An employee starts as a customer support specialist, answering questions and solving customer problems. A few months later, they are also training new hires, preparing reports, and testing new software.
The business has grown, and the job has changed. But the employee’s job description and performance targets have stayed the same.
This can happen in companies of any size. A colleague leaves, and someone else takes over their work. A new client brings additional demands. A manager assigns a task that seems temporary but becomes a permanent responsibility. Over time, the job can look very different from the one the employee originally accepted.
For employers, the challenge is knowing when these changes are reasonable and when the role needs to be reviewed.
Gallup’s research on workplace disruption has found that employees often face additional responsibilities during organizational change. Its findings also highlight the importance of clear expectations. When employees take on different work, they need to know what matters most and how their performance will be assessed.
So what should employers do when an employee’s job changes over time?
1. Review the Work Before Judging Performance
Start by comparing the employee’s original responsibilities with the work they do today.
Talk to the employee about which tasks take up most of their time, what has been added, and which original duties have become harder to manage. Look at the actual workload rather than relying only on the job description.
For example, a marketing coordinator may have been hired to schedule social media posts and prepare campaign materials. The role may later expand to include paid advertising, performance reports, and agency management.
These duties may fit together, but they require different skills and take time away from the original work. Without reviewing the role, a manager may mistake an overloaded employee for an underperforming one.
Ask a straightforward question: What are you doing now that was not part of your original role?
The answer can help identify whether the problem is workload, unclear priorities, missing skills, or a genuine change in the position.
2. Decide Which Responsibilities Should Stay
Not every additional task needs a formal change to the role. Employees may occasionally cover for a colleague or help during a busy period. Problems arise when temporary arrangements become permanent without a clear decision.
Imagine an office manager who agrees to handle recruitment scheduling while a colleague is away. Three months later, the colleague has returned, but the office manager is still doing both jobs.
The employer should decide whether the extra work is still needed and who should handle it.
If the arrangement was temporary, return the duties to the appropriate person or find another solution. If the work has become a permanent business need, decide whether it belongs in the employee’s role or should be assigned elsewhere.
Do not keep adding tasks simply because the employee has been willing to help.
3. Reset Priorities When the Workload Grows
When a role expands, managers may tell employees to improve their time management. But organization alone cannot solve a workload that is too large for one person.
Consider a sales representative who spends most of the day contacting prospects and following up with customers. The company then asks the employee to handle customer support requests as well. Both responsibilities matter, but there may not be enough time to do them well.
The manager needs to set priorities. Some duties may need to be delegated, postponed, or handled less frequently. The company may also need to provide extra support or adjust deadlines.
When assigning new responsibilities, explain what should take priority and what can wait. Employees should not have to guess which of their manager’s requests matters most.
4. Check Whether the Employee Has the Right Skills and Authority
A change in responsibilities may give an employee a chance to learn something new. But employers should not assume that someone can take on unfamiliar work without training or support.
An administrative employee asked to prepare monthly performance reports, for instance, may need training in the company’s reporting software. A customer support specialist who starts managing client relationships may need authority to resolve problems or approve certain requests.
Before judging the employee’s performance, check whether they have:
- The skills and training needed for the new tasks.
- Access to the right information, systems, and tools.
- Enough time to complete the work.
- The authority to make the decisions for which they are responsible.
If something is missing, address it. Training may solve a skills gap. Clearer procedures may help with uncertainty. More decision-making authority may be necessary if the employee is accountable for outcomes they cannot control.
A 2025 paper in the Journal of Business and Psychology examines how managers can take part in conversations about reshaping jobs to meet changing employee and organizational needs. This research provides useful context for employers reviewing how work is divided and managed.
5. Talk to the Employee About the Change
Once you understand what has changed, discuss it directly with the employee.
The conversation should focus on the job, not begin as a warning about poor performance. Explain why the responsibilities have changed and ask how the new arrangement is working.
Useful questions include:
- Which parts of your job have changed the most?
- Are some responsibilities competing for your time?
- Do you have the training and authority you need?
- Which tasks should remain your priority?
- What would make the current workload more manageable?
The employee may welcome the new duties and see them as a chance to develop. Another employee may prefer to focus on the original role. Do not assume you know how the employee feels without asking.
Listen to the answers and agree on what happens next. If the employee is taking on more responsibility, discuss whether that should affect their role, development plan, or other employment terms.
6. Update the Job Description and Performance Targets
If the change is permanent, update the job description to reflect the main responsibilities. There is no need to list every small task, but the document should give an accurate picture of the role.
Performance targets may need to change as well.
Suppose a customer support specialist now spends several hours a week training new employees. If the employee is still judged only by the number of customer requests closed, the training work is not reflected in the performance assessment.
The same problem can arise when employees take on project coordination, reporting, or team leadership without a corresponding change in expectations.
Agree on what success looks like in the revised role. Make sure the employee understands which results matter most and how the additional duties will be assessed.
If the change affects pay, working hours, job title, or other employment terms, discuss those issues separately and follow applicable employment rules and agreements.
7. Decide Whether the Role Needs to Be Restructured
Sometimes a job changes so much that the original role no longer makes sense.
A content writer may gradually become responsible for editorial planning, analytics, and managing freelancers. An office manager may take on enough operational work to function as an operations lead.
These changes may create opportunities for the employee, but they may also leave the business with a position that requires a different mix of skills.
When responsibilities grow, employers should also consider how role changes affect employee retention. Learn more about the one employee your business can't afford to lose.
Employers should consider the available options. They may keep the revised role, provide training, remove some duties, formally redefine the position, or hire someone to handle work that no longer fits.
The decision should reflect the business’s needs and the employee’s abilities and interests. Do not assume that a capable employee will automatically be suited to a substantially different job. Equally, do not replace someone simply because the role has expanded without enough support.
8. Set a Date to Review the New Arrangement
Once the changes are agreed upon, schedule a follow-up meeting. A few weeks may be enough for a small adjustment, while a major change may need more time.
Check whether the workload is manageable, priorities are clear, and the employee can meet the agreed targets. If the arrangement is not working, adjust it. You may need to change deadlines, remove tasks, provide training, or redistribute the work.
The review should lead to a clear decision about what happens next, rather than becoming another routine meeting.
When Should Employers Take Action?
A formal review is worth considering when new duties become a regular part of the job, original responsibilities are being neglected, performance targets no longer reflect the work, or the employee is accountable for decisions they cannot make.
Repeated overtime, missed deadlines, and ongoing confusion about priorities are also warning signs. They do not automatically mean the employee is the problem. The role itself may need to change.
The Bottom Line
Jobs naturally evolve as businesses grow and customer needs change. Employers do not need to revise a job description every time someone takes on a new task.
They do need to act when those tasks add up to a different role. Reviewing responsibilities, setting priorities, providing the right support, and updating performance targets can help prevent a manageable change from becoming a lasting workplace problem.
When the job changes, employers should review the expectations too.
As your business grows, having the right people in the right roles matters.
Sources
- Gallup, The Great Detachment: Why Employees Feel Stuck. Research on workplace disruption, added responsibilities, and clarity of expectations. https://www.gallup.com/workplace/653711/great-detachment-why-employees-feel-stuck.aspx
- Klonek and Tims, Including Managers in the Job Crafting Process: Cognitive Clarity through Motivational Interviewing. Journal of Business and Psychology, 2025. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10869-025-10030-x