With today’s business environment demanding that companies react to changing circumstances more quickly than ever before, a strategy that can improve organizational agility is tremendously valuable. Developing cross-functional teams within a business continues to be one of the most effective, yet under-utilized strategies within many of today’s organizations.

Cross-functional teams often function as self-directed teams assigned to a specific task which calls for the input and expertise of numerous departments. Assigning a task to a team composed of multi-disciplinary individuals increases the level of creativity, and allows employees to act on incoming data faster and more effectively. One of the greatest benefits of a cross-functional team is that it fosters innovation. By bringing several different areas of expertise together into a productive and encouraging work environment, you’re creating fertile ground for fresh ideas and new game-changing insights to flourish.

Cross functional teams can also promote individual skill set development as team members learn more about each other’s specialties, and work with people who have diverse backgrounds and work styles. As employees learn new skills from working and collaborating with other functional areas, it optimizes the workforce so that internal talent is versatile, and minimizes parts within the business that contain single point of failures.

Versatility has emerged as a key quality when identifying high potential candidates for positions, and is a key competency of the future of work. Employees who can adapt quickly, think on their feet, and competently perform duties often beyond their job description add much more value than those who specialize in only one function. Versatile workers remain crucial to companies for their ability to handle multiple assignments, and take on new tasks that may be out of their comfort zones. Not only will business be able to save on hiring cost by consolidating roles with versatile workers, but they will create a more engaged and committed workforce with the willingness and ability to strive to achieve new levels of excellence.

Being versatile is going to be a major challenge for many, as many individuals become used to doing something the way they have always done it, and do not consider other ways because it takes them out of their comfort zone. The problem then becomes that when an individual’s skill set is no longer needed, it can lead to unemployment or decreased pay as their skills becomes obsolete due to technology advancement and automation.

Versatility is not about just becoming better at what you do. It’s about being able to do something you have not been able to do before.

Businesses should implement stretch and rotation assignments that expose employees to opposite functions. This is not to say managers add more to the plates of already stretched individuals, it means that businesses need to think critically about the work to be done, and the abilities and potential of the talented individuals on their teams which involves rethinking the assumptions about who can do what, and ensuring that everyone has responsibilities that push them to grow. Stretch assignments not only increase employee engagement, but they have been shown to dramatically increase retention of top talent with minimal to zero costs, and they help organizations directly reach their goals, while at the same time developing talent.

In conclusion, cross-functional teams, continuous versatile development, and stretch assignment keep employees’ confidence, commitment and contribution high, resulting in strong business results and sustainable career success.