I recently attended a dinner sponsored by the IBM Human Capital Management practice in the UK. In coversations with twelve Chief Human Resources Officers who were discussing the topic of the Maturing Workforce, a number of important themes became clear: Choice is an important component for employees as they approach retirement age. Some will choose to work, others will choose to do different kinds of work, while others will opt to exit the workforce. Where organizations need to focus is providing employees options, that, at the same time, are cost effective and relevant for the organizations themselves. Training was a subject raised by several individuals. Organizations have to get past a mindset that firms are less likely to obtain a return on investment on older workers, either because older workers don't want to learn or that their learnings can not be applied over a long enough time horizon. For firms to retain productive workers, training can help improve skills levels and make workers feel that the firm still finds their capabilities valuable - an important retention tool. This point was strongly emphasized by Dr. Sarah Harper, the Director of the Oxford Institute of Aging at the Universtiy of Oxford (http://www.ageing.ox.ac.uk) Many firms still do not have the analytic capabilties to determine which key positions they are most risk for losing, and the associated risks attached to losing individuals within those positions.
-- Eric Lesser, Associate Partner, IBM Institute for Business Value
Recent Comments