L&D’s role in helping avoid burnout

How can organisations become more productive and is the four-day working week one answer to this question?

Mental Health UK recently reported that employee sickness has hit a record high, with around 20% of UK employees on long term sick leave, with one third (35%) of adults experiencing high or extreme levels of pressure and stress 'always' or 'often' in the past year. We all know that in the wake of the pandemic, learning and development teams found themselves in an interesting position helping their organisations to deliver mental health and wellbeing content to their people to raise awareness and hopefully mitigate risk.?

However, as the pandemic drew to a close, what impact had those initiatives really had on their people? It’s extremely difficult to correlate access to content with impact on behaviour. And at this point people stopped to think: instead of asking “How can we support our staff with information now?” we should have been asking “Which of our working practices could change to allow us more physical and mental capacity to work smarter not harder?”.?

The problem very rarely boils down to awareness alone; core behaviours and cultures within a business need changing or reinforcing if a real impact is to be had. The root causes of employee burnout need addressing before treating any symptoms, and whilst excessive workloads are often the focus of these conversations there are many more fundamental issues at play. Things like lack of autonomy or accountability, constantly shifting expectations, inconsistent messaging, and unclear goals, all melt into a pot of insecurity and ultimately burnout.

What is interesting however is that although L&D might not be the ones who should be ultimately responsible for wellbeing within a business, the wellbeing of staff who feel well supported by their L&D function increases exponentially. In a recent People Management magazine article , it was found that 96% of respondents saw a link between L&D activity and wellbeing, with more than a third of people seeing an immediate boost to wellbeing when short-term skill development happened.

So what is L&D’s role in helping reduce burnout and push towards a brighter, more balanced future??

Relationship building and employee listening

It’s not the first time, and it certainly won’t be the last, that nurturing relationships across a business is mentioned in this newsletter. It’s the number one skill when it comes to building effective L&D teams, because by-and-large learning teams are at the intersection of information and data that can help the business drive productivity, success and impact bottom lines. No L&D team is an island, and if that’s how you’re currently operating: Think again. But why is this so important when it comes to wellbeing?

At a basic level, if you’re currently working on certain initiatives then you’ll know the power of effective stakeholder engagement. This includes department heads, managers, senior leadership and beyond. Ensuring their buy-in will mean that whatever it is you’re aiming to do will be easier to accomplish, and it will feel like plain sailing for the people and their teams involved. Starting off on the right footing is essential.

If we assume that wellbeing is the responsibility of everyone in the business, rather than one sole department, then any wellbeing initiative is cross-departmental. Collaboration between other teams, such as HR, Finance, and IT can mean that you’ll have a more comprehensive understanding of what needs to be done, or how to move the needle. It will also mean you have a well-rounded view of different motivators within the business.

The step beyond this, and one which we often see overlooked, is employee listening.

Employee listening is not just about collecting feedback. It's about fostering a responsive, empathetic, and adaptive organisational culture. It is essential when considering how L&D can feed into creating (and sustaining) a healthy, productive workplace - underpinning psychologically safe spaces. During this process internal advocates and key change drivers may also be highlighted. These individuals will be able to help facilitate smoother communication and encourage the adoption of learning initiatives. Ultimately, they bridge the gaps that L&D can’t reach.

It is crucial that throughout any conversations that take place across a business, L&D are able to identify and relay trends to relevant parties, and also respond to any feedback received. We all know things like engagement and sentiment surveys fall flat if feedback isn’t actioned immediately.

Through these core relationships, L&D will be able to design, implement, and continuously improve wellbeing initiatives that are closely aligned with the actual needs and preferences of the workforce.?

Building on this, and to reiterate the point made at the beginning of this article, L&D’s biggest role in fostering a better workplace culture is in providing the right opportunities for upskilling.

Skills development: The key to unlocking true employee wellbeing

Skills development is central to employee wellbeing, serving as a powerful tool for empowerment and engagement. As employees acquire new skills, their sense of competence and self-efficacy grows, directly enhancing job satisfaction and reducing stress. This sense of competence is a vital aspect of self-determination theory, which links directly to psychological wellbeing. Moreover, skills development facilitates career progression, providing employees with clear pathways for advancement and growth within their organisations. This not only prevents feelings of stagnation but also reinforces job satisfaction and motivation, key factors in maintaining a dynamic and fulfilling work environment.

L&D initiatives that focus on adaptability and resilience prepare employees to navigate the frequent changes characteristic of modern workplaces, from technological advancements to shifting market dynamics. Plus there’s something to be said here for the human-AI sandwich that is currently being spoken about, particularly if L&D can foster those human-to-human moments (whether digitally or in person). Such training reduces anxiety and enhances employees' ability to cope with uncertainty, promoting a more stable and secure work environment. Continuous learning opportunities ensure that employees remain relevant in their fields, safeguarding against the risks associated with skill obsolescence. This ongoing relevance boosts job security and stability, which are critical to reducing job-related anxiety and promoting overall wellbeing.

Collaborative learning environments also play a crucial role in social and emotional aspects of employee wellbeing. Workshops, seminars, and group training sessions not only build skills but also foster connections among coworkers, enhancing social support and creating a more inclusive and supportive workplace culture.?

L&D's commitment to skills development not only fulfils employees’ intrinsic needs for personal and professional growth but also underpins organisational health and performance. By investing in the skills development of their people, L&D professionals can unlock substantial benefits for employee wellbeing, thereby contributing to a more productive and positive workplace.

Four-day working week

In a recent article released by Grapevine HR the four-day working week has been brought back up as something that can help create a better sense of work-life balance. Many trials of the four-day week have been hugely successful, with employees signalling that they are happier, feel more balanced and that they are in fact more productive.?

Interestingly, within the article reference was made to a column business owner and writer Gene Marks wrote, suggesting that 10-hour working days could be the answer to many questions business owners have around reducing to a four-day working week (when 40 hour weeks are standard practice). Compressed hours are certainly a viable option, but certain questions around flexibility, how parents would manage childcare, and lack of productivity are still questions that would need to be answered in this instance.

The four-day week is something Thrive has been interested in for a while. As a family-first and flexible organisation that embraces benefits like unlimited holiday, it already fits with our culture that it might be something we could make a success here. In true Thrive style, we’re embracing experimentation and entering into a 12-week-long trial alongside Dr Charlotte Rae and her team at The University of Sussex , as part of their research into the four-day working week. The research allows us to measure before, during and after states of sentiment and productivity, but also encourages employees to take part in things like MRIs and blood tests which will contribute to the broader research beyond our organisational-specific trial.

The main aim of the trial is to determine whether our employees feel a greater sense of wellbeing whilst also maintaining the right levels of productivity to maximise business impact.

It’s a whole learning curve for us internally, and we’re just at the start of this journey. But either way, we’ll learn valuable lessons about what will or won’t work for our business, and more importantly our people.

To wrap it all up

Where do you fall in this conversation??

Is wellbeing something that you as an L&D team have been contributing to within your organisation??

Or do you currently operate a four-day working week?

We would love to hear your thoughts on this, drop us a note or connect with Helen on LinkedIn .