The economy is improving. Business is up.
That’s great news, right?
For your bottom line, yes! For your employees? Maybe not so much.
When staff members are “stretched too thin” and expected to live up to unrealistic demands, stress levels rise. Job satisfaction levels plummet. And ultimately, job burnout is bad for business, too – driving up absenteeism, turnover, healthcare expenses and the amount of management needed.
To make matters worse, managers often overload their most competent employees, quickly turning an employer’s best asset into its biggest liability.
How can you protect your best and brightest from the risks of burnout? Today, Corps Team shares four ways to turn the tides:
Get everyone involved in sharing the load. Examine tasks within work teams. Ask team members for input on the group’s processes and outcomes, to ensure everyone understands their role. Look for ways to redistribute responsibilities more evenly, according to members’ competence and enjoyment levels. Finally, when needed, provide training to improve employees’ competence in managing their work loads.
Encourage employees to take their vacation time. According to an article in The Atlantic, 41% of American workers let their paid vacation days go to waste, due in part to corporate culture issues. Make sure this isn’t a problem in your organization:
- Be sure to communicate that taking time away from work is condoned.
- Explain the benefits of time away from work, including the ways it reduces work stress and heads-off job burnout.
- Always set a good example by taking your time off, too!
Offer more flexible schedules. In an earlier post on flexible employee schedules, we reviewed the advantages “loosening up” provides, including: reduced job stress, better team performance and decreased turnover. Building greater flexibility into employees’ schedules helps them maintain a healthy work-life mix, and reduces the “daily grind” that can contribute to burnout.
Provide adequate support. Corps Team offers flexible access to talented professionals who can alleviate overwork and prevent your best people from burning out – and jumping ship. Contact your local Corps Team office to learn more about our flexible professional staffing and search options.
