Blurred Lines and DBA Burnout

According to research carried out by Aviva more than half (52%) of UK employees agree that the boundaries between their work and home life are becoming increasingly blurred.

For those who celebrate it, Christmas is no exception. The Christmas holidays provide time to relax and help to maintain a healthy work-life balance. However, it has been the expectation that employees in certain positions should be available to work 24/7, this is especially so for the Database Administrator.

In addition to the other stresses which occur this time of year, Christmas is a time when DBAs are most likely to struggle to balance the holidays with peak transaction workloads. It was predicted that in 2021, 11 million Brits would spend £1.2bn shopping online on Christmas day alone.

Don’t They Know It’s Christmas?

Christmas should be the season to be jolly, but it can be a double-edged sword for a DBA. On the one hand, they get time off to spend with the family to celebrate and have fun. But on the other, if a lone DBA is responsible for managing the demands of the company databases, their time is likely to be in high demand, with callouts and off-shift tasks inevitable. With the build-up to Christmas, this is when DBAs are most at risk of stress or burnout.

Burnout in the workplace

Burnout is when someone experiences a lot of stress over a long period of time. It can lead to feeling physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted.

Burnout doesn’t just disappear if overlooked. Ignoring the signs can make it worse and could even result in an employee feeling unable to fulfill the demands of their role. According to a poll conducted by YouGov 1 in 5 working adults felt unable to manage pressure and stress levels at work.

Research by Mental Health UK found that mental health problems are the biggest single cause of lost days at work in the UK. Two in five (43%) employees describe their wellbeing as being less than good, and more than a third (34%) said they did carry on working even when they felt unwell.

With these statistics in mind, it might be time to consider bringing in additional database support for your DBAs this Christmas.

What can you do to help?

Budgets might be tight, but an employee’s mental wellbeing needs to be a business priority.

Just a quarter (26%) of employees agree that their employer is genuinely concerned about their wellbeing.

Managers have the responsibility to maintain team wellbeing and spot any tell-tale signs of stress or burnout. Recognising the early signs and bringing in an extra pair of hands during busy periods is one way to help address this.

Have you considered:

• Where does your DBA go for support or advice?
• Do you have a robust contingency plan for when your DBA is not available?
• What happens during extra busy periods such as during a seasonal workload peak?

Maintain a work/life balance

At Triton, we offer our clients different ways of working which allows your team to continue doing their job well.  We can be called upon whenever we are needed to provide short-term cover in periods of peak demand or on a more regular basis as an extension to your IT Team.

Ensure your employees feel valued this Christmas. Contact us today or find out more about our flexible service offerings Consultancy on Demand, RemoteDBA or RemoteDBA Lite.

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