Stepping beyond the confines of your job description can be a daunting yet rewarding endeavor. Let's delve into the circumstances that warrant such a leap, and how to navigate these uncharted territories with confidence and competence.
Stay in Your Lane
If you see an important task that needs to be done that isn’t your responsibility, should you do it?
- Three things to keep in mind when deciding whether to switch lanes at work
- Out-of-role task switching (i.e., leaders performing member tasks or vice versa) is helpful or harmful
- It’s informative to look to settings that have long wrestled with chaos for insight applicable to today’s increasingly dynamic world
Be sure to update when switching back
Successful lane switching is about more than just knowing when and where it’s okay to switch – what you do as you return to working on your assigned tasks also matters
- Status update check-ins are important, especially in times of change
- Consider whether to engage in important tasks that need to be done but aren’t your responsibility
Beware of switching in turbulent environments
In turbulent environments, things are changing so fast that by the time an individual switches back to their assigned tasks, they’ve lost situation awareness and contributed to the chaos and confusion
- During particularly tumultuous times, we saw many leaders who jumped in to help treat patients lose awareness, forgetting to request resources, and directing members to work on the wrong tasks
Beware of crossing team boundaries
Teams are increasingly working in more fluid and interconnected multiteam arrangements
- It’s unlikely that a team leader will have a detailed enough understanding of the precise situation another team is facing to jump in and immediately lead effectively
- In our study, any attempts by members to lead other teams were immediately shut down
- Leaders were often allowed to do so, which harmed both teams
