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| Our Take: Age Matters |
by Jon Jacobs - September 3, 2008
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Recently, two sports stories caught my eye by showcasing opposite poles of an issue many financial services professionals grapple with every day: the perceived relationship between job performance and age. One story involves allegations that some of China's star female gymnasts overstated their ages to skirt a long-standing Olympic ban on athletes younger than 16. Toronto Globe and Mail reporter Rebecca Dube made that the jumping-off point for an article about people who misstate their age to steer clear of colleagues' stereotyped attitudes. However, roughly half of her story dealt with individuals who could be perceived as too young for their job - hardly a plausible scenario for most financial professionals.
The article also suffered from a common flaw: touting the urban legend that impending retirements somehow make employers less hostile to older candidates. "Suddenly, having a few grey hairs isn't such a bad thing," Dube cheerily wrote.
Similar assertions occasionally show up in stories on eFinancialCareers News. Among sources we regularly quote, corporate HR departments and some external recruiters have obvious self-interested reasons to portray a near-empty glass as 70 percent full. But even career counselors, whose sole client is the candidate, sometimes paint too sunny a picture on this topic - especially if they have no Wall Street background, and so may not be fully aware of the finance industry's obsession with 20-somethings.
I've heard a more sophisticated variant uttered at career fairs when someone inquires about age discrimination: "If you can make money for an employer, they don't care how old you are. All a hiring manager really wants to know is, 'Can this candidate make me money?'"
Many Don't Even Bother to Deny Their Bias
These eminently rational viewpoints align with the belief in market efficiency that underlies some sectors of our profession. Unfortunately, they don't align with observable reality.
"I have had 4 companies tell me they were looking for someone younger," one user in his 50s wrote in response to a story on our sister site, JobsintheMoney. "Many of the interviewers do a double take when they expected someone 35 and not 50. Companies are no longer afraid to discriminate because the hand-picked federal attorneys are unwilling to prosecute."
"It was so blatantly obvious in several job interviews that I asked directly if my age was an issue," another user wrote. "The interviewers, unwisely, confirmed that it was, whereby I pointed out that such was illegal. I appreciated their honesty and did not pursue the legal aspect as I was more interested in spending my time getting a job."
Too Old to Pitch Deals?
The second sports story came from a major league baseball game on Aug. 15, in which the opposing pitchers were 45-year-old Jamie Moyer and 42-year-old Greg Maddux. Both performed at a high level, as Moyer's Philadelphia Phillies beat Maddux's San Diego Padres by a score of 1-0.
Thinking about those two guys, who while young enough to duel on the mound would be considered too old to pitch deals to banking clients, I was reminded of an e-mail I'd sent to a headhunter some time ago. "If an employer gets the idea I'd be any less physically energetic or any less emotionally committed to the task than a 30-year-old (excepting certain very narrow job categories, such as firefighter, dancer, astronaut, ski instructor, or professional athlete), that employer would be shooting himself or herself in the foot," I wrote.
I guess I could have left "professional athlete" off the list.
Here's Our Playbook
What's a candidate to do in an industry so firmly resolved to shoot itself? First, home in on those situations where an employer appears at least partially motivated by whether a candidate can make money, rather than basing everything on a checklist. Then, go tastefully all-out to defy age-based stereotypes that hiring managers and prospective teammates may hold.
Maintain a trim body and an up-to-date appearance in everything you wear, from hairstyle and eyeglasses (if any) down to your shoes. Keep your skills at the cutting edge - especially anything related to technology. (That includes the communication device you bring to an interview, even though you'll turn it off before walking in.) Show the utmost respect toward a youthful interviewer. Talk up your energy level, and seize every possible chance to trumpet your desire to learn from colleagues.
Don't fall into the trap of thinking that "learning at work" is something only junior or entry-level staff are supposed to do. Quite the contrary: being open to others' ideas positions you as modest, easy to get along with, and the opposite of a rigid or preachy "father" figure.
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| Anonymous (Ft Lauderdale) |
on 11 Sep 2008 at 9:43 am |
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I had a job with a company in SFla that provides a particular service to cruise ships. The company has an annual employee turnover rate of 40%. After three years with the company, I too, decided to resign from this hostile work environment.
Since I have a professional degree, and have always been a can-do type of individual, and having served in the military for 8 years, I thought that my chances of getting a new job were extremely favorable.
Unfortunately that has not been the case. I am currently goind on my 6 month of seaching for new employment without any success.
I have had my share of interviews, but you can see it on their eyes when you walk in, that you are not the candidate that they were expecting to see. I am 52 years old, but I go to the gym regularly and look younger than my age.
It is hurtfull and demoralizing to try to earn a living and be denied that opportunity for no other reason than your age. |
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| Deborah Heyman MacGillis (Ho Ho Kus New Jersey) |
on 10 Sep 2008 at 8:00 am |
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| finally someone said outloud what I've been finding....As soon as I show my "cards of identification" my passport or driver's license that shows my birthdate, the pre-arranged interview with their client suddenly dries up or isnever scheduled as promised...And I'm just 60 with an MBA from a good school and years of experience and a look of 10 years younger! |
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| 50+ (So Cal) |
on 09 Sep 2008 at 11:29 pm |
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Let it be...
five years ago I was told I was to old (at 45 & told I looked 38!) for a consulting company because they liked to hire 'em young, work 'em hard, wear 'em out....
So I took a temp position with their largest client. Then I identified/recovered > $250K in three months, went perm, retrained existing staff, evaluated & upgraded software ,wrote new procedure manual and established an internal audit/recovery department which resulted in a huge loss of revenue to the consulting company.... The best part was attending a meeting with the owner of the consulting company .. I was kind, polite and professional.- and when he tried to recruit me I let him know that his hiring manager passed me over just over a year ago. :) |
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| Bob Kinsler (Oklahoma) |
on 09 Sep 2008 at 7:08 pm |
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Do not even mention you retired from the US Military, you might as well have been in jail for the years you spent serving the country in the minds of some of these recruiters. They can add and with the knowledgement that you could have 20 or more years in the military your age is possibly over the age they really want.
Someone once told me that employers where looking for the leaderships, training, skills and abilities I obtained by serving all over the globe, yet someone has to tell the employer this is what they want (and to think my twenty plus years was in HR mangement). |
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| Jay H. Stull (Fort Lauderdale Florida) |
on 09 Sep 2008 at 5:21 pm |
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| Generally I prefer putting energy into job search rather than confronting an interviewer. I learned here the value of maintaning a younger appearence and showing energy and enthusiasm |
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| Patricia Navadomskis (Chicago) |
on 09 Sep 2008 at 4:52 pm |
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Age is a BIG PROBLEM. I sat and listened for years about proactive problem solving lifelong learner who should expect to have all these great careers.Change ,grow try something new NOT HAPPENING.
Gave up looking because I will not go back to what I did before.
I was overqualified and underpaid. That is why I went back to school like the CHANGE CONSULTANTS said was a good idea.
I have considerable transferable skills---we have a labor protest going around---run people off and keep them off.
When is someone going to PAY MORE ATTENTION.
I think their are plenty of qualified willing to work and work hard Older workers but they hiring people are clueless. I also have a right to take time off with no pay and why should that send out a RED FLAG ? It is none of your business.
We were sent home when we were pregnant,held back because we MOMMY tracked I thought I might finally find DECENT EMPLOYMENT. Not send us off to low pay retail jobs or the greater at WALL Mart !!!!!!!
I was underutilized for years I thought I could make up for lost time.
If companies want Older workers they should say so and if they do not SAY SO. Where are all the Diversity celebrator's?????
And Mc Cain was asking everyone to contribute to Public Service----We can not get hired for any Federal jobs. |
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| Ricky James Kelly (Monrovia California) |
on 09 Sep 2008 at 12:35 pm |
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| Something to help Amalia on a interview. |
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| Amalia Mendez (los angeles) |
on 09 Sep 2008 at 12:32 pm |
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| Here is something that might help on a interview. |
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