Managing burnout at work has never been more important. We explore how leaders can prevent burnout and boost team wellbeing. The World Health Organisation formally classifies it, an occupational phenomenon resulting from “chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed” (WHO, 2019). For leaders, this presents a dual challenge: supporting teams through increasing pressure while navigating their own workload, uncertainty, and emotional labour.

In the past two decades working with leaders, I’ve seen the shift firsthand. The issues managers now face; rapid change, constant ambiguity, hybrid working, talent shortages, were once “stress spikes.” They’re now the baseline. Leaders regularly tell me:

• “I’m supposed to provide stability when my world feels unstable.”
• “I want to protect my team but I’m exhausted too.”
• “I worry I’m missing signs until it’s too late.

The good news: There is strong evidence about what works to reduce burnout risk in teams, and leaders play a powerful, role. We explore the science, along with practical strategies and personal examples from real leadership practice.

1. What causes burnout in teams?

Burnout is driven primarily by workload, control, fairness, reward, values conflict, and community (Maslach & Leiter, 2016). These are systemic, not individual, factors.

When I was consulting with a large education organisation during a period of restructuring, a manager confided in me:

“I keep offering wellbeing sessions, but they’re exhausted because the work hasn’t changed.”

This is exactly what Christina Maslach’s research warns against: wellbeing initiatives cannot compensate for chronic overload or unclear expectations. Otherwise known as ‘wellbeing-washing’.

How Leaders Can Prevent Burnout and Boost Team Wellbeing

• Audit workload patterns every 2–3 months.
• Clarify priorities (and explicitly de-prioritise what won’t be done).
• Create “decision boundaries” so the team knows where they have autonomy.

Evidence

• Reduced workload and higher autonomy are consistently associated with lower burnout and higher engagement (Bakker & Demerouti, 2017; Schaufeli et al., 2009).

2. How Can Leaders Build Psychological Safety: A Proven Buffer Against Stress

Amy Edmondson’s research on psychological safety shows that teams perform better and report lower burnout when they can speak up, admit mistakes, and ask for support without fear (Edmondson, 2018).

In one leadership programme we ran, a senior manager told us:

“I realised I wasn’t modelling vulnerability. I kept saying my team could come to me, but I never showed when I was struggling.”

He began opening team meetings with one small personal reflection, something that had challenged him that week. This is growth mindset. The shift was immediate. His team followed. Stress was shared earlier. Workload was redistributed before crises emerged.

What leaders can do

• Start meetings with a “check-in”: One win, one challenge.
• Admit your own uncertainties or limits.
• Normalize help-seeking.

Evidence

• Psychological safety predicts learning behaviour, performance, and reduced burnout (Newman et al., 2017).

3. Recognise Early Signs: You Will See Behavioural Signals Before People Use Words

Burnout signs rarely present as “I’m burned out.” They show up as:

• reduced creativity
• irritability
• withdrawal from the team
• perfectionism
• presenteeism (showing up sick/exhausted)
• repeated small mistakes

Years ago, in a humanitarian team I was supporting, I noticed a high performer starting to send emails at 3 a.m. and avoiding peer collaboration. When I gently checked in, she burst into tears and said:

“I didn’t want to be a burden. I thought everyone else was coping better.”

It was classic burnout—excessive responsibility, hidden strain, declining emotional bandwidth. We need to start being honest with each other about when we’re stressed so that we can recognise signs and symptoms before stress tips into burnout.

Evidence

• Emotional exhaustion and detachment develop gradually, often detected by colleagues and managers before self-report (Shirom, 2005).

4. Micro-Recovery, small habits that prevent big burnout

Leaders often tell teams to “take a break” or “use your annual leave,” but micro-recovery throughout the day is far more effective.

Evidence

• Short breaks restore attention and emotional regulation (Zacher et al., 2014).
• Even 60–90 seconds of diaphragmatic breathing lowers cortisol and improves cognitive flexibility (Ma et al., 2017).

What leaders can do

• Build 5-minute buffers between meetings for everyone.
• Encourage “focus hours” free of email/chat.
• Model short breaks yourself—leaders’ behaviour sets norms more than policies.
• Reinstate lunch-breaks! We need to eat.

5. Create “Ecologies of Resilience” Rather Than One-Off Interventions for managing burnout at work

Resilience is not an individual trait—it’s a set of protective factors built into the environment (Ungar, 2018).

In practice, when working with leadership teams, the most protective factors include:

• role clarity
• fair processes
• opportunities to learn and grow
• social support
• shared purpose

I often see leaders underestimate the power of shared purpose. In one global team I coached, burnout dropped significantly after they re-articulated their mission together and agreed weekly priorities. No extra resources, just alignment.

Evidence

• Collective efficacy, shared meaning, and supportive relationships significantly reduce burnout (Hobfoll et al., 2018).

6. Boundaries in Leadership: Why Modelling Matters

One leader I worked with would repeatedly tell her team:

“No emails after 7.”

Then she would send emails at midnight and into the early hours. She’s not alone and we see this, a lot. No, no, no. You’re not chugging through your ‘to-do’ list, you’re slowing yourself down and creating a culture of sacrifice that will learn to burnout. Get some sleep instead.

Despite her intentions, the message became: rest is optional; responsiveness is required.

Leaders’ behaviour accounts for a disproportionate share of burnout contagion. Burnout spreads socially—through norms and emotional mimicry (Bakker & Schaufeli, 2020).

Managing Burnout at Work: What leaders can do

• Delay-send emails if drafting late.
• Name your boundaries out loud (“I’m logging off now, speak tomorrow”).
• Celebrate recovery behaviours, not overwork.

7. Effective 1:1s: A Leader’s Most Powerful Tool Against Burnout

A well-structured 1:1 can surface workload issues, emotional strain, and misalignments before they become burnout.

Evidence

• Frequent, high-quality manager–employee check-ins are associated with higher resilience, lower burnout, and higher performance (Gallup, 2020).

A simple 1:1 structure

1. How are you really? (behavioural cues help)
2. Workload check (what feels heavy/light?)
3. Support needs (one thing that would help this week)
4. Boundaries (any risks of overwork?)
5. Growth (one development opportunity)

Leaders who use this consistently report earlier issue detection and far stronger trust.

Managing Burnout at Work Conclusion: Leadership That Protects Wellbeing Is Evidence-Based, Not “Soft”

Burnout prevention is grounded in robust research: workload, clarity, autonomy, fairness, psychological safety, and relational support. Leaders are not responsible for fixing systemic pressures alone, but they do create the conditions that buffer their teams against them.

The most powerful message leaders can communicate is:

“I value your wellbeing as much as your performance, and the two are inseparable.”

Protecting your team from burnout is not about heroism or endless empathy. It’s about evidence-based habits, clear boundaries, and humane leadership that sees people as people. Discover more by reading through our blogs, or taking a look at our courses to find out how Koru can help you to build resilience and maintain a high performing team

References

• Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2017). Job Demands–Resources theory: Taking stock and looking forward. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 22(3), 273–285.
• Bakker, A. B., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2020). Burnout contagion processes: From stress to strain to burnout. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology.
• Edmondson, A. (2018). The Fearless Organization: Creating Psychological Safety in the Workplace for Learning, Innovation, and Growth. Wiley.
• Gallup. (2020). State of the Global Workplace Report.
• Hobfoll, S. E., et al. (2018). The science of resilience and its implications for psychology. American Psychologist.
• Ma, X., Yue, Z., et al. (2017). The effect of diaphragmatic breathing on attention, negative affect and stress in healthy adults. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 874.
• Maslach, C., & Leiter, M. P. (2016). Burnout. Annual Review of Psychology.
• Newman, A., et al. (2017). Psychological safety and employee outcomes: A meta-analysis. Human Resource Management Review.
• Schaufeli, W. B., et al. (2009). Work engagement and burnout: Measurement and evidence.
• Shirom, A. (2005). Reflections on the study of burnout. Work & Stress.
• Ungar, M. (2018). Systemic resilience: Principles and processes. Ecology and Society.
• WHO (2019). Burnout: An occupational phenomenon.
• Zacher, H., et al. (2014). Daily micro-breaks and recovery. Journal of Applied Psychology.