Results at Any Cost? Strategies to Avoid Hyper-Growth Burnout
“Again and again, we see promising, disruptive companies rocketing to success, but powered by a workplace culture that drives people into the ground”
- Arianna Huffington, Founder & CEO, Thrive Global
Growing too big, too fast can be a dangerous game for organisations - what starts out as an exciting time of expansion may quickly spiral into chaos.
Without proper planning and management, resources are strained and productivity takes a hit - ultimately resulting in potential failure down the line. Avoid this trap by doing these five things:
1. Hire for culture add rather than culture fit
When rapidly hiring new employees, many companies prioritise finding candidates who fit into their existing corporate culture. But while a homogenous group of employees may be comfortable and familiar, it may also be less capable of addressing a wide range of challenges and opportunities.
Instead of hiring for culture fit, leaders should focus on identifying candidates who bring something new to the table—who add to the company’s culture rather than just following it.
Research has shown that cognitive diversity can lead to breakthroughs in product development or process improvement that wouldn’t have been possible without those diverse perspectives coming together.
Any combination of age, nationality, education level, religious background, political affiliation, work experience, and life experience—basically anything that makes someone unique—can contribute to cognitive diversity.
By hiring for culture-add, leaders will be able to build a diverse team with unique perspectives that will help drive innovation and creativity in their business.
2. Embrace human-centric leadership
The core of effective leadership lies in understanding and valuing the human aspect of team dynamics. Assembling a diverse team presents unique opportunities to capitalise on varied perspectives, but also poses challenges in terms of communication and understanding.
Numerous studies and articles emphasise the importance of psychological safety within teams to unleash their full potential. Psychological safety is the shared belief that team members can take risks, be vulnerable, and express their true selves without fear of negative consequences. To foster this environment, leaders can adopt a human-centric approach that focuses on three key strategies:
Establishing Shared Meaning: By creating a common language and understanding, team members can effectively collaborate despite their diverse backgrounds. This shared meaning helps to build trust and reduce miscommunication.
Promoting Open Dialogue: Encourage team members to ask questions and engage in constructive discussions. This process allows leaders to tap into the unique talents and skills of each individual, and fosters a culture of continuous learning and improvement.
Nurturing Cross-Cultural Connections: Facilitate opportunities for team members to learn about each other's experiences, strengths, and backgrounds. This understanding leads to stronger relationships and mutual respect, ultimately strengthening the foundation of the team.
3. Establish emotional intelligence as a must-have management skill
Emotionally intelligent managers are those who understand their emotional responses and those of the people they manage and understand how to use this knowledge to motivate and inspire their teams.
This means having self-awareness and being able to read other people’s emotions accurately so they can respond appropriately in any situation. Emotional intelligence also involves having empathy and being able to give constructive feedback without coming across as overly critical or harsh.
Modern managers tactfully use behaviours like selective vulnerability to let their team know that they understand their struggles and are willing to open up about their own experiences.
And they make sure their messages land accurately by emotionally proofreading all digital communication before hitting send to avoid negativity bias
When managers make use of their emotional intelligence to bring out the best in their teams, they cultivate an atmosphere where team members feel respected, recognised and trusted–all key components for a thriving team.
4. Value and protect downtime
When employers expect employees to be available at all times, even after hours and on weekends, it creates an expectation that they should be constantly connected to work.
In addition to leading to employee burnout, this all-consuming need for connection can result in decreased productivity due to a lack of focus and concentration. It can also lead to decreased morale because employees feel unappreciated or taken advantage of by employers who don’t respect their time away from work.
Employers must recognise these issues and take steps towards creating healthier work environments for their staff while encouraging them not just to work hard but also to rest hard.
So how do we combat this problem?
Well firstly, employers need to set boundaries when it comes to expectations around work hours and communication frequency. It is also important for employers to encourage regular breaks and offer support when needed. Finally, employees should make sure they take time off regularly to recharge both mentally and physically before returning to the office refreshed and energised.
5. Recognise and support employees experiencing burnout
While prevention is better than detection, knowing what to look for and how to treat burnout in employees is crucial to maintaining the health of an organisation.
Employee burnout can happen at any time and can have serious consequences if not addressed early on.
Some warning signs of employee burnout include:
Decreased productivity and performance
Increased cynicism towards coworkers and clients
A lack of participation and contribution in meetings and events
More combative and argumentative
No longer coachable or open to feedback
Managers face a big challenge in re-invigorating those with job fatigue. Most tend to languish before fully rebounding, if at all!
To tackle the issues that cause burnout and ensure success for employee and employer alike, managers must make active listening a priority in any one-on-one conversations. This open dialogue helps employers and employees alike identify potential problem areas before they become more severe – staving off burnout and keeping motivation levels high for everyone involved.
Proactivity is key: no matter the issue, approaching it with an eye towards mutually beneficial solutions can create an environment of well-being that pays dividends across the board.
By making a few key changes to the way leaders think about and manage their teams, they can create workplaces that are more innovative, creative and ultimately successful.