Issue link: http://digital.corporatepress.com/i/323271
16 | may/june 2014 | Facilities Manager enabling leadership Look Behind You New Issues with Workforce Aging are Coming on Fast By Joe Whitefield H ave you looked in the rearview mirror of your facilities orga- nization lately? A quick glance may show many objects gaining on you that could have a dramatic impact on your business. And these objects are, most likely, closer than they appear. We are all familiar with issues as- sociated with aging facilities: budget limitations, energy and environmental stewardship, and shifting customer expectations. But by now you have also noticed a growing number of new chal- lenges (i.e., problems) joining the chase. I want to dedicate this space to one of these formidable challenges that has actually caught up with most educational institutions—the aging of the workforce. WORKFORCE AGING Like most issues, this one has the potential to be quite disruptive in and of itself. However, it also has the added potential of combining with other prob- lems and compounding their effects. Consider the following: The baby boomer generation has had quite an impact on every facet of life. Their contributions to business in terms of innovation, productivity, and achieve- ment are historic. They have really put the "force" in workforce. This is also true in higher education. In case you missed it, 2014 is the year in which the youngest baby boomers—those born in 1964—turn 50. The Wall Street Journal reports that 12,500 Americans are turning 50 every day. That means the rest of the boom- ers are between 50 and 68. With that, this generation has now begun retiring. Given the sheer number of boomers in the workforce, their retirements will be as impactful to business as was their entry. Estimates on the current retirement rate tend to be approximately 10,000 per day nationally. Many organizations are beginning to experience an accelerated retirement rate. Keep in mind; this is only the beginning of the mass retirement phenomenon. Barring radical changes in the work-life expectancies, this trend will continue for a decade and a half. TURNING OVER THE ORGANIZATION CHART We have all dealt with replacing key personnel who leave our organizations for retirement or other reasons. This churning of personnel often creates a knowledge or experience gap, at least on a short term basis, as new personnel ride the requisite learning curves. While inconvenient for a time, these gaps often bring about fresh thinking, innovative practices, organizational restructuring, and opportunities for others to move up professionally—sort of a healthy turnover. Effective succes- sion planning has long been the key to these transitions. These transitions are aided when new personnel (or person- nel in new positions) receive the support of colleagues, at all levels, to assist with their knowledge/experience gaps. Mass retirements, however, require a different calculus for organizational turnover. While some of the oppor-