Respone to "Job Rotation for the Head Honchos"

     This article did a great job of illustrating the benefits of job rotation.  It discussed several people in upper management/executive positions, switching departments and job titles that were very different than the ones they had previously been performing.  As the article points out, job rotation is an excellent way for employees to gain fresh, new perspectives and insights, as well as giving them an opportunity to explore a field they may enjoy and excel in.  By switching employees around, it gives companys a chance to discover contributions employees can make that may not have been noticed or utilized before.  It also avoids the hassle, risk, and cost of outside hiring.
    In my own work experience I have seen the positive effects from job rotation.  I work in a restaurant and there are sometimes misunderstandings, disputes, "mini-fights," and anamosity between the different positions in the restaurant (servers, bartenders, hosts, cooks).  When someone decides they want to be cross-trained in another position, or if they are asked to work a different position, it is very interesting to watch how they behave after returning to their original job.  For example, the cooks can be very rude to the servers.  One day a cook (Ben) decided he wanted to try serving.  Ben lasted two days before getting overwhelmed, very stressed and confused, and eventually dropped a tray of drinks all over two ladies and then ran in the bathroom and refused to get out for quite some time.  He quit serving and returned to cooking after realizing how difficult the job was.  Needless to say, he is no longer mean to the servers, in fact he is very helpful. 
    Examples like this one happen on a regular basis at my job.  By switching employees around from time to time, it enables them to see things in a way they may not have been able to before; it allows them to gain valuable insights that can help them add greater contributions to the organization.
     Job rotation will not always work.  As our book points out, in jobs that are highly specified and monotonous, job rotation may not have the same benefits.  If an employee has a very boring job or feels that their work is very insignificant, allowing them to perform a differnt, boring, monotonous, and insignificant job is not going to please them or add to their development.  Therefore, I do not think job rotation is always effective; howver, in many situations, especially those that are not entry-level and require decision making and creativity, job roation can be highly beneficial.