Age-Friendly Workplaces: Recruiting and Retaining Experienced Employees Conference 2020
On February 27, 2020, our conference held in Denver showcased the opportunities of an aging workforce and win-win situations with recognizing the value of age 50+ workers. It revealed insights about age-friendly employers in Colorado, based on a collaborative survey conducted by researchers at The University of Iowa College of Public Health and Transamerica Institute. The conference also convened national aging and work experts, local Colorado officials, and local nonprofits. The event was co-sponsored by the Office of Governor Jared Polis and Next50 Foundation.
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[1/8] Age-Friendly Workplaces Conference
This ground-breaking conference – Age-Friendly Workplace Programs: Recruiting and Retaining Experienced Employees – explored the opportunities of an aging workforce and win-win situations with recognizing the value of age 50+ workers. We hosted an exciting roster of national experts, local Colorado officials, and local nonprofits.
Speaker:
- Catherine Collinson, CEO and President, Transamerica Institute
Colorado Governor, Jared Polis, shares his vision of “Colorado for All” so that people of all ages have every opportunity to succeed and thrive. Employers need to create age-friendly workplaces, as more and more older Coloradans will want or need to stay in the workforce past traditional retirement age. Organizations need to respond to the unique demands of experienced employees and provide additional training or assistance. Colorado’s workforce should have no room for age discrimination.
Speaker:
- Jared Polis, Colorado Governor
Colorado faces a critical-skills shortage with a quickly aging workforce. This presents opportunities to retain age 50+ experienced workers and offer lifelong learning to workers while on the job. Colorado’s Department of Labor and Employment strives to serve the needs of this changing workforce and to support reskilling and upskilling as industries evolve so workers can stay relevant and productive.
Speaker:
- Joe Barela, Executive Director, Colorado Department of Labor and Employment
[4/8] The Longevity Economy
Aging populations are creating new opportunities and markets for older people around the world. Every company should have a strategy for tapping into the human capital value of older adults and multigenerational teams. There is also market potential for creating innovative solutions to aging in place and social isolation. Paul Irving emphasizes that these business interests of an aging population also enhance the health, financial security, and purpose for the benefit of all.
Keynote Speaker:
- Paul Irving, Chairman, Milken Institute Center for the Future of Aging
[5/8] Age-Friendly Workplaces Research
Colorado’s Above-Fifty Employment Strategies (CAFES) – a collaboration between nonprofit Transamerica Institute and the University of Iowa’s College of Public Health, with funding from Colorado-based NextFifty Initiative – surveyed 146 employers across the state of Colorado to examine the ways businesses are recruiting and retaining experienced employees (age 50+ workers). Dr. Brian Kaskie’s survey findings reveal that Colorado is experiencing the impact of “structural lag,” where demographic shifts are ahead of the systems, processes, and societal practices. It also highlights a myriad of opportunities to recognize the vital contributions of experienced employees and to build policies to successfully meet their changing needs.
Speaker:
- Brian Kaskie, Associate Professor, University of Iowa - Health Management and Policy
Read the full CAFES research report
[6/8] Living, Learning and Earning Longer & Employers Taking the Lead
An age-diverse and inclusive workforces are the future, yet many employers are failing to recognize older workers’ potential to live, learn, and earn longer. A panel of experts share empirical evidence debunking misperceptions about older workers and discuss best practices for creating a culture of respect, establishing policies and procedures, and identifying work incentives.
Panelists:
- Ramsey Alwin, Director, AARP Thought Leadership
- Rick Guzzo, Partner & Co-Founder, Mercer Workforce Sciences Institute
- Moderated by: Richard Eisenberg, Managing Editor, Next Avenue
Download Rick Guzzo's presentation
[7/8] Connections Among Colorado Nonprofits
Colorado nonprofits showcase their efforts in providing resources for older adults in the workplace. Through workshops, webinars, and training, these groups discuss age-friendly initiatives around life-long learning and upskilling. Nonprofits also promote the need to change the narrative on aging and ageism. Creating a more inclusive workforce that both thinks and speaks positively of older workers will set the stage for an age-friendly Colorado.
Speakers:
- Karen Brown, Director, Changing the Narrative Age-Friendly Workplace Initiative; CO Strategic Action Planning Group on Aging
- Khristine Rogers, State Director, Senior Planet & Older Adults Technology Services (OATS)
- Janine Vanderburg, Director & Chief Catalyst, Changing the Narrative
- Moderated by: Catherine Collinson, CEO and President, Transamerica Institute
[8/8] Colorado Age-Friendly State Policies and Program
Colorado is on the forefront of innovative programs and policies to support experienced employees in the workforce. A panel of experts discuss how several state agencies are working together to envision and support the future of work. Topics range from integrating rural communities, attracting experienced employees to workforce development centers, guiding public-private partnerships, educating employers and helping them integrate best practices, to debunking myths about experienced employees.
Speakers:
- Kelly Folks, Director, Arapahoe/Douglas Works!
- Dr. Christian Itin, CO Strategic Action Planning Group on Aging (SAPGA)
- Katherine Keegan, Director, CO Office of the Future of Work
- Moderated by Janice Blanchard, Senior Policy Advisor, Office of Governor Polis