Knowledgeable Workforce Requires Knowledge-Filled Workers

Every company downsizing right now is factoring in the legal and financial benefits of some kind of "package" for employees nearing retirement age. While that approach offers some much-appreciated relief in the decision process, it may not turn out to be the best over the long run.

Older Workers More Engaged. Really.

It's easy to make assumptions based on any type of demographic. And it's certainly easy to figure that the longer someone has been working, the more likely they are to want out. However, a Hewitt Associates study showed that:

1. Older employees were more likely to be engaged in their work than younger ones, with 74% indicating their engagement on the job. That contradicts the belief that many older workers simply want to coast to retirement.

2. The least engaged group was generation X (26 to 40 years old) at 61 per cent.

I'm not suggesting that layoff/retention decisions be made on such statistics alone. I am suggesting that using  "age" or "years of service" as overarching drivers for these decisions might come back to haunt employers later.

These choices are difficult under any circumstances. Use the range of information available to make the best-balanced ones.

Comments

[Chris - Manager's Sandbox]

Steve, great read. My only comment: 26 is the cut-off where Gen Y ends and Gen X starts now? At 25, I've never considered myself even on the border (always firmly planted in Gen Y). My colleagues around the 30-32 year old mark feel like they're straddling, though.

I don't neccessarily disagree with your article, but I do think that lumping a 27 year old with a 38 year old in terms of general generational patterns is probably a bit of a stretch.

[Steve Roesler]

Chris, no argument from me. I used the same age-range that the survey used in order to represent it accurately.

I'm betting you aren't the only one who picked up on that. . .

[Dan McCarthy]

Steve –
Thanks for this post.
We have just to start looking at our older workers in a different way, and dispelling the myths.
I’d like to see companies start offering reduced hours and pay to older workers, as a way to transition into retirement, retain valuable knowledge and experience, and reduce costs to the company. It’s a win-win.

[Steve Roesler]

Dan-

Such a deliberate approach makes a lot of sense.

Right now, the norm seems to be to offer "consulting" contracts to specific people upon retirement. That does add an important resource to specific projects or clients on an as-needed basis. But it misses the bigger issues that you point out.

These have been written up, published, and discussed as conference topics for a number of years now. I'm wondering why we haven't seen more purposeful action to address them sensibly.

Perhaps the current conditions will provide the impetus. . .

[Wally Bock]

Thanks for sharing that Hewitt study, Steve. I think a key challenge in the next few years will be to use the knowledge and commitment of older workers, while also finding ways for younger people to continue development.

[Steve Roesler]

Wally,

One of the nagging thoughts in the back of my mind is that in the absence of older, more experienced workers, who will be there to add the kind of guidance that all of us need as we navigate our respective organizations?