Practice knowledge base
Rotation Program
The rotation program gives employees the opportunity to temporarily try a different team, function, or project, enabling them to apply their skills more broadly and explore career options within the company.
Documentation sections
What it is
This is an organizational practice in which the company defines the rules in advance for temporary employee moves between teams, functions, or projects. A rotation helps a person test their interest in a new area without quitting, and gives the business people who better understand adjacent processes. The practice requires alignment on workload and roles, so it is less suitable where teams are not ready to let people go, even for a limited period.
When it helps
- Employees say they don't see the next step within the company.
- High-performing specialists are bored with their current tasks, but the company wants to retain them rather than lose them to the external market.
- Teams lack understanding of adjacent functions, leading to increased delays at interfaces.
- New projects require temporary expertise, but a permanent transfer is premature.
How to start
- 1 Select one or two pilot areas where a temporary transition will not disrupt current obligations.
- 2 Outline simple guidelines: duration of rotation, approval process for participation, scope of tasks, and employee return procedure.
- 3 Appoint a program owner within the HR or People team and responsible managers for the host teams.
- 4 Compile a concise list of open rotation opportunities, detailing expected skills and desired work outcomes for the participation period.
- 5 Conduct a post-rotation review after the first rotation: what the employee learned, what the team gained, and what rules need refinement.
Expected effect
Rotations help retain people who need a new challenge and show them real growth options within the company. Managers get employees with a broader understanding of the business, and adjacent teams negotiate more easily because they have a better understanding of each other’s constraints.
Common pitfalls
- Launching rotations without workload alignment: the current team may perceive the program as a loss of resources.
- Leaving the host team without an onboarding owner: the employee enters a new context but does not receive clear tasks.
- Promising a permanent transfer after a rotation as a guaranteed outcome, even though vacancies and needs may change.
- Selecting participants informally: employees may perceive the program as exclusive to a select few.
Further reading
- Report: Deloitte, Global Human Capital Trends, sections on internal mobility and talent market.
- Book: Reid Hoffman, Ben Casnocha, Chris Yeh, The Alliance.
- Book: Beverly Kaye, Julie Winkle Giulioni, Help Them Grow or Watch Them Go.
FAQ
Who typically owns the rotation program?
Typically, the HR or People team manages the rules and pipeline of opportunities, while the quality of specific rotations is overseen by managers of both the current and host teams. Without their agreement, the practice quickly devolves into a resource dispute.
Can it be started without a large HR system?
Yes. For a pilot, it is sufficient to outline a few open opportunities, approval rules, and expected outcomes of participation. It is crucial not to scale the program before clear roles are established and feedback from initial participants is gathered.
What if managers are reluctant to release employees?
Start with short rotations and agree in advance on which tasks will remain with the current team. Demonstrate to managers that the program does not permanently remove an individual without a solution, but rather helps retain strong employees within the company.
How to determine if the practice is effective?
Observe whether actual transitions occur, new project roles emerge, and if fewer employees cite career stagnation as a reason for departure. It is beneficial to separately collect feedback from the participant, their current manager, and the host team.