Recruiting & Retaining “Mature” Team Members [VIDEO]

In 2015, the movie The Intern with Robert De Niro came out with a different take on internships. De Niro plays Ben Whittaker, a 70-year-old widower and former executive. Ben gets bored in retirement and applies for an internship at an e-commerce company run by Jules (portrayed by Anne Hathaway). During the movie, Ben goes from being a nobody at the company to Jules and the rest of his millennial colleagues looking to him for help, guidance, and wisdom.

This story made for a great movie, but it matches reality as well. We live in a time when 10,000 people are retiring or at least turning 65 every single day. This is due to the baby boomer generation which was the biggest demographic in the history of the United States until the millennial generation. It is estimated that by 2025, 25% of the population will be over age 55. Currently, there are not enough younger people to fill all of the positions that are available and needed in our country. And that means leaders are going to have to change their mindset.

If you are a leader, owner, or manager who does hiring, here are four suggestions on how to recruit and retain “mature” team members.

1. Intentionally seek out these experienced leaders and managers.

We highly recommend that you intentionally seek out this demographic in your hiring process. That means don't view the older generation as no longer relevant. This group of people brings enormous talent, skill, experience, and maturity, but you have to intentionally go and find them. When you do, you won't regret it.

2. They may not seem to be long term – but who really is?!

Don’t worry about whether or not they are long-term. Quite often, leaders get nervous if they are hiring someone a little bit older, and they wonder, “How long am I going to have this person?” In reality, you can ask the same question of a young person. You will be fortunate to have anybody you hire stay for five, six, or seven years. You have just as much opportunity to have a 60-year-old stay for that length of time as you would a 30-year-old.

3. Match them to your rising stars – they can mentor and grow your next generation of leaders.

When this older demographic is hired, they can serve as exceptional mentors and coaches for some of the up-and-coming rising stars on your team. They bring great experience with them, but they no longer have to prove themselves. They are actually there to help rather than to make a name or a place for themselves.

4. Allow for accommodation of time and accessibility.

Finally, when you hire this demographic, consider flexibility. People in this group sometimes don't need the benefits or full-time hours, but they do want flexibility. And you will find it is the same today with the younger demographic - flexibility is often the key to success. When you recruit people in this bracket, you can custom tailor the position just for them which could be a win-win, both for them as well as your organization.

Over the next decade, leaders like you would be wise to pursue this group of people and add them to your team. Not in place of younger leaders, but in combination with them, because they are going to be available, they have great contributions to make, and there are a lot of them.

To learn more about how our team can assist you in the recruiting process, contact us.

Jay Desko is the President & CEO of The Center Consulting Group and brings experience in the areas of organizational assessment, leadership coaching, decision-making, and strategic questioning. Jay’s degrees include an M.Ed. in Instructional Systems Design from Pennsylvania State University and a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Leadership from The Union Institute.