Who will do your work while you’re away on sabbatical? While some people plan carefully for this aspect of a successful career sabbatical, just as many don’t.
As a result, here are some of the worst things people will have to say about you in your absence:
- He just dumped his work on us without much information.
- Why does Larry get to do that part of his job when I really wanted to learn it?
- What am I supposed to do with this form?
- She’s off having fun while I’m left with all the dirty work.
- It would have been better for the company’s future if another person had had the opportunity to learn that part of her job.
- Why didn’t I know there was an opportunity to take on that part of his job?
- I just got a call from a customer and there are no records of the agreement he is referring to.
- No one else seems to be able to answer any questions about this, so I’m stuck.
Common mistakes in work coverage plans are not starting soon enough, failure to identify your “best” key stakeholders, going it alone, little capitalization on “what’s in it for me” to others and using an unstructured process that leaves you “making it up as you go along.”
The biggest mistake? — not focusing on work coverage as a “talent exchange” opportunity.
But while individuals can be faulted, organizations deserve most of the blame. While many businesses take pride in investing in individuals through sabbatical experiences, few offer the structure and support for establishing dynamic work coverage experiences for the people left behind.
Sabbatical go-ers, left on their own, approach the work coverage part of sabbatical planning by focusuing on “who can cover my work.” When that happens, the internal talent machine of the organization grinds to a halt. The individual limits his/her opporutnity to test drive individuals and the organization fails to create a shared learning experience for a team of people.
With or without company support, a solid, well-executed work coverage plan is worth every bit of your time and effort. Without it, not only are your colleagues and team could be left to vent their negative feelings or frustration but you’ve missed personal ROI. After all, if a smart person does part of your job for six weeks he might want to keep it (it happens) and with that hunk of free time you can become more productive in other areas.
When the work coverage planning is well-executed , you return from sabbatical to find your work done well but some individuals thanking you for the opportunity to learn part of your job. Does it get any better than that?
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