Ever feel like you have too much to do at work? And that it’s no accident?

Alex Simon, a career consultant in San Jose, California, says today’s employees often have numerous responsibilities because of decreased staffing and the extension of the idea that workers have more ownership in projects if they have their fingerprints all over different aspects of it. “I think the problem occurs because we no longer have a point person in each area who uses employees from other departments for ideas and feedback,” says Simon. “Instead, we have people at the managerial level who decide they can reduce costs by having their employees work across departments without ever considering the impact of that decision.”

Sally Rothman, a human resource specialist, says she looks back fondly on a simpler time in the workplace. “I remember when financial people were responsible for finances, salespeople were responsible for sales, marketing people were responsible for marketing and production people were responsible for production,” says the 60-year-old Chicago resident. “That’s not the case today. Companies are trying to squeeze every ounce of activity they can out of their employees, and it’s wearing their employees down.”

Rothman says that at one point, multitasking was a term used to describe the process of completing simple tasks at the same time. “It meant that you could check your email while listening to your voicemail,” she says. “Or maybe you could have two screens open on your computer and plug numbers into a spreadsheet in Excel while you added ideas to a proposal in Word that your manager sent you.”

Today, the term – or a variation on it – has evolved to mean much more. “Some of my former colleagues use the term ‘multi-respo,’ which is an awful word for having multiple responsibilities,” Rothman says. “They tell the sales director that his job is now multi-respo, which could mean he’s responsible for managing sales, managing the sales reps, creating a marketing plan that will attract new customers, working with marketing and more. Some people embrace all those responsibilities but sometimes, companies cram a bunch of stuff together to save money on personnel.”

Rothman says multi-tasking has replaced “collaboration” for many employers. “Companies love people who work together to create new products or services that reflect a team effort but at some point, we unknowingly reduced collaboration by making employees do more than they’re qualified to do,” she says.

How should an applicant or current employee handle questions from their employer about the realities of the workplace? “Of course, you agree to contribute to other teams and to complete the tedious work that’s required, but it’s just as important to stress that you want to do what you do best,” says Simon. “Ask to be allowed to spend the majority of your time working in your specific area. Companies love employees who multitask but they also love results. If you can make someone understand that the best way to get them to get results is to let you focus on your job, then you’re going to come out ahead.”

Tribune News Service