Are you and your organisation making the best use of the expertise your mature staff offer?

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Following news of Prince Philip’s retirement, have you looked at whether your organisation is making the best use of the knowledge, support and expertise your mature staff has to offer? CIPD found that almost half of over 55s expect to work beyond the age of 65. Debates about if it is fair to both older people and the younger generations for those of retiring age to continue to work, can at times be heated. But case studies show that multigenerational workforces can improve the society within the work environment.

Writing in HR Magazine, Claire Hall, senior vice president, chief people officer at McDonald’s UK states that the workforce in McDonald’s spans over 75 years, from 16-year-olds to people in their 80s. McDonald’s have found that the restaurants where there is a diverse age range of people working together, the employees are up to 10% happier in their jobs and have a more positive outlook towards McDonald’s and their role in the employee career growth needs as well as overall employee wellbeing.

What are the benefits an older population/age diverse workforce can provide?

In 2009, Sloan Center on Aging & Work found that hiring managers gave older employees high marks for loyalty, reliability and productivity.

In spite of what many employers assume about older applicants e.g., they’re slower in tasks and less productive than their younger counterparts. Peter Cappelli, a management professor at the Wharton School of Business found that the stereotypes about older workers simply don’t hold up.

“Every aspect of job performance gets better as we age.” (Cappelli, 2010)

Like Prince Philip, your older employees will have different and richer experiences that can provide them with an insight into problem-solving that someone who is younger may not have had experience with anything similar.

What can you be doing to support your ageing populating?

Like all your employees, the mature colleagues will benefit from feeling like they are an equally important member of the team. This can be achieved by promoting a culture that encourages knowledge sharing and opportunities for development or training. Something you could consider is having mentoring schemes where an older and younger member of staff pair up, the older colleague can impart experience and insights that may benefit the fresh out of school or university young colleague may benefit from but the young colleague can challenge and discuss new ways of thinking.

It is also important that you promote a culture where staff can discuss any issues or concerns they may have without fear of suggested retirement being on the tables. If you or if not you have someone be aware of your staffs’ lives. The ageing population isn’t just affecting the workplace, the over 55s face issues including caring for elderly parents and grandchildren, as well as their own growing health risks. It may be worthwhile discussing with them if there’s anything you can do to support them, such as flexible hours or working from home.