The requests created by a shortage of qualified IT workers and the rapid pace of change caused by technological progress will force older workers to improve their technological skills while businesses seek to remain competitive by completing the gaps in skills.
At Skillable, which offers a web training platform with practical virtual laboratories and a real-time score, the founder and executive president Corey Hynes said there were two questions that employers must ask when they provide for Reskill or set up older workers.
“First, how do you make sure that your current elderly workers are able to remain employable and productive in the increasingly digitized future?” Said Hynes. “Second, how do you attract” non-retired “that can come back to a very different digital workplace?”
Hynes said that the challenge is to guarantee that today’s older workers have the skills for the digital tasks they need to perform daily while preparing for emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain, robotics and other advanced technologies.
“At a basic level, however, each worker, whatever his age, must know how to work alongside the digital transformation that his workplace has implemented,” said Hynes. “It may be a new digital means of managing documents, data analysis, automation and robotics, cloud computing, etc.
The growing longevity, the low birth rate and an increasing number of elderly people who want to work longer have created a paradigm change through global workforce.
Countries like France and Great Britain have increased their retirement age. A Bath & Company Bath Report says that in 2031, Japanese employees aged 55 and over will represent almost 40% of the workforce. In China, the number of adults 65 and over will double by 2050.
In recent decades, the Americans have delayed their retirement plans. According to Gallup, in 1991, American retirees, on average, retired at 57 years old. Currently, the average age reported by retirement is 61 years.
As inflation rises and older workers realize that they have not saved enough for retirement, many are forced to continue to win a payroll. To get the most out of the last decades of their professional life, many older employees acquire skills in areas such as automatic learning, cybersecurity, cloud management and data analysis.
Based on interviews with more than 40,000 employees in 19 countries, the bathing report notes that almost a quarter of those questioned, 22% in the age group of 55 to 64, said they needed More technological skills.
At Racera, a global online learning platform, the director of learning, Trena Minudri, said that some older workers have stability and maturity to stabilize the workplace and supervise younger colleagues in period of rapid technological change.
“Human skills such as critical thinking, organizational context and leadership that many elderly workers have become more and more important in an AI -focused world,” said Minudri.
To exploit the talents of older workers as well as to develop their IT skills, Racera provides 40 professional entry -level certificates designed by leading companies such as Google, IBM and Microsoft for people without university degree or previous experience in a particular area.
Minudri said that these industry micro-creedities are preparing workers for well-paid entry-level jobs in fields such as IT support, cybersecurity and software development. Each certificate program takes around six months to be completed during part -time learning at 10 hours per week.
“These references are particularly suitable for people who seek to start or change their careers, or employers who seek employees to Reskill in impacted roles. For older workers with more professional experience in a relevant role, they can offer An acceleration to a career change or a career progression, “she added.
Racera estimates that in last year, more than 10% of registrations for American learners over 50 have taken courses related to IT skills.
For those who design a computer learning program for the elderly, Minudri suggests that they should:
* Use a multimodel approach that incorporates peer learning. Many older workers are used to learning in a classroom, not on a computer. A mixed approach that incorporates online learning, peer learning and practical experience is often the most effective.
* Put the accent on relevance. Offer the learners opportunities to practice their new skills and apply them in real world scenarios. Elderly workers often want to acquire skills that they can apply to their current work or career objectives.
* Provide support and comments to keep the learners motivated and committed. New technologies can be intimidating for anyone, but especially for elderly workers. It is important that the training program offers a welcoming environment where learners feel safe to ask questions, discuss ideas, make mistakes and learn at their own pace.
Minudri has also suggested that IT IT training should “offer continuous support, coaching and comments to help older learners adapt and master new skills.
On the recruitment side, RocketPower, a talent management company based in San Francisco, works with their customers to understand their learning and development opportunities.
“Career development opportunities are an essential factor in terms of choice to join a new business,” said Tommy Jenkins, Vice-President of RocketPower recruitment. “Older workers with IT skills want to know who companies work with? What technologies will they use? What new technologies will learn? And is there a capacity for learning and time to learn these Technologies? “
Jenkins added that companies assess if they will train workers according to the question of whether an investment in training will bring workers to the point where they can add value. Likewise, older candidates want to know if a company will invest in its training to allow them to do the work.
“The candidates ask if they will receive computer training, and this is something we ask our customers,” said Jenkins. “If companies say yes, this is information that we can use to convince older job seekers to move on to a new opportunity.”
Nicole Lewis is an independent journalist based in Miami.