Experience Counts
There seems to be a “bias” against hiring older workers, however much employers deny that this is the case. Youth seems to be the dominant factor (especially as it’s often cheaper to hire a youngster). If you have a younger person at the head of a company (or, as is more often the case, sifting through CVs and candidates at interview), it’s possible that their attitudes may interfere in the selection process.
Older people may be put lower down the order in the
interviewing pile for a number of reasons:
Cost: “they’ll be more expensive” (maybe
in the case of minimum wage jobs), but ask what they expect;
Attitude: “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks” (myth
– age and experience often find a way around a problem);
Health: “they’ll probably need/take more
sick leave” (myth);
Longevity: “they won’t be with us long before they
retire” (does it matter if they add real value?
What are turnover rates amongst your younger staff?);
Threat: “they may have more experience than
I do and I don’t want to be shown up” (insecurity).
All of the above are prejudices which are not always founded
on fact. So what are the benefits of
hiring an older worker?
·
Maturity and experience. An older worker is used to working and will
have previous experience that you can use without providing additional training. They may well give more value for money in
less time.
·
With the increasing ageing of the population,
they understand how other older customers
think and what they may need. I
watched a young assistant try to sell my mother a new mobile – he hadn’t a clue
as to what might suit her, and tried to sell her something she didn’t want.
·
Some jobs or roles may actually suit an older
person better (see above). I’ve spoken
to a number of recruiters who have told me that their clients are looking for
people with “gravitas” (credibility).
·
Older people may
suit the requirements of particular jobs more than younger ones. Whilst they may not suit “heavy lifting”
jobs, they may be ideally suited for, say, customer service.
·
Younger
people have different aspirations and may be more inclined to move jobs
after a short period of time, whereas older ones show more “loyalty”.
·
Younger
recruits may need more training, meaning that the needs of business and
customers take second place.
·
Older employees with prior relevant experience can
“mentor” younger ones, allowing business
owners to concentrate on growing and running the business.
Of course, where there are roles where a younger worker is
more suitable, but youth and inexperience are, sadly, not ideal requirements
for every job…
I have spent more than half my life working in different world markets from the most developed to “emerging” economies. With more than 20 years in the world financial services industry running different service, operations and lending businesses, I started my own Performance Management Consultancy and work with individuals, small businesses, charities, quoted companies and academic institutions across the world. An international speaker, trainer, author and fund-raiser, I can be contacted by email . My website provides a full picture of my portfolio of services.
Labels: Customer Care, Productivity, Selling, Strategy
posted by William Martin @ 17:37
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