Wee Chan Au

Dr. Wee Chan Au is a Senior Lecturer in Management Practice at Newcastle University. Her research interests lie in work and wellbeing, especially the challenges of attaining work-life balance in today’s fast-paced, high-tech, rapidly advancing economy. She publishes in leading scholarly journals, including the Journal of Management and the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. She also shares her research beyond academic audiences, for example in the Pioneers Post and the UK Parliament.

Articles by Wee Chan Au

Guest Articles

Wednesday
October 28
2026

Andreana Drencheva / Wee Chan Au

It’s Not You, It’s the Work: Why Social Entrepreneurs Often Face Burnout, and What the Ecosystem Can Do About It

As their own bosses, social entrepreneurs have the freedom to decide when to switch off and take some time away from work. But as Andreana Drencheva at King’s College London and Wee Chan Au at Newcastle University argue, they often feel unable to use that freedom — a situation that frequently leads to burnout. And advice on how to avoid burnout typically fails to take their unique pressures and responsibilities into account. They share findings from their recent study of 40 social entrepreneurs in Malaysia, describing the four conditions that drive this inability to switch off, and exploring how funders, clients and other ecosystem players can provide more support.

Categories
Social Enterprise

Tags
research

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Wee Chan Au

Articles by Wee Chan Au

It’s Not You, It’s the Work: Why Social Entrepreneurs Often Face Burnout, and What the Ecosystem Can Do About It