Too old to learn?
45+ and training
If
we want to maintain our standard of living, we are all going to have to work
longer. Those aged 45+ today have at least fifteen working years ahead of them.
Investing in them is not a waste of time. Professor Ans De Vos
and researcher Jonathan Remue on why we need age-aware training
and development policies.
Ans De Vos: “Nowadays many people over the age of 45 have no personal development plan. And that speaks volumes. It means that your employer assumes that he’s already seen everything you have to offer, and that anything he hasn’t seen won’t come to light now anyway. He doesn’t expect you to make any more major career moves. But is he right? Many women in their mid-forties, for instance, have had their foot off the throttle until then, working part-time. For them 45 is the age to start catching up. But employers don’t plan for that any more.”
So what is the right kind of training and development policy for the over-45s?
Ans De Vos: “Ideally age should be factored into your general training and development policy, and target groups differentiated. This approach creates a dynamic environment in which people see challenges, want to continue developing, and are far less inclined to start counting the days until they retire as soon as they reach the age of fifty.
“Many companies realise too late that they need to give older workers more training if they want them to continue doing their job properly. That’s not a problem for people aged 45-55, but employees over the age of 55 who’ve only had sporadic training for the past ten years may be less amenable to change.
“A personal development plan and individual career development interview is a step in the right direction. In contrast with their younger colleagues, older employees have far more realistic expectations of their career path. They are a bit more patient and they realise that vertical progression up the career ladder is not the only opportunity available. Career development can also mean enhancing your present job or expanding your range of duties.”
Are training and development policies toward older employees evolving?
Ans De Vos: “More and more companies are realising that they need to adapt their policies if they want to make full use of their human capital. In a stable business environment where jobs stay the same, training and development for older workers may perhaps seem unnecessary. But a rapidly changing business demands new attitudes and skills, even from more experienced employees. Otherwise, even though they retain their expertise, they become to some extent ‘dead wood’. No-one wants underperforming staff, so for opportunistic reasons, the decision about the value of training is easy to make.”
How do older employees themselves feel about training and development?
Ans De Vos: “Attitude has nothing to do with age. People with intrinsic motivation, for instance, will take up the offer of training more readily than those who are driven by extrinsic or instrumental motives.”
Jonathan Remue: “Sometimes it’s also down to the working environment. An organisation that sees no point in training older workers will propagate that view, intentionally or otherwise, so the employee – regardless of what he thinks himself – will believe that training is wasted on him.”
Ans De Vos: “Whether people want to keep their job, cut back or develop further very much depends on their commitment to the organisation. This is determined partly by the individual himself, but equally by company policy. Is the employee still getting opportunities to grow in his work? And conversely, is the work tailored to the employee’s abilities? An older sales representative in medical equipment may not grasp technological innovations as fast as his younger colleagues, but should his pay be based purely on sales? His value may lie more in his network and the long-term relationships that he’s built up with the client. An age-aware policy requires you to take a much broader look at the value your staff are adding to the business.”
Apart from the employees and the organisation, are there any other parties that are key to a successful age-aware policy?
Ans De Vos: “The government can support age-aware development policies, but companies themselves must appreciate its economic benefit. Some organisations feel no sense of urgency to invest in older workers, because they still haven’t experienced any problems. They can easily replace older personnel, or they see them – especially in times of crisis – as an easy target when restructuring or other challenging circumstances necessitate cutbacks. Organisations take a rational approach. Even with substantial government support, they will only invest if the training offers added value in terms of employee performance or growth potential.”
How does Belgium score on age-aware policy compared with other European countries?
Jonathan Remue: “Most Belgians plan to retire at 58, while in many other countries they think in terms of 60+. We don’t have any exact data on this at present, but Belgium is regarded as more of a follower than a leader in this area. The pioneers of the age-aware HR approach tend to be found in the north, in Scandinavia.”
Research on age-aware HR policies
In collaboration with K.U.Leuven and the University of Antwerp, Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School is conducting a survey on the mobilisation of older workers in the labour market. What makes employees today willing to carry on working longer? And what factors, at individual, institutional and company levels, influence their attitudes to this? The School is focusing on the influence of the employer and his HR policy on the decision whether or not to keep on working. It is surveying ten companies that have already taken a number of age-aware measures and is also questioning older workers themselves. The research results are expected in the autumn.
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Info: Jonathan Remue |