Managing the Burnout Burndown

As engineering managers, we're used to managing the Sprint Burndown chart. Even in non-agile projects, the idea still applies. Over time, the amount of work that remains to be done should go down, and good engineering managers carefully guide the team towards this goal.

However, engineering managers have to manage more than backlogs of user stories. They have to stay current with an ever-changing technology landscape, manage the professional and personal concerns of their team members, navigate office politics, and solve the challenges of their own lives. These competing responsibilities often result in burnout and a reduction in the capacity of engineering managers as well as the teams that rely on them for direction.

This talk will provide insights and tools to help engineering managers reduce burnout and keep their stress levels in a managed state.

Transcript

1. Managing the Burnout Burndown
6. The Burnout Problem
7. “Burnout is a psychological syndrome emerging as a prolonged response to chronic interpersonal stressors on the job. The three key dimensions of this response are an overwhelming exhaustion, feelings of cynicism and detachment from the job, and a sense of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment.” The ongoing feeling that today’s resources aren’t enough to meet tomorrow’s demands. Defining Burnout Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan
8. The Three Dimensions of Burnout Emotional Exhaustion Depersonalization Reduced Personal Accomplishment Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan
9. Widespread Burnout Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan “Organizations are facing an employee burnout crisis. A recent Gallup study of nearly 7,500 full-time employees found that 23% of employees reported feeling burned out at work very often or always, while an additional 44% reported feeling burned out sometimes.” “That means about two-thirds of full-time workers experience burnout on the job.”
10. Engaged But Burned Out Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan “ Interestingly, many employees appear to be optimally engaged while they are burned-out and considering to leave their jobs.” “The highest turnover intentions were reported by the ‘highly engaged-exhausted’ group – higher than even the unengaged group that might be commonly expected to be eyeing an exit.”
11. Individual Costs Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan
12. Corporate Costs Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan “...the researchers determined that workplace stress caused additional expenditures of anywhere from $125 to $190 billion dollars a year—representing 5 to 8 percent of national spending on health care.” “The biggest factor in these costs was high demands at work, responsible for an estimated $48 billion in spending; followed by lack of insurance, contributing to $40 billion; and work-family conflict, contributing to $24 billion.”
13. Common Solutions to Burnout
14. Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan
15. Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan
16. Managing the Burnout Burndown
17. WORK 50 Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 DAYS 38 33 31 30 28 25 23
18. Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan BURNING DOWN BARRIERS
19. Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan BURNING DOWN DISTRACTIONS
20. ➔ TBD ➔ TBD ➔ TBD ➔ TBD The Power of Health Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan BURNING DOWN ILLNESS
21. WORK 50 Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 DAYS 38 33 31 30 28 25 23 THE IDEAL LINE
22. Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan PRACTICE OVER PERFECTION
23. Managing the Burnout Burndown @aneika & @anjuan MANAGING THE BURNOUT BURNDOWN
24. Managing the Burnout Burndown Thank you. Twitter: @aneika Instagram: aneikals Twitter: @anjuan Instagram: anjuan