We all know that we have suffered from a global resignation crisis. One of the biggest reasons for this is the burnout syndrome, which is unfortunately still quite popular today.

Burnout Syndrome at Work

Occupational burnout has been on the list of international diseases and disorders of the World Health Organization since 2019. The organization defines this syndrome as a disorder that occurs as a result of unsuccessfully managed chronic work stress. Burnout syndrome sufferers feel extremely tired, and they always cannot concentrate in their work or have too many negative thoughts and doubts about their jobs. Occupational burnout melts employees' desire to learn and improve themselves. Employees suffering from burnout syndrome cannot develop future-oriented career plans since they spend most of their daily energies and focus to overcome the difficulties in their daily lives.

According to current data, burnout syndrome sufferers are 50% less willing to talk to their managers about performance goals. These people have 13% of confidence in their performance and are 2.6 times more actively looking for another job compared to other workers. Well, what are the main causes of burnout syndrome?

5 Main Causes of Occupational Burnout

1. Unfair Behavior

When employees feel they have been exposed to unfair behavior in their workplace, they are 2.3 times more likely to suffer burnout. The scope of this unfair behavior is quite large too. For example, the motivation of employees, who believe that they have been misjudged in performance assessments and are not appreciated enough for their efforts, drops. Besides, when employees do not trust their managers, teammates, or main leaders, their bond that makes their efforts valuable is disturbed. In workplaces, where employees feel that they and their efforts are respected, their motivation is higher, and their relationships are stronger.

2. Unmanageable Workload

Employees, who have extreme workloads all the time, state 2.2 times more than they suffer burnout syndrome frequently or all the time compared to other employees. Even the employees with the highest performance can turn from positive employees to desperate employees who are considering resignation due to unmanageable high-performance goals and expectations. In companies with higher employee loyalty, there is the possibility of managing to work a few more hours per week compared to companies with low employee loyalty. However, if the tasks continue to be perceived as too difficult or endless, the result is burnout syndrome again.

3. Lack of Communication with Managers and 4. Lack of Support of Managers

When managers do not provide their employees with the information they need to do their jobs most effectively, working for the company is getting more challenging. When managers clearly express their expectations from employees for positions, business processes, collaborations, and the impact of what the employee does, employees can see the big picture better. When performance expectations or criteria are not clear, employees may suffer from burnout syndrome while trying to understand what their managers want from them.

Therefore, a managerial approach that speaks clearly, adequately, and proactively with their employees about their responsibilities, business priorities, performance goals, and expectations, allows the creation of transparent, aligned objectives by collaborating with them, is recommended.

5. Time Pressures

When employees always find time to do most or all of their work, they are 70% less likely to suffer from high burnout syndrome. However, the pressure of intense and unrealistic deadlines can create a snowball effect. An employee who cannot meet a challenging deadline can also miss the next one. Of course, each individual has a different mechanism to cope with time management challenges. Employees who are a great match for the job description can show high performance for a long time under time pressure by working more effectively compared to others. Here, one of the most important elements that managers should pay attention to is now asking for deadlines that are hard to meet by asking for efforts that will create stress on the employee over and over again. You can get the opinion of the employee to know how the desired work can be produced in high quality in a time. Burnout likelihood decreases when employees feel that their leaders' expectations from the position and performance standards are fair and high-performing employees under tight deadlines are appreciated.

How Can Next-Generation Performance Management Eliminate the Burnout Syndrome?

Employees who feel that performance criteria are within their control suffer from 55% less burnout syndrome. Otherwise, they feel stressed by believing that the success criteria are not in their control. Next-generation performance management ensures this firstly.

Next-generation performance management approach;

• Employees are informed about the main objectives of the company. Later on, it pays attention to individual and team objectives that are determined by the employees and aligned with these objectives. Thus, each individual becomes a part of a bigger picture.
• It does not create unclear expectations. Employees understand what is expected from them and they can see their current standing on their journey to success.
• It eliminates the problems that create a heavy workload or prevents getting the job done by giving responsibility and the right to speak to the employees regarding the work.
• It reduces work stress with an interactive and creative work environment by creating a business environment where everyone works in cooperation from managers to regular employees.
• Instead of monotonous performance assessments that lead to disappointment in both the employees and HR department, it creates organizations that are recognized with an opportunity for career development, where the behavioral and technical competencies of the employees are measured.
• It invites everyone for creative collaborations by boosting the teamwork spirit.
• Senior managers have open dialogues between team managers and employees. They believe that every idea is worth listening to. They provide honest and transparent feedback to these ideas.
• It creates a bridge between the mission of the company and the efforts of the employees. Thus, employees work for much more than just a salary and strive for a common objective.

You can integrate next-generation performance management into your company as a culture to cope with common burnout syndrome and preserve talented, motivated, highly committed, high-performing employees, in your organization. Let's meet now!