May 2, 2018 "Ageism is becoming a major issue for corporations": Today I found this article by Nicole Gallucci in the Globe and Mail:
Partner, FUSE Marketing Group Inc.
In an era of inclusivity and diversity, ageism is growing as one of the new challenges that businesses face. Ageism is defined as “prejudice or discrimination on the basis of a person’s age.”
A recent study by Spherion found that roughly 25 per cent of employees make judgments about their co-workers’ and supervisors’ abilities to do their job based on their age alone.
This rate is as high as 39 per cent among millennials, higher than any other generation. The research also identified that, in 2017, 69 per cent of younger workers lack the business and life experience required for leadership positions. As a business leader in my early 50s, I see and feel the impact of age, expectations and management styles, and I’m regularly challenged to manage issues and differences across the age spectrum in the workplace.
This rate is as high as 39 per cent among millennials, higher than any other generation. The research also identified that, in 2017, 69 per cent of younger workers lack the business and life experience required for leadership positions. As a business leader in my early 50s, I see and feel the impact of age, expectations and management styles, and I’m regularly challenged to manage issues and differences across the age spectrum in the workplace.
While millennials often have greater tech skills, having grown up with devices in their hands and easily adapting to changing technologies, boomers and Gen Ys are technically savvy, often thanks to the teachings of the youth in their workplace.
However, what more-seasoned generations bring to the boardroom table is life and business wisdom, and the resiliency to weather the unprecedented pace of change. This interesting balancing act was never more apparent than at the recent 2018 South by Southwest (SXSW) conference.
However, what more-seasoned generations bring to the boardroom table is life and business wisdom, and the resiliency to weather the unprecedented pace of change. This interesting balancing act was never more apparent than at the recent 2018 South by Southwest (SXSW) conference.
An annual event featuring content in the unique and converging interactive, film and music industries, this year’s SXSW added panels on the topic of ageism to its roster. The age range of attendees, both young and old, was broader than ever before.
While there were discussions surrounding the #MeToo movement, there was a strong sentiment that we are on the precipice of the creation of an ageist hashtag that will raise awareness of the need for inclusivity and diversity at all ranges of the age spectrum. The challenge is managing both a generation that wants to race up the ladder, skipping rungs, with another that has climbed up rung-by-rung.
While there were discussions surrounding the #MeToo movement, there was a strong sentiment that we are on the precipice of the creation of an ageist hashtag that will raise awareness of the need for inclusivity and diversity at all ranges of the age spectrum. The challenge is managing both a generation that wants to race up the ladder, skipping rungs, with another that has climbed up rung-by-rung.
In both the SXSW discussions and current workplace discussions on the rise of ageism, some themes are predominant and worthy guideposts for managing leadership’s challenges and opportunities.
Ageism is not age specific
Ageism is being experienced across the spectrum. Both demographics at either end claim they are misunderstood.
I recently watched my team evaluate a multitude of candidates for a position. There was a concern that “older” candidates were too experienced, while “younger” candidates lacked sufficient knowledge and “been there, done that” experience to provide the necessary confidence needed in the role.
We not only have to fill gaps with candidates that can fulfil the present job, but with an uncertain future, we need to find candidates who can roll with the punches. This is less about age and more about personality.
Ambition and development springs eternal
The desire to grow, learn, explore and develop personally and professionally is common to every age. While quick to offer development plans for the younger generation, we are often remiss in ensuring our aging demographic remains sharp and motivated.
As the population ages, development plans across all ages and stages of life and work need to be offered and implemented.
As the population ages, development plans across all ages and stages of life and work need to be offered and implemented.
Leave your baggage and your ego at the door
While this cliché rings true across a broad range of situations, it is perhaps most apparent in business, particularly with millennials and boomers. Given the two groups often experience parallel age-range challenges at home (parents versus kids), sometimes the dynamic extends to the boardroom.
The kitchen table and the boardroom table are not the same. There are very different expectations and accountabilities in the boardroom, where the groups are peers and partners. With increasing, fast-paced requirements placed on businesses, it takes an egoless team of minds to keep up, let alone grow sustainable businesses boasting a competitive advantage.
The kitchen table and the boardroom table are not the same. There are very different expectations and accountabilities in the boardroom, where the groups are peers and partners. With increasing, fast-paced requirements placed on businesses, it takes an egoless team of minds to keep up, let alone grow sustainable businesses boasting a competitive advantage.
Experience is key
Honour the demands of the opportunity at hand and consider nimble work teams that shift as requirements shift. The selection of team members should be designed to meet the objectives and who best to deliver them.
It could be argued that in understanding the adoption of new tech, a team that skews younger may provide more relevant results. However, as the opportunity commercializes, the project may need to transition to suit an older team who have likely experienced a multitude of business models.
It could be argued that in understanding the adoption of new tech, a team that skews younger may provide more relevant results. However, as the opportunity commercializes, the project may need to transition to suit an older team who have likely experienced a multitude of business models.
In conclusion, there are yin/yang benefits to optimizing the age spectrum.
While not everyone may see this experience spectrum as clearly, I am immersed, both physically and mentally.
At one time, I worried about a glass ceiling; I now evaluate whether a glass floor exists, run by a younger generation who – in the adrenalin rush of the new – lose sight of the value of business experience, which can help to weather the highs and lows caused by “always new” and “always on.”
As I reflect on our own organization, I wonder if the generations within our company are as aware and respectful of the need for and benefits of age diversity. On one end of the experience spectrum, my team is predominantly composed of 20-to-30 year-olds who share the latest app, technology or new haunt on a daily basis.
On the other end, a 76-year-old mentor, who still comes to work every day and methodically evaluates the firm’s long-term business plans, oversees corporate governance and always adds a new idea or approach to any business or client challenge we share.
On the other end, a 76-year-old mentor, who still comes to work every day and methodically evaluates the firm’s long-term business plans, oversees corporate governance and always adds a new idea or approach to any business or client challenge we share.
As the number of years we spend in the workplace evolves, it will be interesting to note – and participate in – in how different generations respect, leverage and learn from each other’s talent. It is the dawning of the age of experience, and both ends of the spectrum have much to offer.
Lisa V.
I appreciate this article. The prominence of tech has only intensified the divide. If we fail to harness the wisdom of those that came before us, it will be our loss.
Good read. Wish there was more discussion about the Gen X place and reality within all of this. #middlechildgeneration
A well written and relevant article!
Ageism and what I call "generationism", the generalized antipathy millennials feel towards boomers, are increasingly a big problem throughout our society, from boardrooms to the "bus room".
Ageism is one of those hate problems that are given short shrift, along with poor bashing, hatred of the homeless, discrimination against the aesthetically challenged, and others.
The causes are, of course, rooted in the economy of fear, greed and cutthroat competition, the corporate culture that profits on the new, new, new.
Ageism is one of those hate problems that are given short shrift, along with poor bashing, hatred of the homeless, discrimination against the aesthetically challenged, and others.
The causes are, of course, rooted in the economy of fear, greed and cutthroat competition, the corporate culture that profits on the new, new, new.
Interesting comment on corporate culture, W.F. So true.
Ageism is most certainly a problem for how boomers treat younger works. But not the other way around. Millennials don’t have enough power to be the ones engaging in discrimination.
Having experienced ageism at one company, I am now working with another company that manages that issue in a more mature manner. The key to getting this second opportunity? "The desire to grow, learn, explore and develop personally and professionally ....."
It is not entirely accurate to state that older people are less tech savvy than their younger peers. Who do you think created the foundations of the technology that all this is built on?By the same measure, it is not entirely accurate to state that all older people have a wealth of business expertise, or that younger people lack interpersonal skills.
Insightful thinking on a topic that pervades our workplaces today.
"Lessons learned from founding a startup while raising a newborn": Today I found this article by Fiona Lake Waslander in the Globe and Mail:
Fiona Lake Waslander is co-founder, chief product officer and president of Skylight Tools, a renovation services company based in San Francisco and Toronto.
Many people compare building a startup to having a baby: the sleepless nights, the anxiety, the ups and downs, the mistakes. Few, however, talk about what it’s like to launch a startup and have a baby at the same time.
Two years ago, shortly after deciding to follow my passion and launch a tech startup, I had the pleasure of finding out I was pregnant with our long-awaited third child. My career decision meant resigning from a senior level, well-paid, benefits-laden job at a stable company.
The timing was about as bad as could be, but with the wheels of my career change already in motion, my husband and I took a deep breath and agreed to embrace the chaos.
The timing was about as bad as could be, but with the wheels of my career change already in motion, my husband and I took a deep breath and agreed to embrace the chaos.
In retrospect, I think if I’d taken time to ponder my decision or looked for another senior leader who had done something similar, I might have changed my plans. In a tech community that is dominated by young, single males, there aren’t a lot of precedents to follow when it comes to founding a startup as a woman over 40, with children and a new baby on the way.
In an effort to help demystify the startup experience for parents of all types, I’d like to share a few of my lessons learned and hopefully some words of encouragement. The common belief, especially for those of us with kids, not to mention new babies, is that a startup is out of reach. I found that it’s a challenge, no doubt, but it can work.
The timing is never right
I’ve spoken to many people, particularly women, who are waiting until their children pass milestone X or their career reaches objective Y before starting a new endeavour. You can’t wait for the timing to be right – it never will be. But if you’re passionate about your new project, you’ll make it work.
What I have learned in a short span of time – building a business from scratch while securing funding – is unparalleled compared to my experience gained in senior positions at established companies. Rather than looking at my startup venture as a risk, I saw it as an investment in my career.
Family life will always add hurdles to a career path. That’s just part of life. The key is to proceed confidently.
Blurry lines can work well
I’ve never been one to separate work and home life very well, but in the startup-plus-baby situation, this worked to my advantage. The best way for me to be productive was to blur the lines.
Sometimes that meant asking my team to be patient while I rocked a baby during a conference call. Other times it meant seeking understanding from my family while I left for a meeting during dinner.
Sometimes that meant asking my team to be patient while I rocked a baby during a conference call. Other times it meant seeking understanding from my family while I left for a meeting during dinner.
Starting your own company affords so much more control of your work environment than typical office-based jobs. Our company allows employees to work from home; it’s not only a perfect solution for inclusion of new mothers and parents in general, but even our team members without kids find they’re much more productive under this set-up.
The net effect was more time for both parts of my life. Work and family time intertwined in a way that would not have been possible in a traditional work setting.
Time to think
Absolutely critical for any business leader is having time to think. One of my biggest surprises when juggling a newborn with my startup workload was that I actually had a lot of time to think.
In past leadership roles, I typically found myself in a frenetic mode with little time for contemplation of strategic issues or big-picture planning. With a baby, however, you spend a lot of time sitting, rocking and nursing, and you can use that time to plan your next move.
My at-desk working hours became more productive and my output was of a much higher quality than before.
My at-desk working hours became more productive and my output was of a much higher quality than before.
With the right thinking-to-output balance, I required fewer hours to accomplish the same amount of work.
Working around a baby’s schedule is not hard
Any team of founders will face many difficult challenges together: agreeing on the business strategy, the fundraising plan, the approach to investors, how to expand at the right pace, who to hire, where to spend money – the list goes on.
Compared to these business problems, working around a baby’s schedule is nowhere near as complex, yet it’s often cited as the reason women with babies or young children are nervous about entering the startup world.
Compared to these business problems, working around a baby’s schedule is nowhere near as complex, yet it’s often cited as the reason women with babies or young children are nervous about entering the startup world.
As awkward as it may feel to schedule meetings around the baby’s nursing schedule, it really is a non-issue for a well-functioning team. If a team can’t solve the easy problems, then the hard ones will be insurmountable. Treat it like a test, and the strong teams (like mine!) will focus on the big challenges instead.
And the result?
Success so far! My co-founders and I raised an angel round of financing when I was eight months pregnant and closed a seed round of financing from top Silicon Valley investors when my new baby was 10 months old.
I don’t mean to minimize the difficulty of work-family balance that parents face or the fundraising barriers commonly encountered by female founders. I do recognize that I’ve had good fortune along my way. But I want to tell women and parents hesitating about whether to take the plunge to get out there and go for it.
Our business continues to grow and, while my life is busier than ever, I’m glad I took the leap.
