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by: Mary Lloyd
Early in my career, I was fortunate enough to cross paths with a company that understood the value
of smart, effective women. While their counterparts in the natural gas industry were still
relegating us to waitress positions at Hooters, this outfit was actively recruiting us.
My company was a good corporate citizen, but this was not about doing good. By being an "early
adopter," they attracted the creme de la creme. Having capable women in responsible positions made
them far more competitive than their contemporaries who were still making do with half the
talent--the male stuff.
We are to that same kind of place in 2009. But this time, the competitive advantage is in seeing
the potential of older workers.
Why?
Because they bring a lot more to the dance. Here's how:
YOU GET MUCH MORE THAN YOU PAY FOR. It's like getting a Ferrari for the price of a
Miata. Forget the foolish business about "overqualified." Many older workers are ready to throttle
back but not ready to stop working. They will step into a non-management job after years of running
the whole show and be content with that. A former neighbor, a retired Army colonel and high-end
management consultant, is happy as a clam driving a bus for the local transit authority. Do you
think a 28-year-old who is "just trying to find a job" is going to handle to people part or the
emergencies of being a bus driver as well?
And if they ARE willing to manage for you, the value of their experience is exponential.
OLDER WORKERS HAVE BETTER WORK HABITS Inaccurate stereotypes lead hiring
supervisors to assume that older workers can't perform the way younger workers do. That they will
miss work or not get as much done. Deciding a candidate who's a standout on paper isn't worth an
interview because of unsupported assumptions about age means you miss terrific talent you could
have brought on board. She may have missed two days in 30 years. Don't rely on unfounded
assumptions to rule out older workers.
In a study of work habits in 39 separate organizations that included 3000 non-management workers,
those younger than 26 years of age were found to be substandard in all six work habits: work
standards, safety awareness, reliability/follow-through, attendance, punctuality, and avoidance of
disciplinary actions. Workers in the 26 to 45 age range were average on all six. Of the six
categories, workers ages 46 to 55 were above average on four. Workers over 56 were above average on
five of the six and twice as far above average as the 46 to 55 year-olds on four of the five. If
your hiring needs lean heavily on work habits, you should be looking for people with gray hair.
Unless you're selling body piercing or long boards, you shouldn't be ruling them out for any job
you have open.
YOU BROADEN YOUR DEMOGRAPHIC APPEAL. Unless you're selling youth-exclusive
products, having someone on staff who does NOT answer "Thank you" with "No problem" is a plus. If
you want to appeal to the full range of customers, you need a full range of ages to serve them.
Two weeks ago, I was checking out at the grocery store I've used for five years. The checker, who
was young, talked with the woman behind me in line--a co-worker--the whole time she worked on my
order. Then part of the order never made it back into my basket--or to my car. I had to go back to
the store a second time for it.
The young checkers again barely acknowledged me. Not "I'm so sorry this happened." Just
"Well..uh... do this and this and this and then stand in that line." It was a very long line.
I solved the immediate problem after a bit of a wait. The rest was taken care of when I walked out
the door. I will never go back there.
Lots of older customers vote with their feet. Don't let them walk out forever because you have the
wrong people serving them.
THIS IS THE AGE GROUP WITH THE MONEY The biggest irony in all this is that the
over 50 crowd is the population that actually has money to spend. They own upwards of 70 percent of
the financial assets. Their per capita discretionary spending is two and a half times the average
of younger households. They hold almost half of all the credit cards in the United States.
You need people who think like them on your team so you can capture that business. THIS IS A GROWTH
MARKET. Leave your competitors to duke it out over the twenty-somethings whose credit has just
dried up.
To curry this market, you need to have a connection to it. Your marketing, strategic planning, and
customer service functions need people who can relate because they are over 50 themselves.
We can look in other directions for why to employ older workers. Those are more in the realm of
ethics and law. We don't need to go there. The competitive advantages of hiring highly qualified
older workers are more than enough to justify doing it.
Copyright (c) 2009 Mary Lloyd
About The Author
Mary Lloyd consults to businesses on how to benefit from older talent. She also offers seminars for
individuals on how to make their retirement years personally meaningful and is available as a
speaker. She is the author of Supercharged Retirement: Ditch the Rocking Chair, Trash the Remote,
and Do What You Love. For more insights on how to use older talent effectively, go to =>
http://www.mining-silver.com .
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