I'm finishing up a fascinating workforce development project in Florida. It focuses in part on the need for employers to become more creative and flexible in their recruiting and retention practices to take advantage of the boatloads of semi-retired and well educated Boomers who land in Florida ready to retire. However, after several months of playing golf, they become bored and
want to return to the workforce with renewed rigor and years of talent and
experience behind them.
The view of employers toward older workers
Unfortunately, the situation nationwide is pretty much
the same: employers aren't willing to adjust their schedules or job descriptions to handle experienced workers who want some flexibility in their work week.
They rely on same ol', same ol' hiring practices in face of the mounting evidence that Boomers are better educated than their younger counterparts and are certainly NOT over the hill by any stretch.
You as the job hunter who is 40+ have to convince an employer – whether you're in Florida or any of the other 49 -- that you're up and ready for the job you're applying for. In particular, you have to convince him that you're not angling for a top management position, although you may have had one in the past. You need to demonstrate that
your computer skills are razor sharp. And you need to show humility and tolerance in a new workplace that may
have several generations working there altogether.
Fending off questions regarding your age at the interview
One of the ways that you can do this as a mature job
seeker is to help the interviewer who may be half your age. For example, it's illegal to ask how old a job candidate is. But when the anecdotal evidence is very compelling that many HR interviewers either ignore that mandate or are ignorant of it. So, if someone asks you the devastating question, "What year do you graduate from university?" or some question that clearly would indicate your age, here are some ways to handle that tactless question in a friendly and non-threatening manner. You could say, "I'm curious as to why you're asking me this particular question. Is there something in my resume that may make you think that my skills may be out of date?" When the interviewer responds, you have a wonderful opportunity to rephrase your strengths and experience to them one more time.
Another approach to answering the question about one's age and experience is to reply, "That an interesting question. I'm glad that you'd like to know how long I have honed these particular skills and how many training courses I've taken." And then launch into a
thumb nail sketch of your qualifications and classes in professional
development. What you've done is to professional signal that they have asked an inappropriate question but you're willing to overlook that faux pas in order to make your case even stronger to him.
Or if they suggest that you may be bored in taking a junior position having already run your own company, you might say, "I've had the responsibility and stress of running my own firm. Now I'm ready to apply those skills to help an employer reach his/her own level of success based on my experience."
In other words, it's up to you, the Boomer job seeker, to dispel common stereotypes that you do no have current computer skills, that you are impatient with younger colleagues who don't seem to have as strong a work ethic, and that you're not hungry enough to be ambitious for the company but want some extra pin money until you really retire.
Turning your interview into a dialogue
So you need to make an interview count by being
extra-prepared! Your goal is to
make the interview a dialogue with you talking 60% of the time and listening
and taking notes for the other 40%. Be sure to have prepared questions about the company you're interviewing with so that you do indeed have a two-way conversation. Your candidacy will be greatly helped by Google and Yahoo searching of this company and researching every page on their website and checking www.hoovers.com for information. Using the www.vault.com online water cooler of informal comments and anecdotal information by employees inside and former employees in large corporations can also be helpful. A savvy interviewer will have read Vault's latest information and will know how to respond if the tone of the comments is particularly favorable or negative.
In other words, treat each unintended assault on your age
as an opportunity to talk about yourself. Tell him how your keep up with technology, how you volunteer, how you
participate in the local professional association chapter, how good your health
is, and how in previous jobs you have worked with many different
generations. In other words, you want to give as much (accurate!) ammunition to this interviewer as possible as he is writing up his notes after the interview. Your compelling evidence and case studies of actual workplace situations will be very helpful to him as he describes your qualifications to others in comparison to probably younger candidates.
Writing a dynamite thank-you letter
After your interview, sit down and review your notes about the questions that were asked and your responses. While it's still fresh in your mind, sit down and write a snail mail thank you letter. Realizing that the interviewer will have probably
interviewed more candidates after you, this is your last chance to demonstrate
to that interviewer and others who may have met you that you are the right candidate. Make sure that your thank-you covers
the following points:
1) Restate your best qualifications for the job. If the interviewer stressed relevant experience, be sure to cite that. If the interviewer asked how involved you are in your professional association, be sure to mention your active roles, etc.
2) Indicate how closely you listened to the interviewer. We all love to be listened to and interviewers are no exception. If the interviewer mentioned an issue that the company was facing or an upcoming event, be sure to mention that in your thank-you and including a newspaper article or reference to a particular website. They will be impressed.
3) Demonstrate that you can tap into the company's corporate culture with relevant comments. For example, if there is a formal atmosphere, make sure that your thank you tone and tenor are professionally correct. If the company values social responsibility, noting your involvement in environmental causes (that you may not have stressed in your resume) would be helpful to your candidacy.
4) Send separate thank-yous to each person you met with customized comments about the company, their own remarks at the interview. If you need help as to what to write, think back to the topics that were discussed during the interview. You will have sealed your candidacy with overkill that will be appreciated – but not if you have repeated yourself over and over again. Remember that it's easy for the interviewers to exchange notes about what you've written to each of them!
5) Make sure that you double check your spelling and grammar of each letter before they are sent. Use F7 and an English major friend to make sure that your letter is appropriate and concise.
Enjoy the "lusty month of May" in finding a new job and career, using these proven recommendations. And keep your emails coming re your experiences, frustrations, successes in finding a job. I love to respond to them
I can always be reached at jlommel@WorkforceAssociates.com
Jane M. Lommel, Ph.D.
