The hybrid work model is a great solution to provide employees with the necessary adjustment period as they transition from home to in-office. However, prolonged hybrid work timings can also harm employees’ well-being and productivity.
Let’s take a look at the 3 ways in which prolonged hybrid work can lead to employee burnout and what can employers do about it:
Lack of Routine
Every organization has adopted a hybrid work model differently. Some businesses allow their employees to come in at any time of the day, while some businesses have decided certain days for employees to come in at work. However, even the most flexible hybrid work models can lead to employee burnout.
When employees know that they can go to work at any time or when they are only going to work on Tuesdays or Wednesdays, they can face difficulties sticking to a routine.
For example, employees would need to get up earlier than usual on days they have to work. When these employees are not supposed to go to work every day, they cannot have a set time to wake up every day.
Employers can help employees by letting them choose the days they can come in at work. Employees might have developed different routines for different days depending on their domestic responsibilities or personal priorities. Hence, allowing the employees to choose the most feasible days to work from the office can reduce their burnout.
Blurred Boundaries between Work and Home
Hybrid work culture can blur the lines between work and home. When employees work from home some days of the week and go to work other days of the week, they can feel that they are always working. They can feel overwhelmed by work, severely impacting their productivity and leading to burnout.
Employers can significantly help by not allowing the hybrid work model for long. While employers can use the hybrid work model for helping employees transition from work from home to working full-time in-office, they should discourage prolonged hybrid work culture.
Over-Communication
Hybrid work culture can be challenging for the managers and team leaders, especially when the employers allow employees to select their preferred days of coming in to work. Managers and team leaders may compensate for the challenge by over-communicating with their team members. However, unnecessary or constant communication can easily lead to employee burnout for junior employees and even team leaders.
Employers can support managers and team leaders by providing them with significant authority over their work timings. Managers should come in and leave as they please, as long as their teams perform well. Managers should also set schedules for their team members for specific projects to foster healthy communication.
Finally, employers can benefit by revising the performance metrics during the hybrid work model. Gender and generational differences and domestic responsibilities of individual employees should be considered when formulating the hybrid work model for the workplace to reduce employee burnout.
