Application Job search Recruiting leadership: What is the difference between older and younger employees?

Generational conflicts are popularly spread in the media and also for Companys relevant, because older and younger employees have very different needs.

The best way to the perfect employee

Older workers complain to the Job Search often about problems. But even younger employees are not always ideal for companies. And they both deal with change differently.

Actually, the best way to hire people is to find out who is best for the type of job you have. However, some employers make hiring decisions based on the age of their employees. Many companies are specifically looking for young workers who are considered fitter but also less demanding. However, some employers also believe that older employees are more experienced and knowledgeable, and maybe that older employees work harder and have better morale, or are more mature and reliable.

Older employees like to insist on authority

The books on the subject (advertising)

In fact, older employees are often found in senior positions. There are many popular theories as to why older employees are more successful than younger ones, but a common trait that is often cited is that older employees tend to be more experienced than younger ones. Older employees are often seen as more mature and leave less light of trivial problems and events on Workplace distract them so that they are better able to get their work done.

While older people are more experienced and tend to have better skills, they also tend to make frequent assertions of their power and authority in the workplace. That can be positive, but also negative be, because the older employees are usually more demanding and less open to suggestions and Feedback. The younger employees are more humble in many ways and want to learn more and gain more experience, but at the same time they can get frustrated and feel like they are not being taken seriously.

What older employees have to offer according to brain research

The labor market therefore does not exactly welcome older workers looking for a job with open arms. If you follow the career expert Bernd Slaghuis, they have to actively highlight the advantages they have for the company over younger applicants.

"Brain research has shown that older people's thinking and decision-making processes are more thorough," says communications consultant Katharina Daniels, co-author of the book "The Silverback Victory". "Although they react a little more slowly to new things, they process new impressions more sustainably and can draw from their experience."

What employers value

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On the labor market are still mostly Boy Workers with top certificates wanted, resilient and cost-effective. Wolfgang Kiessling, who comes from Cologne, shows how short-sighted that is:

His Loro Parque Group is the largest employer on the Canary Island of Tenerife with almost 1000 employees. "I prefer to hire employees between 35 and 50 - they have experience and know what they want," says Kiessling, who has received several awards as an entrepreneur.

True to the motto "The best employee is the one who does not have to be trained." often shows that older employees have more experience than younger ones, more Stress can endure and are therefore better at their job.

The economic benefits

His recipe for success at Recruiting are not perfect references, but knowledge of human nature and employee loyalty. "I've never understood why companies let go of long-serving employees - the best people are the ones you've built into the company," he explains.

Kiessling sees the matter purely from an economic point of view: “I have to be able to trust people. If an employee is good, it is also worth looking into invest. "

Employers do not want to invest

This is exactly where it lies for many companies Problem with the elders: The Anxiety before high Costs. For example for health promotion: According to the study "Company Demographic Management from the Employee Perspective", published by the FAZ Institute and the Gothaer Versicherungsbank, 68 percent of the employees want it, but less than half of the employers correspond to the wish.

To counteract this, both are in demand: employers who know how to use the wealth of experience of older employees economically, and older employees who repeatedly confident to this Power . indicate

Suddenly from colleague to boss: When young employees are overwhelmed

Often they are even a little ahead of their young colleagues. Because in some situations they often act anything but sovereign. For example, if they suddenly go to Executive to get promoted. A friend of mine felt that way years ago. That he was then no longer invited to his colleagues' parties, he commented laconically with the words: “You have to live with that”.

Colleagues who were treated the same yesterday, bosses today – this provokes conflicts, especially among young executives who are not yet able to deal with it confidently. Henryk Lüderitz also knows them from his own experience: He rose a lot with a mobile phone provider fast to a manager with an annual budget of 15 million euros - and almost freaked out when a former teammate complained about him behind his back.

The road to respect is stony

The way to Respect often stony and of a constant interior Konflikt accompanied: “When is it usefulto give in? At which points, on the other hand, is it more effective to take authoritarian action?” asked Lüderitz, who finally consciously avoided the stress of leadership and now works as a trainer.

For impact expert and author Michael Moesslang, respect has a lot to do with professional authenticity and Personality "The more confident and self-assured a person is, the more respect and persuasion they exude," he says.

Management by buddy? Professional authenticity as the key to success

And it is precisely this natural authority which is important when one wants to be taken seriously. But beware, this has nothing to do with dominant behavior, because pressure only produces back pressure.

But the opposite, the management that is so common at Kumpel, is also wrong: bosses who prefer to mimic good friends for their employees may not dare, even unpleasant ones, but necessary ones decision hold true. And in the end maybe even tries to shift responsibility. It's no wonder then that respect is lost.

Personal effect and to stand by his words

Anyone who wants to be successful as a manager must therefore, on the one hand, have personal Effect and communication skills train and learn, convey wishes in such a way that the employees can accept them and make them theirs.

On the other hand, it is also important to stand by one's own words and to set a good example, even if it becomes unpleasant. This is the only way to gain respect in the long term.

Mixing personal and professional life: how does who deal with it?

But you have to clear say: There are also certain differences between the two age groups. For example, with a topic that is becoming increasingly topical: the mixing of professional and private occasions.

I remember a ski event where companies were looking for new talent: bright sunshine, miles of downhill runs, endless parties - sounds fun, but you can find a new job like the “Students on Snow” as “Europe highest job exchange ”promises?

More personnel marketing than job exchange: The main thing is cool on the job exchange

350 students, representatives of companies like Siemens and Bayer as well as from economic regions like Heilbronn-Franken and Northern Black Forest talk about jobs during winter sports. Nice gag - or could such forms of recruiting be popular and also interesting for more experienced target groups? At the invitation of the organizer, I took a closer look at the two-day event at Nassfeld in Carinthia.

The companies want to anchor themselves as “cool” employer brands in the minds of the young top talent of tomorrow - in fact, students from subjects such as economics, mechanical engineering or industrial engineering are here in particular. The lesser known companies hope to attract more attention than at classic career fairs. Rather personal marketing than job exchange.

Internships and application procedures are discussed, not concrete job offers. It's about contacts for them Future, even if not all students realize this. It is true Fun in the foreground, but companies register exactly how someone presents themselves in what appears to be a private environment.

Old vs. Jung: Self-marketers have an advantage

This is exactly where there is a big difference between the old hands and the young, hip people: Those who are not shy and can market themselves well have a clear advantage. Because even if the students were able to send their CVs to companies in advance, many do not know how to address the employers in particular or what exactly they are doing.

But the companies are also unsure: a human resources manager told me that she didn't want to just chat up the young people while they were partying. The difficulty here, too, is getting along with one another at all Conversation get. The reservations regarding professional and private aspects are often too great, especially among older people. The differences in mentality are clearly evident here.

Build trust, enable discussion at eye level

And yet: when a young student can relax with the sedate HR of a large corporation talks about snow conditions and snowboards, you can see the advantages of such events. Because such situations build Trust between young and old.

Because then don't speak Candidate and employer or youngster and old hand together, but two people who are enthusiastic about something together. This is exactly what collaboration across all age groups should be about.

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