Avoiding workload creep; why job design and culture are key
Eight in 10 (81%) employees have unofficially worked outside of their remit at work in the past year. After polling 2,000 UK professionals, recruitment firm Robert Walters, found that half of employees are working longer hours, while 44% of employees report regularly experiencing burnout. Despite this, only 16% of workers have actually spoken to their managers about this workload creep.
This data confirms something many of us have suspected for a very long time - the majority of employees are regularly working outside of their day-to-day job remit.
While getting ‘stuck in’ is often seen as the hallmark of a dedicated employee or someone who is passionate about climbing the career ladder, there can a dark side to this behaviour. And when the lines between roles blur too much, employers won’t just get extra hours from their team members, they’ll more likely see their employees experience burnout, confusion, and frustration. All of which will likely lead to a higher turnover of employees.
Quite clearly this is a problem. But the answer is unlikely to be found by looking at the employees themselves. Rather the answer comes from good job design.
Getting the foundations right – why job design is key
Often a job description can be treated as a bureaucratic hurdle to clear so that a job advert can be posted online or shared internally. But, in reality, it’s far more important than just setting out some guidelines in an advert. In fact, good job design can be fundamental to ensure we avoid this workload creep referenced in the Robert Walters poll.
Job design is fundamental to avoid workload creep.
Contrary to what many people might believe, the key moment to improve job design isn’t during an annual review or when an employee complains of suffering from burnout. It is before that person is even hired in the first place. Because, quite simply, if we don't define the boundaries upfront in the job description, we are likely setting the candidate up to fail.
A well-designed job role should be sustainable. It should feel less about rigid task lists and instead focus on the outcomes required. After all, when hiring for a job role we should think less about what that employee does for eight hours a day and instead start thinking about why the role exists in the first place. Considering outcomes is essential because it gives the employee their destination but lets them find the best route to get there.
Before you post your next job advert, you may wish to ask yourself: “If this person does everything on this list perfectly, but the business doesn't grow, did they actually succeed?" If the answer is yes, your job design is likely flawed.
Time to bin the ‘busy’ culture
Another way to avoid workload creep is to ditch the culture of ‘busyness’.
As people managers and HR professionals, we must be honest with ourselves: do we reward results, or do we reward busyness? All too often, corporate culture celebrates the person who is online early doors and stays late at their desk in the evening, or the manager who is juggling five different projects outside their core remit. This creates a dangerous culture of busyness where employees feel they must constantly take on more, just to be seen as valuable.
Workplaces need to reward results, not busyness or presenteeism.
It’s HR’s role to ensure that workers are properly rewarded for their efforts and the quality of their work within their designated roles. If an employee is consistently working outside their remit to keep a department afloat, or to impress their line manager, there is a problem.
Talking – and listening
So how do we stop workload creep and initiate a better culture? Quite simply, we talk.
HR should empower line managers to have regular, honest and open conversations about their team’s workload. This should never be a once-a-year (annual review) event. Rather HR can build specific questions into employee engagement surveys to catch workload creep early. For instance, HR could ask:
Does your daily reality match your job description?
What tasks are taking up the most of your time that weren't part of your initial remit?
Do you feel you have the capacity to complete your core objectives?
Do you worry you are taking on more than your colleagues?
Do you feel you can have a conversation with your manager if your workload feels unmanageable?
And of course, whilst asking these kinds of questions is essential – actually listening to (and acting upon) the replies is even more important. When employees feel unheard or dismissed, they’re less likely to engage constructively in the whole process – leading to greater disengagement.
Moving the needle
It’s time to stop asking our teams to do more with less and start asking if we’ve designed job roles that allow them to do their best. If we want to move the needle on these Robert Walters statistics, we need to stop rewarding the colleague who stays late and start rewarding the colleague who delivers results within their remit. Great job design is the ultimate retention tool.
It’s time to bin the busyness.