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Want to break the burnout cycle? Focus on well-being, researchers say

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Summary

McLean & Co. researchers released a collection of research Wednesday to assess the workplace landscape and provide guides to help HR and managers get a handle on the factors that lead to burnout. Their research shows that burnout can be addressed when HR and company leadership secure psychological safety at work. The causes of organizational burnout include heavy workloads, strained relationships, lack of role clarity, lack of worker autonomy, lack of fairness and equity, and value misalignment between employees and employers. To prevent burnout, the organization must champion psychological safety and take a multi-pronged approach which includes focusing on organizational norms, leadership values and actions, and policies and processes that provide a framework for psychological safety. This requires ongoing effort, commitment from key stakeholders, and strong alignment between the organization's norms, leadership behaviors, and day-to-day processes.

Q&As

What is the "infinite cycle" of workers experiencing burnout?
The "infinite cycle" of workers experiencing burnout is experiencing, "semi-recovering" and re-experiencing burnout.

What are the key causes of burnout at the organizational level?
The key causes of burnout at the organizational level are heavy workloads, strained manager-worker or inter-worker relationships, lack of role clarity, lack of worker autonomy, lack of fairness and equity, and value misalignment between an employee and their workplace.

What is psychological safety and how can it help address burnout?
Psychological safety is preventing harm and promoting health in the workplace. It can help address burnout by creating a safe environment for employees to work in and reducing stress and exhaustion.

What initiatives are required to prevent workplace harm and promote worker health?
Initiatives required to prevent workplace harm and promote worker health include focusing on organizational norms, leadership behaviors, and day-to-day processes.

How does ensuring psychological well-being among workers improve the business?
Ensuring psychological well-being among workers improves the business by creating a more positive work environment and reducing stress and exhaustion. This can lead to increased productivity and improved morale.

AI Comments

👍 This article provides an important perspective on the need to address burnout at the organizational level, and offers great advice on how to promote psychological safety among employees.

👎 The article fails to address the individual-level strategies that can be used to prevent burnout, which are just as important as organizational-level strategies.

AI Discussion

Me: It's about how to break the burnout cycle in the workplace. The researchers suggest that organizations focus on well-being and take the initiative to address the issue instead of relying solely on individual effort. They point to a lack of psychological safety, heavy workloads, strained relationships, lack of role clarity, lack of worker autonomy, and lack of fairness and equity as key causes of burnout.

Friend: That's really interesting. What kind of initiatives are they suggesting?

Me: They recommend that HR and company leadership secure psychological safety at work, which includes preventing harm and promoting health. They also suggest taking a multi-pronged approach that focuses on organizational norms, leadership behaviors, and day-to-day processes. It's important to note that there's no quick fix to this issue - it requires ongoing effort, commitment from key stakeholders, and strong alignment between the organization's norms, leadership behaviors, and day-to-day processes.

Friend: That's a lot to take on board! It seems like a lot of responsibility for the organization to shoulder.

Me: Absolutely. But at the same time, it can be beneficial for the business as a whole if the organization is able to address issues of employee experience and psychological well-being. It's not just about reducing burnout, but also about improving the overall work environment.

Action items

Create a plan to address the root causes of burnout in the workplace.
Implement policies and processes that promote psychological safety.
Develop a strategy to ensure alignment between organizational norms, leadership behaviors, and day-to-day processes.

Technical terms

Burnout: A state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress.
Psychological Safety: A shared belief held by members of a team that the team is safe for interpersonal risk-taking.
Workforce: The number of people employed by a company or organization.
Aflac: A supplemental insurance company.
HR: Human Resources.
C-suite: The highest-ranking executives in a company, typically the CEO, CFO, and COO.
Artifacts: Physical objects or documents that are used to provide evidence of a particular event or process.
Stakeholders: Individuals or groups that have an interest in the success of a company or organization.