This article addresses employee burnout as a workplace phenomenon, distinguishing it from general stress and examining its organizational consequences. The authors — a CultureAmp People Scientist and a clinical psychologist from Unmind — argue that burnout is a clinically meaningful condition with measurable impact on engagement and retention, not merely a colloquial complaint. Key evidence includes Culture Amp's internal survey data linking stress levels to engagement rates (89.5% engaged among low-stress employees versus 39.7% among highly stressed employees) and attrition likelihood, alongside a 2020–2021 McKinsey survey reporting 49% of respondents felt at least somewhat burned out. The article identifies role overload and role conflict as primary organizational contributors to burnout. It presents a two-tier response framework: individual-level strategies (boundary-setting, self-care, delegation) and organizational-level strategies (employee data collection, 1-on-1 check-ins, and leadership modeling of work-life balance). The article concludes that proactive measurement and managerial awareness are central to preventing burnout, particularly as workforce reductions increase demands on remaining employees. Key insights: Burnout is clinically distinct from stress: stress involves excess stimulation, while burnout is characterized by depletion, cynicism, and reduced efficacy — a distinction that has practical implications for how organizations diagnose and respond to workforce distress. Culture Amp's internal data indicates a substantial engagement gap between employees who report low stress (89.5% engaged) and those who report high stress (39.7% engaged), suggesting that stress measurement in engagement surveys may function as an early burnout indicator. In Q1 2021, 40% of global HR professionals reported feeling unable to cope with role demands, illustrating that the function responsible for managing employee wellbeing was itself disproportionately affected during the pandemic period. Practical takeaways: Organizations can use demographic breakdowns in employee survey data to identify burnout risk concentrations within specific departments, functions, or diversity groups, enabling more targeted interventions. Managers can adapt 1-on-1 meeting structures to include wellbeing-focused questions, positioning them as early detection tools for burnout signals before formal disengagement or attrition occurs.