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20 - Managing Employees across the Working Lifespan

from Part III - Implications for Talent Management and Impact on Employees

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 April 2020

By
Cort W. Rudolph  and
Hannes Zacher
Edited by
Brian J. Hoffman ,
Mindy K. Shoss  and
Lauren A. Wegman
Brian J. Hoffman
Affiliation:
University of Georgia
Mindy K. Shoss
Affiliation:
University of Central Florida
Lauren A. Wegman
Affiliation:
University of Georgia
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Summary

As the workforce ages, and becomes increasingly age diverse, it is important to consider how to best manage employees across the working lifespan. In this chapter, we consider how seven axioms of the lifespan developmental theoretical perspective could be applied to this end. The lifespan developmental perspective is a metatheoretical framework, which integrates a variety of specific theories of human development and aging. We argue that the lifespan perspective is an ideal framework for understanding how to best manage an aging workforce. In particular, this framework has advantages over other models for understanding this phenomenon, namely the generational perspective. We offer a number of practical recommendations for integrating the lifespan perspective into the broader discourse on the changing nature of work, and into discussions regarding the aging workforce, specifically. Finally, we conclude with some thoughts on the notion of age management, and discuss implications of this framework for future inquiry and practice.

Keywords

ageaginglifespandevelopmentage management
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Handbook of the Changing Nature of Work , pp. 425 - 445
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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