Employee burnout, which is marked by job-related stress that can impact employees both on and off the job, has existed long before COVID-19 shook up the workforce. Since the pandemic, the “great resignation” has occurred, prompting business leaders to consider ways to combat employee burnout.
Event trends 2022 include employee wellness events designed to prevent employee burnout. Let’s explore what employee burnout looks like and easy and effective ways to plan events that reduce it.
What is employee burnout?
Understanding employee burnout is important as you plan to focus on employee wellness. Employee burnout occurs when workers experience job-related stress that can impact their physical and emotional wellbeing. Many factors — and often a combination of factors — can lead to burnout. Employees who experience a lack of control in the workplace, struggle with unclear job expectations, and struggle with a work-life imbalance are more likely to experience burnout.
Employee burnout can manifest in a variety of ways, revealing both work-related and physical symptoms. In the workplace, a burned-out employee might have low productivity, be cynical, feel useless, or have limited excitement about a task or project. Burnout can also impact overall health, increasing levels of stress, irritability, and susceptibility to illness. Being able to identify these signs can help you prevent employee burnout.
How to create events that help prevent employee burnout
The “great resignation” is certainly real and has impacted businesses around the world. However, in this tumultuous business climate, company leaders show a desire to care for their employees in new and real ways. Focusing on employee wellness is an investment in the workforce and shows your employees that you care about their emotional wellbeing, not just their on-the-job performance. It can build loyalty within your organization, too. Plus, employee wellness programs can positively impact your business. In most cases, employees who feel seen, heard, and cared for are more likely to produce quality work and stay with the company for longer.
Employee wellness programs can include benefit packages to retain employees and keep them happy. Businesses are taking a look at packages that may include extra paid time off and more benefits. New event management trends may include gym memberships, extended time off, or onsite recreational facilities where employees can unwind and refocus, such as game rooms and crafting areas. Other trends include mental health events and spiritual retreats.
Offering creative events to your employees can help improve wellness and prevent employee burnout. Ideally, these events should be offered during the work day so that employees don’t have to dedicate their time off to a work event. If the event does occur after business hours, be sure to compensate your employees for their attendance. Or, consider hybrid event trends that offer flexible attendance options. Remember, a wellness event shouldn’t create a hardship for employees to attend.
Consider these employee wellness event ideas as you look to reduce the effects of employee burnout.
Lunch-and-learn events
Lunch-and-learn events are easy to incorporate into the workday, giving employees an opportunity to take a break from work and learn about a new topic. Consider scheduling a luncheon focused on topics such as time management, work-life balance, and wellness during employees’ lunch hour. Host this event in a conference room, where employees can bring their own lunch as they learn. Better yet, have lunch catered as a special perk for those who attend.
Lunch-and-learn events benefit employees by providing them with strategies to tackle common issues they may be facing. Motivated employees can be more productive and focused, which helps your business.
Get outside and move
Fresh air and physical activity can break up the monotony of the workday — and just might prevent employee burnout as well. Host opportunities for physical activity and camaraderie throughout the year. You might choose to offer a morning yoga class in a park next to the office or have someone head up a walking club that meets during the lunch hour. Team sports like Frisbee or softball encourage your employees to have fun, work together, and cheer each other on while being active.
Active outdoor events can lift employees’ spirits and re-energize them for the rest of the workday. Plus, they offer an outing to look forward to. A happier workforce can be more productive for your business.
Celebrate your employees with a family fun day
Busy workdays often leave little time for family togetherness. A family fun day can give employees some quality time with their families. Welcome employees and their families to an event held on-site or at another location. You can use your office parking lot to host a family-friendly carnival or hold a fun field day in a local park. You might rent out a local space like the zoo where families can spend time together. You can even find pet-friendly locations that allow employees to bring their furry friends, too.
Clearly, employees benefit from this event by enjoying quality time with family. Business leaders can improve their employees’ perception of them when they show that they run a family-friendly operation.
Stretch with a purpose
Too much time spent in front of the computer screen can lead to burnout. Encourage employees to get up, get outside, and stretch as a team. Plan small self-care group events that allow employees to enjoy an ice cream treat, play a quick board game, or enjoy coffee and conversation. The goal of these small group events is to encourage employees to build relationships while taking a break from the work.
These easy-to-plan activities can offer a mental health bump for employees. An improved outlook can make employees more productive when they return to their desks.
Incorporate regular health screenings
Promoting physical health is important, too. Work with your company’s insurance provider to plan a health screening and education day. Eventbrite can help you schedule screening sessions across multiple days/times if you have a large business with hundreds of employees. After the screening, let employees choose additional learning opportunities to improve health and wellness, such as programs that focus on healthy meal prepping or quitting smoking.
Health screening events show your employees that you’re interested in their physical health, which improves their perception of your business. And they’ll benefit from regular events that promote a healthy lifestyle.
Schedule 1:1 meetings
Listen to your employees at 1:1 meetings. These meetings can bring together an employee and supervisor or an employee with a higher-level executive. Encourage the employee to share input on their workload and their future goals at your company, and let them guide the meeting. You can even discuss topics outside of work to gain insight into their hobbies, interests, and family life.
While it might not seem intuitive to use Eventbrite for these meetings, the platform lends itself to a wide variety of events and parameters. You can schedule free events — even across multiple days/times.
These are just a few employee wellness event ideas that can minimize employee burnout. Read on to discover how Eventbrite can help streamline your event planning for employee wellness programs.
Establish an employee wellness program with the help of Eventbrite
Employee burnout is real, but it doesn’t have to negatively impact your business. Event planning trends such as employee wellness events and programs can improve morale, improve employees’ outlooks, and even bring some fun into the workday.
Give your employees the gift of wellness. Let Eventbrite help take care of the details. Create your next free event with a seamless RSVP event registration experience.
