Benefits of having an age diversity in the workplace

Each generation contributes its own set of talents to your company. Although younger employees may possess a stronger understanding of technology, older employees may possess superior interpersonal abilities. Combining these abilities by having an age diversity in the workplace significantly improves your organization as a whole.

It can help reduce employee turnover

Employee turnover is reduced as a result of enhanced performance and productivity, which is a significant benefit. It has also been noted that workers over the age of 55 can contribute to decreased turnover because they are loyal employees who tend to stay in their positions for a longer period than younger employees. Employers benefit from decreased turnover expenses as well as more highly skilled and experienced staff.

Amber Morland, CEO, and Founder of WinCope

Boosts performance and productivity

Age diversity in the workplace can boost the overall performance of a business. In addition, studies have shown that organizations with mixed-age work teams have increased productivity among both older and younger employees. Furthermore, when groups are involved in difficult decision-making activities, age diversity within work teams is favorably connected to performance.

Adam Fard, Founder and Head Of Design at Adam Fard’ UX Agency

It increases the demand on a global basis

From my experience, age variety is vital in meeting customer requests and increasing efficiency. An organization with a diversified skill set and expertise is better able to address the needs of individuals of all ages. This enables the company to fulfill demand and provide service on a worldwide scale.

As they have more matured experience as well as the young potential to turn risks into possibilities, organizations with age-diverse employees will have more courage to perform a procedure. This will allow the company to make more money, expand its business, and execute its plans more quickly.

Bradley Bonnen, Founder and CEO of iFlooded Restoration

Making better decisions

Discrimination based on age is widespread, and that’s a shame. Having a mix of ages among workers provides several benefits, including cognitive diversity leading to better decision making. Although abstract reasoning may decline with age, experiential knowledge rises.

Studies show that employees who are part of a mixed-age work environment are likely to be more motivated and satisfied in their jobs. Considering these benefits, why wouldn’t you leverage the advantages of having age diversity in your workplace?

Ryan Stewart, Founder of Webris

It can produce the most innovation

One of the biggest benefits of having age diversity in the workplace is the fact that diversity of experience is often what can produce the most innovation. Much can be said about the importance of racial and gender diversity, but age can be important as well.

People who lived and worked before much of our modern technology were ubiquitous possess certain skills and intuition that the younger generation hasn’t had to cultivate. Connecting dots between a wider set of skills and experiences is shown to lead teams to better decisions and more profit for companies.

Nikki Gonzales, Head of Growth and Partnerships at Quotebeam

Skills diversity

Maintaining a workforce with various talents and competencies, with people capable of working in conventional forms and those able to see beyond those forms into a new market and technical paradigms, is the only way to remain competitive in the global market. Older workers can teach new workers existing skills, while younger workers can teach older workers new technology.

Ken Olling, Co-Founder and Chairman of MELD

Different perspectives

One of the biggest benefits of age diversity in the workplace is getting different perspectives, which ultimately drives innovation. For instance, each generation brings their own experiences and point of view. These different perspectives become a source of innovation, and harboring their strengths often fosters creative and out-of-the-box ideas.

Arvind Patil, Country Manager at Selectra

The downside of having age diversity in the workplace

However, some companies still refrain from maintaining age diversity in their workplace, due to the challenges they have to overcome. Although the benefits exceed these challenges it’s good to be aware of them before they become a problem and create a toxic work environment.

Seniority in the workplace

Older employees are experienced but tend to ask for seniority. They have a solid knowledge base in their career that is vital for business growth. They can be difficult to work with if they deem the younger ones unworthy or if they feel threatened. However, it can be remedied by transforming your work culture and let senior managers lead an example.

James Idayi, CEO of Cloudzat

Lack of communication

A lack of proper communication is a potential challenge that age diversity in the workplace brings. The younger members of the workforce feel that they are overshadowed by the achievements and experiences of their senior coworkers. So they feel that their opinion or ideas may not be given as much importance.

This leads them to keep to themselves and resentment forming over time. The older generation on the other hand has more of an ego issue. They don’t think they are answerable to those younger than them or that the ‘young ones’ could have better ideas or solutions than them. This creates a rift in the workplace which eventually brings down productivity if left unattended.

Bradley Stevens, CEO at LLC Formations

Conclusion

Age diversity in the workplace brings value to your business, so as an business owner easier it is important to be aware of the benefits of that age diversity brings in the workplace. The key thing when it comes to dealing with age diversity in the workplace is starting to address it heads on. Start small and make everyone feel included. This can be initiated by identifying one common goal and shifting attention to the goal rather than the differences.

Once the members of various generations begin to work together and concentrate on the goal, the divisions between their generations stop being the focal point, which will make the cons of age diversity in the workplace negligible. When everyone is on the same page it’s easier to recognize the strengths of colleagues from different generations and how those strengths support the company goal and offer aspects to the project that another generation does not have.

8 negative effects of social media in the workflow you must be aware of

If you are aiming to create a place that your employees will love to work at and be a good boss, pay attention to any of the following negative effects of social media in the workplace. If you detect some of it, act accordingly so you can solve the problem and move on without consequences. 

Reduced productivity at work

In my opinion, the most negative effect of social media in the workplace is that it kills your time and reduces productivity. People who use social media during working hours don’t even realize the amount of time they waste on social media and count that in the total working hours.

This leads to dissatisfaction and disappointment which further affects their morale, decreasing their productivity. Therefore, the managers need to have strong regulating policies around the use of social media to avoid getting the employees trapped in this vicious circle.

Jabez Reuben, Owner at The Blueprints 

Negative impact on mental health

You can see the carefully selected greatest portions of everyone else’s lives on social media, which you may compare to the terrible aspects of your own life. Comparing oneself to others is a surefire way to cause worry, and social media has made it much simpler. 

Miklos Zoltan, CEO at Privacy Affairs

Malicious malware and viruses

Some hackers are using social media to conduct fraud. Because of these online illegal activities, the company’s systems are vulnerable to malware. Some pop-up adverts or downloaded apps may include hidden viruses that might harm your company’s equipment and networks and even lead to a security breach. Furthermore, viruses and malware have the potential to corrupt important work-related files.

Stewart McGrenary, Director at Freedom Mobiles

Poor dopamine regulation

People who are addicted to social media become heavily dependent on their virtual activities for satisfaction and validation. Before you know it, your self-worth is measured in likes, and your importance to the rest of the world is measured in shares. A small event, such as your post going viral, might make you feel on top of the world, while an equally inconsequential occurrence, can make you feel impossibly low.

All of this points to psychological distress, which you should avoid allowing into your life. To summarise, assess the benefits and drawbacks of using social media at work and make an informed decision for yourself. A few minutes of virtual joy aren’t worth compromising your career development.

Ryan Dalal, CEO, and Founder of Merge PDF

Employees may vent their frustrations on social media

Many employees use social media daily, which firstly may be leading to a drop in productivity. Other issues may occur as a result of excessive usage of social media, which may influence the workplace. Firing a client or having employees who are dissatisfied with their jobs may vent their frustrations on social media. The harmful consequences might be felt almost instantly, so having a solution upfront is imperative. 

Damien Knight, CEO of Workever 

Social media is a tool for gossip and harras

I think social media at work is ultimately a net negative because of its potential for misuse as a tool to gossip and harass. Many employees take to non-work communication channels to denigrate coworkers and managers and it can end up being an HR nightmare.

I have seen an off-color comment in Facebook messenger that was left open on an employee’s work computer while they were in the break room, which was then seen by the coworker that was being slandered, brought to HR and result in a firing because the aggrieved employee threatened to take the comment public if the offender wasn’t let go.

Brett Welker, CEO at Crush the GRE Test

Increases jealousy and affects the relationship with your team

One of the most damaging negative effects of social media in the workplace is jealousy among employees. With social media, you can get the attention of lots of people in an instant or gain popularity. But the problem is, not all people on social media have what it takes to be popular. And in the workplace, seeing your co-worker gaining popularity will deliver a seed of jealousy in you and lead to toxic company culture.

When someone brags about expensive they bought stuff like jewelry, a new house, or a car, again jealousy is triggered. When it happens, lots of things will be affected. It will affect your relationships with that popular co-worker and a negative mood will be all over the workplace. 

Israel Gaudette, Founder of Link Tracker Pro 

Employees are branded as part of your company

There have been some mistakes made by people who don’t have much experience handling social media. These instances negatively affected the companies they worked for intensely. Such errors have led to a lot of controversies, and companies have gone through a lot of losses because of this. It only takes a few minutes to become viral, so make sure your social media is in good hands.

Rachel Klaver, Co-founder and Marketing Strategist of Identify Marketing

Conclusion

Social media is undoubtedly a part of our lives and as an employer, you don’t have the power to change that. However, what you can do is, approach the with a different mindset to minimize the negative effects of social media in the workplace. Be aware and be open to talk about your employees of the negative effects that social media brings to the workplace and approach each of them individually so you can make sure none of them is affecting your work environment negatively.

Diesel mechanics

The first sector to take a look at is the transportation industry. Specifically, we take a look at diesel mechanics. This is considered one of the backbones of commercial and industrial transportation. The reason is that they play a vital role in maintaining and repairing vehicles and equipment that are powered by diesel.

Those interested check out a diesel mechanic trade school that will give you hands-on experience and the tools you need to become successful in this career path. People like diesel mechanics will help keep America running, whether it’s keeping supply chains moving or transporting people from point A to point B with the help of public transportation.

Cyber specialists

 Many people are using smartphones, IoT tools, and so much more. While these are excellent modern-day conveniences, cyber threats can lurk around the corner.

For this reason, it is crucial to ensure that there are cybersecurity industry experts who can tackle the threats head-on. Technical educational programs focusing on this field should include but are not limited to, ethical hacking, data protection, and similar courses. This will allow those to become professionals in a continuously in-demand industry so they can create the solutions that will beat back any cyber criminal threat imaginable.

Renewable energy technicians

Sustainable energy is no longer considered a fringe idea. It’s becoming more mainstream than ever. Renewable energy sectors are booming because more people are turning to sustainable means. Technicians, including those who work on wind turbines, solar panels, and energy auditors, are in high demand in this industry.

Specialized technical training will show people how to install such appliances efficiently while maintaining and optimizing them accordingly. Renewable energy systems look to be the future of powering the entire world.

Robotics and automation experts

Robotics and automation are becoming more common across various industries. Manufacturing and healthcare are two of these industries that may rely on robotics, mechatronics, and automated systems.

As such, there are people who can operate and program these technological advancements to ensure that there are plenty of tasks that can be performed using robotics and automation—especially when there is a growing demand for skilled professionals.

Healthcare technology specialists

Another rapidly evolving industry is healthcare. One reason is that it is adopting advanced technologies to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to diagnosing, treating, and eventually curing injuries and illnesses.

Technical programs that focus on healthcare technology, biomedical engineering, and health informatics will be important, especially when there are certain jobs such as utilizing medical imaging, electronic health records, and telemedicine systems.

Data science and analytics

We now live in the era of big data. Numerous businesses across various industries rely on data to make critical decisions about business operations. However, data science is more challenging than people think.

That’s why professionals in the data science and analytics field can create solutions for machine learning, predictive analysis, and more. Not only will they be programming something to help non-tech-savvy people understand data, but it will also help them make data-driven decisions much easier.

Conclusion

These six emerging sectors will face high demand for the necessary roles. By acquiring a technical education, you can learn the skills and know-how needed to succeed in these sectors. If you love computers, go with cybersecurity.