It has been hard to escape media attention on the mass retirement of Baby Boomers from the workforce. However, despite the alarms that have been going off for well over a decade, many employers have not taken the steps to prepare their companies for the impact. Is your company ready to deal with the impending IT retirement boom?

The Loss of Boomers Will Create a Knowledge Gap

According to research by AARP and the Society for Human Resource Management, 72% of HR professionals say that the loss of skilled talent to retirement will present a problem for their organization. Despite that fact, 71% of those same employers report not having conducted any type of workforce planning assessment to gauge the impact on their organizations.

When we think about the most skilled IT workers, we tend to think of young hotshots coming to the table with the hottest new skills. However, your seasoned veterans – who are typically leaders in your tech group – have built up a wealth of critical knowledge that young workers do not possess. Transferring that knowledge is critical for long-term success, and employers need to start working on that transfer now because once it’s gone, it’s gone.

How to Get Your Company Ready for the IT Retirement Boom

What should you be doing to prepare for the loss of seasoned talent on your technical team? Companies that have taken proactive measures have leveraged a variety of tactics that include:

• Ongoing internal training and cross-training.
• Mentoring and informal apprenticeship programs that match young talent with veteran talent.
• Job sharing.
• Succession planning.
• Hiring retired employees as consultants.
• Creating part-time positions to retain seasoned staff.

The right mix of tactics will vary from organization to organization, but successful companies use a two-pronged approach. They have developed programs to retain veteran talent in some capacity and they have focused on building their pipeline with younger talent who have the capacity to learn and grow.

Whatever strategy you use, it pays to focus on long-term recruiting, hiring and retention strategies today, to ensure you do not suffer from lack of skills or knowledge down the line.

Are You Ready to Build Your IT Talent Pipeline?

At PEAK Technical Consulting, we have a proven track record of helping employers build a talent pipeline and overcome some of their biggest IT hiring challenges. If you are ready to strategize solutions for impending retirements,  we invite you to contact us today to learn more about the ways we can help you find the skilled professionals you need.