Let's Talk About Burnout

Let's Talk About Burnout
FEATURED IMAGE | Source: Teamblind Inc.

A survey conducted this May revealed that 57.16 percent of tech workers are burnt out. Credit Karma led the pack with the most employees suffering from the condition, followed by Twitch and Nvidia. While we learned that a majority of tech workers experience chronic work stress, we didn’t know why.

Occupational burnout can result from various factors. Christina Maslach, Professor Emerita of Psychology at UC Berkeley, identified six key domains that link to the condition. Burnout occurs when there is a disconnect between the company and an employee in some or all of these six areas:

1. Workload: The amount of work is unmanageable and overtime is excessive.

2. Control: The employee lacks influence and power over her work. Moreover, job expectations may be unclear or the employee can’t see a connection between her role and company strategy.

3. Reward: The employee receives insufficient recognition and compensation.

4. Community: The culture is dysfunctional or there is workplace conflict.

5. Fairness: The employee doesn’t feel respected or fairly treated.

6. Values: There is a disconnect between the motivations of the company and the individual.

In order to find out why so many tech workers are burnt out, we began conducting a follow-up survey on our app. Starting on August 10, 2018, we asked our users to tell us their main source of workplace stress by choosing an answer from the following options:

A) Work overload

B) Toxic culture

C) Lack of control and career growth

D) Insufficient reward

E) Poor leadership and unclear direction

F) Burnout isn’t a problem at my current workplace

G) Other

The survey is still running but we’d like to share a first look at the results as it stands today. So far, the majority of survey participants have answered that burnout is caused by poor leadership and unclear direction at their company. Only 2.7 percent say that burnout isn’t an issue. The remaining numbers stand as follows:

Total participants: 6,696

A) Work overload – 19.7%

B) Toxic culture – 17.8%

C) Lack of control and career growth – 15.3%

D) Insufficient reward – 12.7%

E) Poor leadership and unclear direction – 22.8%

F) Burnout isn’t a problem at my current workplace – 2.7%

G) Other – 9%

Final results for this survey will be released next Monday. If you haven’t already submitted an answer, you can still participate by going on our app.

In the meantime, join Blind and WeWork on August 16, when we host a panel to discuss occupational burnout. Our guest speakers will address the causes of chronic workplace stress and will share innovative solutions to help you cope with increasing demands at work. Read more about this free event, here!