HBR Guide to Performance Management (HBR Guide Series)

CHAPTER 17

Preventing Burnout on Your Team

Every once in a while, you’ll encounter a poor performer who was once, according to your records, an excellent employee. This person is now just going through the motions and getting by—or worse, failing to meet expectations. What went wrong? You may be looking at a case of burnout.

Burnout is a debilitating state of work-related stress and a common danger for your best employees. People suffering from burnout will often exhibit three symptoms: exhaustion, cynicism, and inefficacy. Exhaustion includes physical, cognitive, and emotional fatigue so profound that it undermines a person’s ability to work effectively and to feel good about what they’re doing. Cynicism is an erosion of engagement—a way of ...