Workplace Challenges
How organizations can prepare for the wave of retiring baby boommersSearching for the 'Silver Bullet'With the leading edge of the baby boom generation heading into retirement, the workplace as we know it is in for a big change. |
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 [ 2007-11-21 ] |
For employers, this means a seismic workforce shift as older, experienced workers make the transition into retirement.
MOVE UP THE LADDER
For employees, it means opportunity to move up the ladder or shift sideways, perhaps into the job they've always wanted, but until now couldn't get into because they lacked the experience.
Over the last few years, surveys have shown that employers across North America are relatively unprepared for this shift and have yet to implement strategies to deal with the unprecedented situation.
A new study from the MetLife Mature Market Institute in the U.S. explores what proactive organizations are doing in that country to creatively meet the challenges posed by an aging workforce.
Called Searching for the Silver Bullet: Leading Edge Solutions for Leveraging an Aging Workforce, the study includes in-depth case studies about four companies that have successfully implemented programs to address changing workforce demographics -- Boston Scientific, First Horizon Corporation, The Aerospace Corporation and Weyerhaeuser.
"As the wave of baby boomers approach retirement, companies are searching for a silver bullet -- a one-size-fits-all approach for addressing the needs of an aging workforce," says Sandra Timmermann, a MetLife director.
"However, what we learned from this new study is that there is no panacea for addressing the needs of a mature workforce. What's needed instead is a portfolio of strategies and solutions that balance the need to retain older workers while also transferring knowledge to younger workers so that business performance can be sustained," she said.
Insights learned from the study include:
- The need to think of phased retirement or flexible work options as a program, not a policy.
- How to create effective knowledge-sharing relationships between older mentors and younger workers.
- How company-sponsored benefits and retirement planning workshops that focus on the economic consequences of leaving the workforce will encourage some employees to remain in the workforce past age 65.
- The need to make knowledge transfer an explicit part of any job when re-hiring a retiree.
- Why companies must stop searching for the "silver bullet" and recognize that there is no quick fix to these workforce challenges. The solution is a portfolio of integrated programs that will accommodate the changing labour market.
Taking those insights into account is critical for operations if they expect to move forward smoothly through the transition, Timmermann says.
And for younger employees, understanding how, when and why the workplace is changing will give them a leg up on future opportunities.
"By learning from others and putting practices in place now, employers will be better able to navigate the dramatic changes coming in the workforce," Timmermann says.
"Organizations that haven't prepared properly will have fewer options to minimize the impact of retiring baby boomers in order to sustain business performance."
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