Wiley Survey Ties Burnout to Changes Left Unresolved at Work
Burnout at work may have less to do with how many changes happen than with whether past changes were ever closed out. That is the finding of new research from Wiley Workplace Intelligence, which calls the leftover load "change debt."
The survey numbers
Wiley surveyed more than 1,400 employees. The amount of change a team went through explained only 4% of the variance in burnout. In contrast, past changes that were never explained or closed out predicted burnout five times more strongly than the sheer volume of change did.
Lingering problems from an earlier change weighed three times heavier on people than doubts about the reason for a current one.
A change did not have to be recent to weigh on people. More than half of respondents said the biggest changes at their company happened seven to 12 months earlier. Restructuring and new leadership were among the biggest sources of change debt.
Not resistance, but handling
Most employees said they were not opposed to change. They were unhappy with how their organizations handled it. Wiley says people adapt well when they understand what is going on and get room to work through it.
The post gives an example. A worker who has doubts about this quarter's new workflow fares better than one still dealing with a reorganization left open for a year and a half.
The idea of change debt
Wiley defines change debt as a pile of workplace changes pushed through without being explained or finished. The common view blames change fatigue on too many changes in too short a time. Wiley points to unresolved disruption instead, which keeps slowing work well past the point when the next change arrives.
Other recent studies point the same way: many employees say their companies do not manage change well. Workers also report more stress and heavier workloads, and often too little time to adapt to shifts.
The research says this can lead to employee overwhelm and burnout, erode trust in leaders and, in time, become a retention problem.
What Wiley tells leaders
Wiley recommends that leaders deal with leftovers from earlier changes before trying to win employees over to a new one. When people feel swamped by change debt, engagement can slip and they may start to question whether they want to stay.
The post also warns about credibility. Announcing change after change while earlier ones stay open will, over time, look to employees like a lack of credibility, even when a manager delivers the latest news well.
Source: HR Dive