With persistent labor shortages affecting various industries in the US some companies have pushed existing employees into unfamiliar jobs and added additional roles to their job descriptions. These strategies are aimed at increasing worker productivity, which can help lower inflationary pressures as well as benefit the economy by increasing outputs. Since the massive turnover during the pandemic and rise of quiet quitting, productivity levels have been relatively low recently. As such, HR managers are looking for ways to stretch their workforces to both motivate workers to perform better and raise overall productivity levels.
See "Companies focusing on increasing worker productivity as a means to mitigate inflation and labor shortages", Paul Davidson , USA Today, November 2, 2022