“You don’t realize how many elephants are around you until you start looking more closely.” How EPAM, SoftServe, Railsware, and others motivate IT professionals to count elephants, see psychologists, and take sabbaticals, saving them from burnout

This is not a confirmation of burnout, but it is a signal for the manager or people partner to initiate a conversation, to find out how the person is feeling, whether their current workload is comfortable, and whether their motivation is maintained. Regular communication with employees allows you to keep your finger on the pulse not only in the area of productivity, but also in the context of emotional and psychological well-being. In addition to analytics, we have a daily survey on the internal portal, where everyone can mark their emotional state. This tool is currently being improved, but already allows colleagues to «raise their hand» when something is wrong. If someone notes that they are not feeling well, a people partner or manager will definitely contact them.

This often happens to those who combine several roles — managing a large team, communicating with customers, strategic functions and having a wide range of responsibilities. In such situations, a frank conversation with coaching tools is quite effective. Together we analyze what is currently hindering, how we can change the situation — reduce the workload, delegate some of the tasks, plan a vacation, change the focus, etc.

The company offers several levels of support. First, the Wellbeing service is an external partner that provides psychological and coaching assistance. We regularly remind colleagues about this opportunity and encourage them to use it. Second, there is the Wellbeing Academy, an internal initiative that organizes regular labs and events dedicated to mental health, burnout, emotional and physical resilience. At these events, colleagues share practical tools, and external experts are also invited — psychologists, coaches, trainers.

We constantly emphasize the importance of rest and encourage colleagues to plan regular vacations, even despite the difficult conditions the country is currently living in. There is also the opportunity to take a sabbatical or extended leave — from three to six months. This is a completely acceptable and company-supported practice if an employee needs a long time to recover, with the opportunity to return to work with renewed strength.

It’s important that people have the space and courage to raise their hand and say, «I’m struggling. I’m exhausted, I need help,» and to know for sure that such support is available and can be obtained within the company.

Sigma Software focuses on specialist support programs: well-being programs, medical insurance, support for mobilized and veterans, relocation and adaptation programs. This gives a feeling of support and support from the company. At the same time, to prevent professional burnout, specialists have the opportunity to choose development paths and gain new skills and knowledge through rotation on projects and between functions, through mentoring programs, through courses on our educational platform Sigma Software University, through the development of their own startups, etc.

Despite this, team productivity and engagement remain at a high level, largely due to our systematic work on supporting people. For example, this year we introduced two additional Self-Care Days — days that employees can use for themselves, take a break, relax and take care of themselves. We can see the effect of all the additions to the wellbeing system in Peakon’s results for the Health and Wellbeing driver — currently it is 76. The most valuable thing is the comments, because it is from them that we can draw ideas and important insights for further work.

Such a high level is maintained thanks to a comprehensive approach — at SoftServe, we look at well-being in 5 directions:

• Emotional well-being — support from colleagues through an anonymous psychological support service, additional events on mental wellbeing.
• Physical well-being — health insurance, sports compensation, sports activities and events in offices and online
• Well-being at work — through a hybrid format, flexible schedules, a supportive culture, and opportunities for development and learning.
• Financial well-being — through educational solutions that help you understand financial planning.
• Social welfare — through volunteer initiatives within the OpenTech pro bono program, internal resource groups, and the Open Eyes corporate charitable foundation.

All of this helps create an environment where burnout can be prevented. However, in cases where a person needs to recharge, they can take a sabbatical leave. Its duration is discussed individually, but on average it is about two months. Since 2023, the number of employees choosing this format of leave has increased more than fourfold. Currently, about 4% of employees choose a sabbatical, in particular to restore resources.

At the same time, we understand and accept that now, in a remote format, we do not have full visibility, so we record many signals indirectly: through the dynamics of task performance, the emotional tone of communications in the team, or if the team leader makes a relevant request during regular syncs.

We adhere to a policy of a sufficient number of days off. We keep some public holidays, provide sick leave not only in case of illness, but also as recovery days after stressful events (for example, night shelling).

A flexible approach to vacations works. People Partner 1:1 constantly reminds us of the importance of not «putting up with it,» but taking regular breaks. Best practice: take a week off every 3 months.

We have a wellbeing program that is regularly updated with new features. Among the main ones are:

• Webinars with mental health specialists «Balance Hub»;
• «Glow Up Club» physical fitness support program: meetings with doctors, trainers, discussion of back pain, vision impairment, sleep disorders, etc.;
• Access to psychotherapy compensation (partial), as well as partner discounts, in particular from the «Conversation» platform. People are quite actively using this.

If we notice a decrease in efficiency, the first step is always a dialogue: we identify the problem, choose a support format (day-off, workload, therapy, task change, etc.). We try to approach each situation individually and offer a format that will suit a specific person.

Our position as a company: we create the most accessible resources and are always ready to offer help, but the responsibility for one’s condition always lies with the specialist.

Now the role of the company is not only to provide working tools, but also to create conditions in which a person can work long-term and effectively without harming themselves.

Here’s what we do to prevent burnout or support colleagues during difficult times:

1. Workload control and balance. We carefully monitor employees’ workload and regularly remind them of the importance of rest. We encourage them to take vacations, maintain a healthy balance between work, personal life, and participation in corporate initiatives.
2. Horizontal rotation/project change. If the cause of burnout is a task, team, or overall work vector, we discuss the possibility of changing focus: moving to another project, changing position, or temporarily performing other duties. This approach works when the person still has the resources for analysis and transformation.
3. Mental health support. At Ciklum, professionals have access to a specialized platform where they can have sessions with psychotherapists — the first three meetings are free, and there is a corporate discount for subsequent ones. This is an opportunity to get help in a safe environment in a timely manner.
4. Sabbatical as an option. In more complex cases, we can offer a sabbatical — a long break in work with the option of reinstatement. We already have positive examples of colleagues returning after such a break with new energy, and clients happily accepting them back into their teams.

It is worth remembering that burnout is not a weakness, but a signal. And it is important to notice and respond to it in time.

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, we have been regularly collaborating with psychologists who provide individual consultations to everyone who needs it. In addition, as part of the Mental Health Program, we regularly conduct trainings during which an invited expert talks about the nature of burnout, its main triggers, and ways to recognize early manifestations so that the preventive approach works. In particular, we use the «traffic light» model, a practical tool for self-diagnosis of the state of the nervous system in order to identify problems in a timely manner.

Individual talent partner meetings with levinainers are also held quarterly. This is an additional opportunity to better understand the team’s needs, identify risks early, and provide support where it is needed most.

In addition, our conditions and benefits give our specialists many opportunities to comfortably adjust their own life-work balance. These include 34 days of paid vacation per year, a flexible schedule with the possibility of full remote or hybrid format, a monthly smart budget that can be used for your own physical and mental health. And, of course, the opportunity to take time off when necessary right now, without unnecessary bureaucracy.

Regular open conversations about the state of affairs, career and projects also play a significant role. We regularly hold IDP sessions on the personal development plan of colleagues, where we discuss with each team member their goals, current projects, desired changes in tasks, objectives and scope of work. Another important question: «What exactly do you not want to do right now?» This allows you to avoid the accumulation of unpleasant tasks and work on balanced and fulfilling growth.

In addition, we conduct regular team «checkups» — every six months we launch an anonymous Experience Survey for everyone. It covers important topics: engagement, team interaction, communication, work-life balance, recognition, etc. Based on the results, we work individually with teams in the growth zone.

We also implement thematic initiatives, such as the recent Wellbeing Month. Each week was dedicated to a specific well-being practice — from meditations and creative sessions on neurography to lectures on nutrition. And we also counted elephants. It sounds funny, but this exercise teaches you to notice the world around you and «turn yourself» into the moment. And you know what? You don’t even realize how many elephants are around you until you start looking more closely.

During such conversations, HR can notice signs of burnout — apathy, anxiety, loss of energy — and then delicately talk about the reasons, offer support, or practical steps. When communication is regular, it is easier to understand whether a person is affected by individual personality characteristics (e.g., hyper-responsibility, self-criticism, inability to delegate) or factors related to work conditions (stressful tasks, deadlines, schedule, lack of feedback, etc.).

How else are we trying to help:

• 25 paid vacation days per year — we make sure that people use their time for rest;
• days of silence — several times a month there are days for the entire company without meetings to allow them to switch between tasks and focus on work without communication;
• compensation for mental health support — for example, a psychologist, or sports, yoga, dancing, massages, that is, anything that will help people switch;
• informal online activities to support communication — a reading club, online games, morning coffee with a simulation of the office start of the day;

How do we help get out of this state:

• offering practical steps depending on the case, when the employee should help himself first. Our role is to highlight this to him. For example, there were several cases where active work with objections or fears prompted the employee to start working with a psychologist.
• transfer to another department. Unfortunately, after a certain number of years of work in Customer Support, a large percentage of employees face burnout. If the employee is effective, promising and there is a need, we try to transfer employees to other departments. Thus, in almost every department there is a person who has transferred from the Customer Support team — Billing Specialist, QA, PM.
• We don’t have a general sabbatical practice, we work individually here. There was a successful case when an employee went on sabbatical, returned with a new lease of life, and after that he still works at the company (it’s been 3 years since the case began).

We believe that burnout is not a weakness, but a signal for change. And our job as an employer is to give people a space to talk about it and get support.

We focus on:

• ENPS surveys, monthly health-check and burnout surveys;
• feedback after 1:1 with line managers;
• team and HR observation — if a person drastically changes their communication style, seems «disconnected» from processes, or significantly reduces activity, we initiate support.

Typical signals:

• chronic fatigue, even after a weekend or vacation;
• loss of motivation for tasks that were previously enjoyable
• cynicism
• avoiding team interactions, rallies, teambuilding
• requests for a change of context or a «respite from the project»
• decreased engagement and emotional «kickback»

We react to burnout not as an individual problem, but as a systemic signal. And we act quickly, adapting the conditions to the specific person and situation, if possible:

• close interaction of the HR team with project, line and resource managers
• HR and line manager are involved: let’s see how we can relieve the load
• you can take a day-off, a shift in working days, a vacation, sick leave or unpaid sabbatical
• Horizontal rotation — in case of project fatigue, there is an opportunity to temporarily change the context: another domain, another type of task, or even internal R&D
• flexibility in the schedule: we can reduce the workload or adjust the working day;
• access to proven specialists: psychologists, psychotherapists, psychiatrists — if necessary;
• HR support — from «talking it out» to helping communicate with a lead or client;
• analyzing the causes of burnout in order not only to «put out the fire», but also to change something in the process structure or team.

We don’t view burnout as a «weakness.» It’s a natural reaction to prolonged or excessive workload. We’re not interested in heroism, but in the long-term viability and well-being of the team. So our goal is to create an environment where you can honestly say, «I’m burned out”—and receive support, not condemnation.

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