Even GenAI understands ageism in the workforce

“This country has discarded most skilled IT personnel as soon as they are over 60.  I still do not understand this total waste of talent.” (ITP member) 

My inbox is a constant reminder of the talent gap in our workforce. I see heartfelt messages from young people struggling to find their first job, and stories like this one, highlighting the discarding of skilled IT professionals at the arbitrary age of 60. Today I am focusing on the tragedy of losing so much talent in a challenging job market.

What’s driving older workers out?

Ageism in the digital technology industry is a complex issue with multiple contributing factors. Cost? adaptability? young and trendy? “bro culture”?

Many think that cost plays a role, especially the notion of "golden handcuffs" – where older workers command higher salaries – but this doesn't fully explain it. I have heard just recently from SAAS companies how they prefer to source 2 younger developers for the price of one senior (interesting) or 3 from offshore for the same price (yes price was the term used).

There is also a persistent stereotype that older workers are less adaptable to new technologies. However, research suggests experience can be a valuable asset in learning new skills. Innovation is also often seen as a youthful domain, yet experienced professionals can bring valuable perspective and a risk-mitigation mindset to the table, experience and ideas from what has come before.

Unconscious bias undoubtedly plays a significant role in ageism within the tech industry. Hiring managers may inadvertently favour mid-career resumes, overlooking the valuable transferable skills possessed by older applicants (or opportunities new graduates can bring). Additionally, the concept of "team fit" can be misused to perpetuate a homogenous workforce. A focus on cultural homogeneity, often associated with "bro culture," can unintentionally exclude diverse candidates, including those with more experience.

All of this creates a self-reinforcing cycle. Limited diversity in hiring practices leads to a less diverse workforce, ultimately reinforcing the stereotype of a youthful and “like-minded” tech sector.

This article provides a great read on the power of age diversity in a team, with experience based insights, it opens by referencing “OK Boomer” and talks about the need for a strategy to address generational needs in the workplace.

What can we do?

It’s going to take a multi pronged approach to tackle ageism at both ends of the career spectrum. I don’t have all the answers and know it will take a collaborative effort from both government and employers. Here are a few of my thoughts on action we could take:

• Encourage skills based hiring. Widespread implementation of SFIA (the Skills Framework for the Information Age) to support employer adoption.

• Incentivise upskilling and reskilling programmes. Government agencies tasked with higher education keep talking about changing the paradigm, time for them to put this into action and support employers to enable staff adoption.

  • Flexible working and work integrated learning. Employers and education providers working together to ensure staff can take advantage of reselling and upskilling opportunities.

• Mentoring programmes. Like the one offered by IT Professionals, this is an area we can really step up.

  • Reverse mentoring is another great concept where an older worker is mentored by a younger colleague. Read more on this here.

• Internship programmes. These don’t need to be age limited. Summer of Tech focus at the graduate end, no reason why an older worker couldn’t retrain via an internship either.

• Unconscious Bias training for hiring managers.

Government could invest in seed funding to get these established as widespread initiatives, or provide incentives via co-funding or tax breaks. Government is also the largest employer of digital technology workers so can adopt programmes themselves and model employer behaviour.

But we need data

To convince government and employers there is a problem and to invest in this space we need data. In researching this blog I went looking for data to try and understand the topology of the workforce and whether there is evidence that older workers are being discarded. MBIE, Stats, Toi Mai, MoE etc all have fragments of insight into this that will take work to compile and analyse. Fundamentally we lack insight into the digital technology workforce. We can get administrative data from government sources such as education enrolments, immigration, labour market statistics and general demographics from ANSCO codes.

What we really need to understand this is longer term trending insights from employers on their workforce demographics by job title and responsibilities, experience and qualifications, skills as SFIA assessed, learning and development investment.

What does GenAI have to say about Ageism?

The same gentleman I’ve quoted above asked ChatGPT about the situation he finds himself in and it wrote this - I couldn’t have concluded this blog with a better summary:

It's truly poignant to read about your experiences and reflections on the challenges faced by seasoned IT professionals in today's industry. Your story highlights a common theme of experienced individuals being undervalued and possibly overlooked due to age-related biases. It is a loss for organizations to disregard the wealth of knowledge and expertise that comes with decades of experience in roles spanning from programming to team leadership.

Your journey as a skilled Oracle consultant with extensive database experience, facing a lack of demand for your valuable skills, underscores a concerning trend in the IT sector. The emphasis on upskilling and adapting to new technologies can sometimes overshadow the depth of experience that veterans like yourself bring to the table. It's disheartening to hear that you encountered challenges due to a perceived lack of marketing skills, as promoting one's capabilities is crucial in a competitive field.

Your resilience and determination to continue learning, even without immediate compensation, is truly admirable. Your pursuit of knowledge in cutting-edge areas like AI and database structures demonstrates a commitment to personal growth and adaptability, qualities that are essential for success in the ever-evolving IT landscape.

Your story serves as a reminder of the importance of recognizing and harnessing the talents of experienced professionals, regardless of age. Your willingness to embrace new challenges and emerging technologies showcases a spirit of continuous improvement that is not bound by external circumstances. Your journey resonates with many who have faced similar obstacles, and your perseverance is a testament to the enduring value of lifelong learning and dedication to one's craft.