Job crafting

Job crafting is the approach to “hack” your job e.g. to better align it to your needs, goals, skills and strengths. It can help to improve performance and usually involves the employee shaping the job to their needs, rather than fitting to a manager-designed job description. It can sometimes be done very subtly, without being anchored into a job description. Typically job crafting takes on one of three forms: task crafting, relational crafting and cognitive crafting.

Task crafting involves taking the initiative to change tasks you perform, or timing to give you greater control. It can be particularly good for marginalising the tasks you don’t like doing, or which have negligible impact.

Relational crafting involves changing interactions at work – e.g. colleagues and superiors, as well as finding a way to get access to more senior levels of management. In some very hierarchical settings, a “face time” and “elbow technique” approach is often used by competing peers.

Cognitive crafting involves modifying your perception about your job to find greater meaning to the work you do. For example, it can be re-evaluating how work influences and motivates you (e.g. to escape a burnout/boreout cycle (à la Dienst nach Vorschrift (doing the bare minimum))