Transnational Meeting Toward Companies for All Ages : State of Implementation ARETE – ARACT (IDF) - CGPME

2 Introduction Leading research in various companies Large companies (Arete) Engaged in 5 research studies of large companies Entry of a new member to our team Small companies (Aract-Cgpme) Sample of small and medium-sized companies Adjustment of methodology Research already engaged First observation in small companies

3 Research Leads in Large Companies (1/6) Insurance sector : observation 1 (x) Dominant theme : motivation Context : Mergers with other insurance companies Information systems always changing Company strategies : developing the front office No management of career and motivation problems Employees should progress from technicians to salesmen Salesmen require specific skills and qualifications Too few opportunities for building career bridges Reflections : For employees, early retirement remains the central issue of their individual career plan Only possible action : adopt a training plan for conversion In case of conversion, experience of technician is completely lost Opportunity for action is limited by the very nature of activity

4 Research Leads in Large Companies (2/6) Insurance sector : observation 2 (xx) Dominant theme : exchange of skills between younger and older employees Context : Insurance company directly approaches the customers and created a call center with internal resources The company has converted technicians (middle-aged) to client relationship positions. The task requires both technician and client relationship know-how. The elderly converted became technical references; the younger employees teach computer skills Reflections : Young and elderly workers are in a win-win situation Problem of classification for elderly people : after significant training, their skills improve but their classification does not. The activity level of their work is not very high

5 Research Leads in Large Companies (3/6) Banking sector : observation 3 (xxx) Dominant theme : nature of contributions from elderly workers Context : Bank decided to create a call center dedicated to clients who call local bank offices Most workers are young or come from the back office Processes of the call center do not require high technical expertise Conversion process required significant effort Reflections : Paradox: quality/quantity between young and elderly workers Some of the experience of elderly workers is not useful any more Individual results are delivered each day. Individual results are correlated to variable pay; workers can compare results. The elderly workers are the ones who know the clients demands and the needs of each agency.

6 Research Leads in Large Companies (4/6) Banking sector : observation 4 (xxxx) Dominant thematic : training and self-observation of employees Context : Merger of information systems ; Updating of tools Centralisation of back office which causes reconversions Strong need of «intermediary» between clients and hardware Action : personal training for technicians to convert them to client relationship positions (3 months of training) Reflections : The main purpose of the training is to build self-confidence in people and make them feel useful in the new structure It appears useful to introduce workers to a lifelong learning process in order to help them see themselves as mobile and able to learn new skills Not utilizing a skill can be very difficult for workers ; personal training facilitates transitions.

7 Research Leads in Large Companies (5/6) Distribution sector : observation 5 (xxxxx) Dominant theme : motivation and salary Context : A large store in central Paris Except for physical work, age does not seem to be related to skills obsolescence for employees No recent information technology in the store Client seems to prefer older and more experienced salesmen The store has recently changed their variable pay system Reflections : Workers always compare their own pay before and after it changes : reductions in variable pay clearly decrease their motivation

8 Research Leads in Large Companies (6/6) Opportunity : Observation of large-scale reconversions at France Telecom General Reflections : Until recently, many courses of action were blocked (in anticipation of government regulation) Concerning age measures or best practices, we have mostly observed reconversions of employees Managers have become preoccupied with the new obligations they now have to keep elderly workers employed

9 New integration in our team (1/2) Addition of a searcher to the work team R. Monti (CNAM) has worked extensively with insurance companies and the Army for 3 years She has used a specific type of analysis : science of management She has used a pragmatic methodology to work on this subject She delivered key results and modified the skill assessment of these companies

10 New integration in our team (2/2) 2 Working Assumptions : Age is subordinated to other decisions concerning management, training, motivation, professional growth A real politic for age must be coordinated and integrated to the company objectives 2 Goals of the Study Group First goal : observe the state of the art concerning age in the company Second goal : build a prospective model for the best integration of these employees

11 Panel of SMES (1/1) Preliminary contacts On a total of 12 SMES : 3 companies don’t fit because they don’t have enough workers, 2 because their population does not correspond to the criteria 2 companies are not ready yet We met 5 companies Criteria Different age groups among the work force Formal and unformal practices in the management of ages An interest for the subject, a wish to share experiences with other companies in the same territory

12 Methodology for SMES (1/2) Adjustment of the methodology We decide to carry out a pre-survey because of the small size of the panel and the fact that it is a very mixed group. The aims of this pre-survey are : To study more precisely the hypothesis according to the characteristics of the SMES visited To identify and to specify the distinctive investigation areas of the SMES

13 for SMES Methodology for SMES (2/2) Data collection Individual and collective interviews Top manager and workers/employees representatives Middle management and workers/employees Company doctor Criteria to choose interviewees Age and experience Activity / functions Changes in the company and curriculum

14 Engaged actions in SMES (1/1) A golf A communication agency An export consulting firm An electronics company An industrial risks consulting firm

15 Practices to explore Age in the recruitment policy Age in the choice of the managers Age in setting up and managing the teams Age in professionnal relations Questions How are the parameters ? age/experience/expertise/new competences combined ? What is their impact on the teams composition? How are the competences of the workers built along their occupationnal life ? The health factor and the impact of the working conditions First observations in SMES (1/2)

16 First observations (SMES) (2/2) Remarks To each prejudice corresponds a counter-prejudice, practices deny representations Relativism of the age notion Experience and age : a useful confusion Age : the last criterion to use A management according to the situation wich makes modelling good practices difficult

17 Conclusion A research at the first step of observation Reflections : «Ideal best practices» do not really exist ; various solutions seem to be adapted for each firm (large or SMES) Two main conditions are needed in order to implement an «age» solution : The firm must have a course of action and must invest in training ; The firm must have a long-term prospective to make change possible