourages open dialogue, which can lead to workplace enhancements, including the implementation of flexible work arrangements, skill development opportunities, and work-life balance initiatives.

4. Promote employee autonomy

Championing employee autonomy yields a significant burnout reduction. By allowing individuals to choose how they approach and control projects, they tap into their preferred work methods, enhancing efficiency and motivation.

Trusting employees to determine when and where they work best, whether remote or flexible hours, acknowledges their optimal productivity conditions. Granting autonomy over task allocation moves toward a balanced workload, mitigating burnout risks from overwhelming responsibilities. Moreover, involving employees in collaborative goal-setting harnesses their intrinsic drive and purpose, countering burnout-induced detachment and misalignment with the company mission.

Nurturing a culture that values and trusts their judgment empowers employees to take ownership, fostering satisfaction, employee empowerment, and resilience against burnout.

5. Recognize and reward effort

Deploying tangible and tailored individualized recognition is a potent strategy to prevent employee burnout. Pairing consistent target overachievement with a pay increase underscores their dedication and is a tangible testament to their value. Additionally, customizing benefits to suit personal preferences, like offering wellness perks for health enthusiasts or learning stipends for skill development, showcases sincere appreciation.

This individualized approach sends a clear message that hard work is recognized and rewarded, constructing a fulfilling work atmosphere that effectively safeguards against burnout and promotes employee engagement.

That said, employers should exercise caution around recognizing the same individuals regularly during team calls. This practice can lead to a perception of favoritism, instead of focusing on team achievement. Individualized recognition can be built into an employee’s review and professional development cycle.

6. Implement employee wellness programs

Employee wellness programs extend beyond traditional offerings like yoga classes and gym memberships, delivering multifaceted benefits. More practical but overlooked employee wellness programs to implement may include:

• Nutritional workshops encouraging healthier eating habits, enhancing overall well-being
• Financial literacy sessions providing tools for managing money-related stress, including access to resources in the community
• On-site or telehealth medical checkups detecting health issues early, preventing potential burnout triggers
• Flexible work arrangements, such as compressed workweeks or remote options, contributing to improved work-life balance

These comprehensive initiatives not only promote physical health but also address mental, emotional, and financial aspects of overall well-being, resulting in a resilient workforce with reduced burnout risks.

7. Encourage regular breaks

Frequent breaks are a potent shield against burnout, acting as restorative intervals in the workday symphony. These pauses offer moments for mental realignment, allowing employees to recharge creativity and focus.

Short walks or mindfulness exercises during breaks restore cognitive resources, minimizing exhaustion.

Breaks may also mean that a remote employee can take a second to play with the cat or put in another load of laundry to get out of their head—it’s so easy to overthink work tasks vs. doing household tasks and feeling a bit of a dopamine rush that allows time to recalibrate.

These interludes also facilitate time for social interactions among team members, forging connections that combat isolation. These breaks can be a scheduled time arranged by leadership, such as a coffee break on video chat, or something the employee does when needed.

Regular breaks provide clarity amid tasks, reducing stress by fostering a sense of control and autonomy over one’s day and quality of contribution. Recognizing that productivity flourishes with a well-paced rhythm, organizations that wholeheartedly endorse regular breaks compose a harmonious workplace melody, where burnout's dissonance is skillfully silenced, and the orchestration of well-being prevails.

Also, flexible time off or even unlimited paid time off (PTO) offers employees the freedom to manage their own extended time away, reducing burnout by allowing timely rest and recuperation.

8. Offer flexible working options

Adopting flexible working options, including flex time, remote work, and hybrid arrangements, emerges as a potent remedy against burnout. This approach empowers employees to seamlessly attend to personal commitments, whether it's running errands or picking up children from school. By accommodating the dynamic demands of modern life, organizations cultivate a resilient and engaged workforce, wherein the cadence of work harmonizes effortlessly with personal responsibilities.

Allow employees to tailor their work schedules to both company needs and personal needs. The organization’s focus should be on results and employee well-being rather than a specific location or time. Employees can still attend necessary meetings and meet their work objectives while having a stress-free and effective approach to work.

9. Provide professional development opportunities

Unlocking the power of professional growth is a key defense to prevent employee burnout. True development delves deeper than generic “continuous learning” videos offered on the company intranet resource library. Instead, true development offerings adapt to each employee's distinct capabilities and ambitions.

Mentorship initiatives provide tailored guidance and cross-functional endeavors introduce varied learning paths. By providing tailored chances for individual employees to shape their trajectories, individuals can thrive in their distinctive pursuits, cultivating a deep-seated sense of purpose. For instance, allowing an engineer to switch roles temporarily and gain marketing experience through cross-work can invigorate their career while enhancing the overall team dynamic.

Acknowledging individual aspirations and tailoring growth opportunities empowers employees to transcend burnout, fortifying their commitment and drive, and cultivating a workforce that thrives on continuous advancement.

10. Monitor workload

Vigilantly monitoring employee workloads is key to preventing workplace burnout and sustaining employee well-being. Regular workload assessments ensure that tasks remain manageable and workplace stress levels stay in check.

Balanced project distribution prevents overburdening individuals, while flexible scheduling aids in equitable task completion. To ensure fairness, managers can implement task rotation, regularly consulting team members to align tasks with their expertise and capacity. Allow employees to turn down non-priority tasks. This approach diversifies experiences, curbing burnout caused by prolonged engagement with a single task, unless an employee prefers it.

Monitoring also aids in identifying signs of excessive stress, enabling timely intervention and workload adjustments to help employees.

Related: How To Mentor an Employee: Best Practices for Mutual Success

Responding to signs of burnout

When a manager observes signs of burnout in an employee, taking timely and supportive steps can make all the difference to an overworked and stressed employee. Begin by having a private conversation to express concern and create an environment where the employee can openly share their challenges.

Collaboratively identify the root causes of burnout and explore targeted solutions, which might involve adjusting workloads, redistributing tasks, or providing skill-building opportunities. Consider implementing flexible work arrangements or temporary workload reductions.

Promote self-care and well-being by suggesting techniques like mindfulness exercises or participation in wellness programs. Regular check-ins can help track progress and offer ongoing support.

If necessary, involve HR or appropriate mental health or other resources to ensure the employee's needs are met and rights protected.

Tailor solutions to the individual's circumstances, considering their career goals, personal commitments, and development aspirations.

Use continuous feedback and open communication to monitor improvements and prevent future burnout. Responding to burnout signs demands a proactive and personalized approach that demonstrates genuine care, empowers the employee, and cultivates a resilient and well-supported team.

Related: 4 Ways Managers Can Help Prevent Burnout

Share the workload using freelancing services

Harnessing the power of freelancers can be a game-changer in workload management and burnout prevention for full-time employees. Freelancers offer a flexible solution to handle peak workloads, specialized projects, or temporary needs, alleviating the strain on in-house teams. By outsourcing specific tasks, regular employees can focus on core responsibilities, maintain their productivity, and avoid burnout from overwhelming workloads.

Upwork provides a seamless way to connect with skilled freelancers, making it easier than ever to share the workload and maintain a healthy work-life balance. If you're a manager seeking to add support to your team, sign up now to tap into our huge freelance talent pool.