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SUMMER 2017
Companies benefit when employees
broaden their skills
Cross Training
Builds Strength
H
as your business settled into a routine where each
employee is only responsible for specific, well-
defined activities? While this approach can lead to
higher efficiency, it can also create challenges when employees
are sick or on vacation and you must perform without them.
This is why many businesses implement the practice of cross
training—teaching employees to perform the job duties of
selected coworkers.
Cross training ensures that gaps in operations don’t occur when
employees are unavailable to perform their customary roles. In
addition to lessening the impact of employee absences, cross
training also:
• Promotes a teamwork atmosphere.
Employees learn to
work together and focus on company goals and objectives
instead of individual job descriptions and “turf wars.”
• Helps to standardize operations.
Cross training creates a
company-wide way of performing tasks, instead of each
employee “doing their own thing.” By having a team
of employees determine best practices, you can help all
employees achieve enhanced results.
• Improves morale by giving employees job variety.
Performing
the same tasks day after day can lead to burnout, which is
why cross training often helps reduce employee turnover.
• Helps employees identify additional strengths and talents.
You may have hired an employee to serve a specific role,
but through cross training, you may discover he/she can
make an even greater contribution to the company in
another area.
• Increases customer satisfaction.
When employees are able
to handle a broader range of tasks, the focus moves from
simply “doing my job” to the bigger picture of satisfying
customer needs.
Cross training does require planning and effort, and in some
cases, a cultural change within your company. To be successful,
be clear about your goals for cross training since altering job
responsibilities may cause concern or confusion among employees.
Transitioning will be easier if you focus on organizational objec-
tives and the benefits for everyone that will be achieved. Begin
the process by creating small groups of employees with similar
job tasks and have them discuss the cross training objectives.
The goal is for employees to gradually train each other through
observations and coaching.
As your cross training activities increase, revise job descriptions
and operations manuals to reflect the changes and document
exactly how and when responsibilities will be shared. Make
sure that supervisors or other appropriate employees keep
track of computer passwords and building keys to ensure
access to vital resources whenever job rotation occurs. Finally,
be prepared to reward cross training results by recognizing
employees who make an extra effort to step into new areas or
are enthusiastically assisting their coworkers in the process.