Engaging retirees for everyone's good
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The New York Times just ran a fine article by Matt Richtel who does a great job of covering Silicon Valley for the Times. It's titled: "Going to the Company Elders for Help." Here's a key excerpt.
"Across the country, companies are making use of retirees as part-time or temporary workers. They are taking advantage of not only their expertise, but also their desire to stay involved and engaged with the world through work."
Read the whole article. Pay special attention to the variety of ways that HP is seeking to engage retirees. Pay attention to the many reasons the retirees think it's a good idea.
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Wow! I love the idea of getting retirees involved, but I don't know that there are too many companies that can get them to work for free. That certainly is both a testament to HP and its culture, as well as an indication of how eager these retirees are to contribute.
I don't think I'll want to sit on the sidelines for 20+ years either (don't know that I'll have the choice when it comes time). Bottom line is retirees want to help. They have the skills to contribute. It's up to us to find ways take advantage – and by that I don’t mean having them work for free!
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I agree with Nick that getting retired workers to work for free is certainly a testament to HP and its culture, and there likely aren't many others who can pull this off.
With hoards of Baby Boomers poised to retire in the near future this is definitely that more and more organizations need to consider. Retirees have so much knowledge and experience that they can share with others it would truly be a shame to let it all go to waste.
A couple of things that I have seen work well are:
1. Mentoring - pair a recent retiree or a team member soon to retire with a young protege they have an interest in helping succeed
2. Give these individual the option to work part time at will - Let's face it, retirement isn't always all it was cracked up to be for many and they simply get bored.
3. Use retirees to facilitate special training events
4. Allow recent retirees to serve as trusted advisers on temporary projects critical to an organization's success.
Anyone else had success engaging retirees and retaining organizational knowledge?
-Chris Young
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Thanks for this Wally. We seem to live in times when the wisdom and knowledge that comes with experience is often disregarded for the next new and buzzy thing. There is sometimes even suspicion that those with years of experience will somehow hold back progress. But that feeling of belonging which is so important to human connection to anything - including the world of work - does not necessarily disappear when the paycheck does. Good on those HP oldies for still being champions for their old employer!
Jackie
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All true, Jackie. Thanks for coming by.
I think we should also call for good on the on the memories and work of Dave Packard and Bill Hewlett for creating a culture that engenders that kind of loyalty.
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