Here’s How You Can Prepare For The Retirement Tsunami

Workplaces in the United States will undergo a change in their demography over the next decade. The entire corporate environment in the country will soon look and function quite differently from the way it has been doing in the present times. Women are exiting from the corporate world and launching their own businesses. Aside from getting more opportunities in their careers, fulfillment is also a key issue here. Side by side, baby boomers are on the verge of retirement. They will be hanging up their boots a few years from now. Upon leaving, they all will turn out to be a competition for the organizations they work for. Companies need to prepare for the massive shift of workplace demography that’s on the way. There is also quite a bit of uncertainty on how fast the baby boomers will quit their jobs.

Light Drizzle – The Silver Tsunami

When baby boomers finally decide to retire, more than 40 percent of the corporate workforce will vanish from the routine life of 9 to 5, that too, in a span of a decade. However, according to economists, boomers might look forward to their retirement – owing to the economy as well as their individual pension funds. In case they take retirement, the companies will have to let go of valuable resources and the bulk of talent. Finding their replacements is going to be a rather difficult job.

There are two issues that organizations are going to face. One, Generation X is comparatively not that huge as the generation of the baby boomers. Two, millennials are known to have a distinct concept about working. In case the baby boomers postpone their retirement, the companies have other issues to deal with a lot of issues. Aside from the rising pension and healthcare costs, organizations will also have to face the hurdle of training the older workforce to keep them technologically updated and figure out how things will work when a boomer has to report to someone of their granddaughter’s age.

The Upcoming Competition

Some people will bid adieu to their workplaces forever, but there is a massive challenge waiting for many companies out there. They will soon be up against an imminent challenge from the retiring baby boomers. These boomers, in all likelihood, will kickstart their own businesses, set up their own companies, and make a comeback as competition for the organization they were once a part of.

A recent report reveals that there is a massive possibility that the retiring boomers will soon start their own businesses. Irrespective of whether boomers retire for good or continue working as the boss of a new business, companies need to do a lot of work and analyze the effects of retiring talents on the workforce. How can an organization cope with the retirement of the baby boomers and the loss their departure will inflict? The following tips might be useful.

Intergenerational Mentoring Program

This program, also known as reverse monitoring, can be of great utility to companies as they prepare for the retirement boom. Bring a boomer and a Generation X employee together, and give them time to teach new skills to each other. The baby boomers are known for their ability to handle in-person relationships at the workplace and of course, office politics.

The boomers are quite aware that the ways to deal with one personality will be different from dealing with the other. Boomers might lack focus and that is where the Gen X guys can help. On the other hand, Gen X loves to deal with things with fewer sentiments, and that cynicism happens to be a great skill that baby boomers can master.

Flexible Work Options

If you can arrange for a schedule where the boomers can work either part-time or part-year, nothing is better than that. According to an AARP study, financial security, more time with family and friends, traveling, and better health are all that baby boomers want when they attain the age of 65. When the work environment becomes flexible, the boomers will reach their objectives easily and also play a pivotal role in transferring knowledge in an organization.

As for the younger workforce that is set to join an organization, businesses must think of incorporating training programs in the schedule to teach them the skills they would later require in the company, as well as the industry overall.