According to a new report from Microsoft, employees and leaders are struggling in today’s hybrid workplace. Almost half of employees—48%—said that their work feels “chaotic and fragmented.” This feeling is compounded by a majority—52%—of leaders who see a chaotic workplace environment. Together with Zocdoc, the results paint a picture of an escalating crisis of burnout among workers. In truth, 80% of global employees say they lack the time and energy required to do their jobs well.
As businesses are continuing to find their footing coming out of the pandemic, the work-life balance line has been completely erased. According to Alexia Cambon, senior research director at Microsoft, this hybridization has exacerbated the trend towards a more toxic, cavalier work culture. Roughly three out of four workers today are sending or receiving more than 50 messages after normal business hours. To make matters worse, that kind of nonstop pace leaves no time for recuperation.
Employees check emails as early as 6 a.m. For them, it’s not uncommon to have to pull off three or more in-person meetings over the course of an afternoon. Most stay on late into the evening, with almost a third of meetings taking place in two or more different time zones. Meetings after 8 p.m. have alarmingly increased by 16% YoY. At the same time, this trend illustrates the growing erosion of a work-life balance.
Cambon points to these trends as a result of work models that have not adapted to the needs of today’s workforce. She emphasizes the importance of integrating breaks and informal chats among colleagues into the workday, stating, “It’s actually essential to work – it’s not separate from it.” The need for such interactions is becoming increasingly clear as employees grapple with the mounting pressure from extended hours and constant connectivity.
The multiplication and intensification of the workday are really creating a lot of friction for many employees,” Cambon noted. This long hours of workday only compounds the impossibility. This friction is causing a culture of burnout and disenchantment. Workers find themselves unable to allocate their finite resources of time and energy to meaningful tasks, with Cambon noting, “we really can’t spend our precious time and energy – which are very finite resources – on the things that matter.”
Though the remote work boom granted many, especially women, more control over their careers, this shift has worsened these hurdles. Cambon cautions that workers across sectors are feeling burnt out with the weight of their work as the lines have blurred. “A lot of the work that we are doing now, a lot of the pain that we are feeling, we will pass on to agents,” she added, highlighting the long-term implications of current work practices.