This issue is about using open-ended roles with negotiated joining to build organisations that are unfrozen from the start, and good at uncertainty work that isn’t well-understood yet, where rules and operating environments are always changing and being disrupted. (And other links and requests!)
Looking back at my career, I can see that my roles always shifted. I'd be hired for problem A that I was demonstrably good at solving. Then 6 months later problem A was sorted, so I'd be moved onto problem B, C and D. I wasn't always good at solving those ... but was gifted with the opportunity to learn a lot, fast. Or sometimes to make a mess first and then learn :D
but (in my experience anyway) it is usually impeded by how orgs don't recognise that it happens and make it easier for this kind of role discovery and evolution to happen. employees and managers have to find sneaky ways to make something happen which is ultimately beneficial for both the employee and the org.
what i'm proposing is to introduce processes that make the process of beneficial role discovery and evolution part of the design intention instead of something which happens _in spite of_ the design intention.
Looking back at my career, I can see that my roles always shifted. I'd be hired for problem A that I was demonstrably good at solving. Then 6 months later problem A was sorted, so I'd be moved onto problem B, C and D. I wasn't always good at solving those ... but was gifted with the opportunity to learn a lot, fast. Or sometimes to make a mess first and then learn :D
this happens a lot!
but (in my experience anyway) it is usually impeded by how orgs don't recognise that it happens and make it easier for this kind of role discovery and evolution to happen. employees and managers have to find sneaky ways to make something happen which is ultimately beneficial for both the employee and the org.
what i'm proposing is to introduce processes that make the process of beneficial role discovery and evolution part of the design intention instead of something which happens _in spite of_ the design intention.