The Great Resignation. Quiet quitting. The Great Reset. To all of these recent phenomena, add a new one for 2023, one observer tells CNBC: Quiet Hiring.

Defined as an organization acquiring new skills without actually hiring new full-time employees, according to Gartner Senior Director of Research Emily Rose McRae, it is something for which employers and employees should prepare.

This could mean hiring short-term contractors or it could mean encouraging current employees to temporarily move into new roles within the organization, McRae said. As companies anticipate a possible recession, they may cut back on hiring, if not laying people off or implementing a freeze.

Yet, she said, companies still need to meet their goals, financial or otherwise, in the midst of a talent shortage. That is where this concept comes into play; to address the most immediate need at hand, companies may resort to “internal quiet hiring,” which is asking employees to perform other tasks. One example she cited is that of Qantas Airlines’ having senior executives work as baggage handlers earlier this year.

“The executives are doing it in part because it’s the right thing to do to keep the company going, but it’s also just a rotation that makes sense for a lot of people,” she said, adding that they also gained a deeper understanding of how their operations work. She also added that bosses need to explain why such a situation matters to the company so that the employee does not interpret a reassignment as an indication that his or her current job is unimportant.

Similarly, bosses also need to explain why a move into a new position is in the employee’s interest, not just the employer’s. “If you’re asking a bunch of people to make this move, you should be able to articulate: What does this mean for them?” McRae said.

Employees can also take advantage of quiet-hiring situations by using them as opportunities to enhance their careers. That enhancement could take various forms, such as promotions, transfers, work-life balance, or a chance to discuss long-term goals.

“This is a really good chance for employees to sit down and say to their managers, their HR people and to the company as a whole, ‘Yeah, I’m willing to do this. Let’s talk about what this means for my career,’” McRae said.