Having older professionals in your workforce can be a massive advantage. They have years of experience and a completely different perspective to offer compared to their younger counterparts. However, there can be a number of challenges associated with ensuring this demographic feel valued in their role.
One of the most effective ways of engaging with employees, regardless of their age, is to provide them with various opportunities to expand their skillset. This doesn't need to be anymore difficult with an older workforce than with their younger colleagues, but can take a little more thought and consideration around implementation.
It's likely that your older employees spent a lot of time at work without the internet. This can mean they lack the skills needed to make the most out of digital resources and may also struggle to see a need for it. However, with all workplaces embracing digital, not understanding it can be a massive obstacle to wider engagement.
A single standalone training session is unlikely to have much success. You need to host a series of events that cover the basics of digital but also put what they have learnt into context and hammer home the importance of embracing these skills. It's also best to ensure that there's time at the end of every session to ask questions about what they've been taught.
For older employees, it can feel as though the work environment is leaving them behind but this should never be true. Work with each of your professionals to identify their strengths or passions. Once you have a clear list of attributes or skills that they perform well at, you can identify ways they can be used or adapted to fit with your current business objectives.
Not only does this give them a sense of value, despite the changing needs of the company, but will also allow them to be engaged in the new direction your team are taking.