The Multi-generational and Aging Workforce

Challenges and Opportunities

New Horizons in Management series

Edited by the late Ronald J. Burke, formerly Professor Emeritus, Schulich School of Business, York University, Canada, Professor Sir Cary Cooper, Alliance Manchester Business School, University of Manchester, UK and Alexander-Stamatios G. Antoniou, Associate Professor of Psychology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece

The workforce is aging as people live longer and healthier lives, and mandatory retirement has become a relic of the past. Though workforces have always contained both younger and older employees the age range today has expanded, and the generational gap has become more distinct. This book advocates the need for talented employees of all ages as a way to prevent potential skill shortages and considers both the challenges and opportunities that these changes raise for individual organizations. The benefits they discuss include greater employee diversity with regards to knowledge, skills experience and perspectives, whilst challenges involve potential generational tensions, stereotypes and age biases. The book further places an emphasis on initiatives to create generation-friendly workplaces; these involve fostering lifelong learning, tackling age stereotypes and biases, employing reverse mentoring where younger employees mentor older employees, and offering older individuals career options including phased retirement, bridge employment and encore careers.

'. . . the topics addressed are highly relevant and will appeal to both workforce practitioners and academic researchers'
– Jaya Soni, Ph.D., International Social Science Review

‘The Multi-generational and Aging Workforce provides a much needed comprehensive review of the causes and consequences of the demographic reality facing organizations of all types today. This edited volume presents an in-depth analysis and understanding of this demographic phenomenon. Most importantly, the implications, opportunities and challenges facing organizations and management with respect to talent management, leadership development, organizational culture and performance, and many other topics, are thoroughly and insightfully discussed.’
– Mitch Rothstein, University of Western Ontario, Canada