Burn-out vs. Employee Retention and how to deal with both

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The number one item that will keep your employees…

Listening!

Active listening is a crucial step, but even more important is that once you have the feedback, the survey results, the performance reviews showing a pattern -what are you going to do about it???

As recently discussed in this article, they point out the four words necessary to address in order to retain your employees while so many are leaving, job searching, and considering a change is: Feedback that goes unheard.

Addressing the problem or the feedback is the most important item to SHOW your employees and entire team you hear them and care about them. This step of engagement is what is keeping employees at work and feeling like they are a part of the solution. The goal is to avoid apathy caused by burnout or employees feeling devalued even though they have remained when others have vacated.

The main item to address that will help you retain and engage your current workforce; the easy, quick-win, low hanging fruit, the MAGIC BULLET! Here is it is… if you've done the surveys, or your supervisors have had multiple conversations about the same topic, or your leadership team have yet to address a situation or problem you are certain exists. Take action NOW.

So if it's not the job… is it burnout?

As we acknowledge the 'Great Resignation' occurring through all industries and ranks, what is coinciding with this event is that good people are left behind, often with more work on their plates than before. To retain our current employees and ensure they are both encouraged, protected, and shown appreciation we need to ensure their roles don't become the dumping ground for the work undone by open positions. So ultimately, we ask ourselves, how do we do more with less (people)?

While there are multiple strategies to address and seek the solution the quickest and most important step is what we have outlined above. Listen. Discuss the problems as a group, very often those doing the detail work will provide a fix or more efficient way of addressing the work. Letting your entire group be a part of the activity to seek a better path forward is positive engagement. If this style of teamwork is not as ideal in your industry environment there are other ways to address the issues. Most crucial is addressing the issue to avoid stress, job fatigue, and BURNOUT.

Burnout is often chronic - meaning that these feelings may exist for a long time.

In general, feeling sad or low is a part of life and can't be avoided. When something goes wrong in your life, your mood might drop. If you feel especially sad or irritable because of a situation and have poor sleep, less interest in seeing friends, or frequent worry about the situation, you're probably experiencing low mood. Low mood will typically go away in a week or two, especially if there's an improvement in the situation that started it. When these feelings remain for longer than about two weeks, it is important to ask for help. Contact your EAP (Employee Assistance Program) provider, Northstar is here for their direct partners and their team for accessing care for mental health, mood, and other barriers or challenges.

What are some factors associated with job burnout and why do we attempt so much to avoid this situation?

Various factors can contribute to job burnout, including:

• unreasonable demands

• lack of control or the ability to influence decisions that affect your job (e.g., scheduling, workload, resources)

• unclear job expectations

• poor work environment (e.g., bullying, harassment, etc.)

• a miss-match in values or job fit

• lack of support, either at work or at home

• lack of work-life balance

How can causes of job burnout be addressed?

5 ways managers can prevent burnout at work

1. Communicate with your employees. Make sure every voice is heard. ...

2. Eliminate roadblocks. ...

3. Create realistic goals and expectations. ...

4. Encourage healthy work-life integration and use of your EAP…

5. Give them a break.

A workplace committed to the creation of an environment that promotes mental health provides its employees with protection from psychological harm while promoting healthy lifestyle habits. Additionally, active listening combined with using the feedback to create a more productive, efficient, engaging work environment will keep your team assembled and retain the people who are best for your business.

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