The Benefits of Employee Job Rotations

What is a job rotation?

Job rotation is the practice of exposing employees to multiple roles within the organization. In addition to owning and mastering their own role, employees get to experience (and often train in) other positions within the company. “Job rotation can be a smart strategy when used with a clear purpose,” said Vikrant Bhalodia, head of marketing and people ops at WeblineIndia. “It helps employees achieve new skills, keeps them busy and prepares them for leadership roles. For employers, it creates a more adaptable task force, reduces skills gaps and strengthens the succession plan.”

Job rotations are typically lateral, although there may be little to no likeness to the employee’s original role in some cases. These rotations are also usually temporary and may be implemented on an as-needed basis, such as during an extended absence of a key employee. Eventually, the employee transitions back to their own job.

What are examples of job rotations?

Generally speaking, job rotation practices have two different purposes: Job shadowing and cross-training.

Job shadowing

The first kind of job rotation allows employees to shadow another team member in a completely different area of the business (typically one with little to no direct relation to the employee’s original job). This job rotation may last for a day, a week or more.

Example: An employee on the marketing team may shadow someone in distribution, the warehouse or research and development. The primary purpose of this job shadowing or job rotation is for employees to develop a stronger, more informed appreciation for others’ roles in the company. In turn, this fuels an ongoing team-building environment directly and helps colleagues get acquainted with each other. It also provides insights into the challenges and unique perspectives that others have about the rotating employee’s role and how the company’s processes operate from multiple departments’ perspectives.

The purpose of job shadowing is not necessarily training as there is not always a logical fit for this type of cross-training. It is designed to expose the rotating employee to other parts of the business to increase their knowledge and understanding.

Cross-training

The second kind of job rotation is the more widely used one, as it carries practical application and functional support for certain positions. Job rotations focusing on cross-pollination of job knowledge tend to be more detailed and time-consuming. Cross-training aims to allow substitutes to step into essential roles when needed. This also fills the need for succession planning in technical or hard-to-fill roles, which must be well-positioned for future personnel changes. This type of job rotation helps enrich and expand the employee experience while also strengthening the company’s business continuity plans.

Example: An accounting manager may cross-train with the payroll administrator or a controller could cross-train in accounts receivable or accounts payable. In these scenarios, there is a much closer affiliation between the two roles and the training may be more detailed and time-consuming than simple shadowing. 

What are the benefits of employee job rotations?

There are many benefits of job rotations for both employees and their employers. Rarely does a company not find value in the practice. Some of the advantages of job rotations include:

What are the potential drawbacks of job rotations?

You’ll need to be mindful of a few drawbacks or obstacles when creating your company’s job rotation program. Many drawbacks are tied directly to inconsistent or short-term job rotation planning. “If not well structured, [job rotation] can disrupt productivity,” Bhalodia explained. “Employees can struggle to accommodate new roles, leading to slow production and frustration.”

How do you develop a job rotation program?

There is more than one way to develop and maintain a successful job rotation program. Depending on your company’s size, resources and unique needs, you might take various approaches to create your own program. 

Here are 12 tried-and-true methods to incorporate into your planning process, regardless of the direction it takes down the road:

1. Get sign-off and backing from all company leaders: Job rotation programs only last long with solid leadership support and joint investment. Every member of your company leadership must genuinely believe in its value and relevance.
2. Communicate with the whole company about the program and its goals: For there to be less mystery about what the organization is doing, it is wise to share a detailed explanation, complete with Q&A sessions, with everyone in the company. Explain the what, how, when and why of it all. At this stage, Bhalodia recommended offering job rotation as an opportunity, not a requirement — while some employees may jump at the chance to explore new roles and train others in theirs, others may prefer the stability of their current position.
3. Develop a (flexible) company policy: Maintain a company policy in your employee handbook about job rotation. It can be vague, allowing the organization to flex one way or another, but the overall practice of job rotation must be as equitable and fair as possible.
4. Identify all essential roles and each role’s critical needs: One of the most common early steps in this process is identifying which roles are the most important ones to get backup alignment for ASAP. A professional employer organization can help you identify these gaps in staffing.
5. Conduct a job analysis for similar positions within the company: When cross-training employees to be backups, it is a good idea to seek out people closest to or with some technical overlap with the role that needs the backup.
6. Create (or update) job descriptions: If your organization has not yet done so, you need to create job descriptions that the cross-trained employee can reference. Keep these descriptions current as job roles evolve as they will be the employees’ compass in the cross-training and backup experience.
7. Determine the ideal “bench strength” for each role: Knowing which roles to attack first and the critical duties within those jobs is essential, but you must also determine when a cross-trained employee is ready to step into the role if necessary. The finish line for the training is different for each role.
8. Develop a training or shadowing schedule: It’s important to create a program for training. Do not wing it. With each position your organization wants to cross-train team members for, develop a written program (or plan) to ensure that all critical aspects of the job are adequately covered. Bhalodia advised keeping this timeline structured, as uncertainty can lead to disengagement.
9. Agree on the program’s selection process (related to the highest level of need): Once you’ve created the bones of the program, you will inevitably identify the most qualified or desired candidates to cross-train. This is important, but you should still create and follow a formal selection process.
10. Before cross-training, orient and prepare to receive employees and/or teams: Give setup and prep time to each employee you ask to cross-train another. For some people, having another employee peeking over their shoulder, asking questions all day and impeding their space is extremely taxing. Make sure you have laid the groundwork, so the process is smooth and enjoyable for all.
11. Evaluate the process and adjust as needed: Always evaluate your methods and practices in real time. Are the company’s needs being met? Is the desired concept and purpose of cross-training being fulfilled? Bhalodia recommended conducting regular check-ins with participants so you can better understand your team’s experiences and make changes to your program as necessary.
12. Reward and acknowledge progress and success: Encourage employees in the program with a supportive environment and recognition for their participation. If you make it a desirable practice or opportunity, the job rotation program will draw attention from employees eager to cross-train in other roles within your organization.

As you develop a job rotation program, remember that you can’t just do it once or twice with no additional focus on its complexity and importance. Job rotations must be an ongoing, consistent and purposeful training program (or program for employee exposure) that folds into a company’s larger training and development programs.

“When done right, the job rotation is a long-term investment in both employee development and commercial agility,” Bhalodia said.

Danielle Fallon-O’Leary and Skye Schooley contributed to this article.