Job enrichment (also known as employee enrichment) is a catch-all term used to describe the act of motivating employees by giving them additional tasks or responsibilities that are usually reserved for higher-ranking employees. The ultimate the goal in job enrichment is to create a stronger connection between the worker and his or her job, resulting in numerous benefits to both parties (we’ll get to that later). To learn more about this practice and how to achieve job enrichment within your company, keep reading.

Professional psychologist Frederick Herzberg is credited with coining the term “job enrichment.” In his “two-factory theory,” Herzberg theorized that job satisfaction and dissatisfaction were two independent factors with their own cases, paving way to the concept of job enrichment.

Reasons Why Employers Should Embrace Job Enrichment:

• Reduces employee turnover rates.
• Improves productivity.
• Encourages employees to take initiative.
• Creates greater trust between the employer and the employee.
• Creates a better work environment.
• Boosts morale of employees in the workplace.

It’s important to note that job enrichment and job enlargement are two different practices with their own unique focus. With job enlargement, the employee is assigned additional tasks of the same level of authority/responsibility, whereas job enrichment involves tasks of greater authority/responsibility. Generally, job enrichment yields better results since the employee is given tasks that he or she would otherwise not receive.

Tips For Achieving Job Enrichment

Now that you know some of the benefits of job enrichment, you’re probably wondering how to accomplish it in your workplace. Being that each and every company operates in a different manner, there’s no linear guide for this practice. With that said, there are some general steps employers can take to motivate through employees using job enrichment.

Consider giving new tasks to employees who’ve proven themselves. As previously stated, you want to focus on tasks which are normally reserved for higher-level employees, as this is the fundamental driving principle behind job enrichment. Assuming the employee handles the task well, you can test the waters with other related tasks.

Another important step in achieving job enrichment is to provide employees with the proper training tools. You can expect an employee to complete a new task if he or she has never done it before. Have employees complete the appropriate training so they are familiar with the new task and the responsibilities it entitles.