One of my customers asked me if the surge in burnout could be related to the increase of people working from home. The question came after the newspaper De Tijd published a report about a 66% rise in burnouts in Belgium.
This is what I answered:
It is doubtful that the increase would be due (primarily) to telecommuting. There are many other factors.
Telework is both a solution to problems and a cause of them.
And no one has yet put their finger on the exact proportion.
But we do know this:
– Excessive telecommuting destroys the positive effects of telecommuting.
– Mandatory teleworking is out of the question, it makes the motivation evaporate.
– Collaboration, which is a source of well-being, is much more difficult when teleworking, but not impossible.
– Informal contacts, gossiping, laughing and complaining: it all becomes more difficult from a distance. And people need that too.
– New people get lost in a virtual organization where people are not visibly available
– Holding meetings in a physical space works better than in a digital space (which is not to say that it would not work in a digital space).
– Leading in a digital environment is different, less people-oriented and more task-oriented. This does not benefit the atmosphere
People are programmed to be both social and competitive. But if you make the social harder, the competitiveness remains.
And there is a possible crossover between private and work life when people work from home. Separating work and private is a good thing.
The drive towards more telework might be inspired by productivity and efficiency gains, the reduction of square meters, the attraction of talent that is not mobile, the reduction of commuting stress, the possibilities to balance private and working life … These are all good reasons.
But it has to be done with moderation. It’s not so much about the number of days working from home, it’ s about giving people the autonomy to arrange their work but also within an organizational framework.
There are more and more organizations that are returning to office work, against the trend, or they move forward very cautiously. Apple and Google are the best-known names of the contrarebels . But among my clients, I also have organizations that have the same concerns.
That being said, burnout also occurs in a non-telecommuting organization. There is often a contradiction between high engagement and entrepreneurship versus good people dropping out.
We need to be vigilant and above all caring.
The pressure is very high everywhere, the appreciation often not high enough. Mental hygiene becomes more important.
For organizations, it’s important to adopt a behavioral strategy view on work organization. This is broader than structure, processes, and technology. Organizational development also refers to the design of the psychological space of organizations. Taking into consideration the impact of certain strategic decisions on behavior is crucial. More than ever.
