• Resist. Educate management about the importance of role delineation. Each job requires different strengths and skills, so advocate to management that there be two jobs to satisfy these functions, not one.
• Create clear career paths. Map out two distinct career trajectories to prevent individuals from being forced into a dual role simply because that is their only promotion path. Becoming a project manager is not a promotion from a BA. It requires an entirely new skill set.
• If you must combine roles, plan for skill gaps. To get value from one person occupying two jobs, assign a mentor to guide the employee in the role in which he is weaker.

Michelle Burke
Principal, Trissential

Michael Vinje
Principal, Trissential