Middle and late career issuesMIDDLE CAREER YEARSThe middle career year has two major career/life tasks Confronting the midlife transition Remaining productive Confronting midlife transition:It involves reappraising ones accomplishment relative to ambitious and dreams and reexamining the importance of work in ones life. Midlife employees have learnt to deal with stress produced by midlife transition.Midlife transition can be triggered by a number of experiences: Fear of lost youth Missed opportunity Awareness of aging and morality Failure to accomplish significant dreams Inability to achieve an acceptable balance between work life commitmentTechnical and managerial obsolescence are common among mid career employees. In addition, many highly successful and mobile employees experience feeling of personal failure at midlife, reflecting the guilt and regret over having scarified family relationship and other affiliation in the ambitious pursuit of career success. Midlife crisi is universally experienced.Remaining productive: (growth, maintenance and strategies) Two midcareer experiences, Plateauing and obsolescence, can effect midcareer productivity and trigger feelings of stress.Career plateau According to Byars & Rue, 2006 Career plateau is; The point in a career where the likelihood of additional hierarchical promotion is very low.Why is plateauing such a universal experience? Organizations provide fewer and fewer positions at higher levels of the hierarchy. There is competition for these few (higher) positions Organization growing slowly, not growing at all Virtually eliminating the mandatory retirements Change in technology may closed certain career paths or open new paths for which employees are not prepared Employees more likely plateau because they though its more valuable in their present position, lack technical and managerial skill to advance furtherCareer plateau can be classified as position plateau and contribution plateau. Position plateau occurs when there is limited or no upward movement within the organization possibly due to lack of opportunities within the organization. On the other hand, contribution plateau occurs when there is stagnation in one's personal development and growth. Here, there is no further development of one's skills and abilities. It is believed that position plateau can happen to every employee and does not necessarily mean absence of skills. On the other hand, contribution plateau happen to specific individuals only and is incompetent due to lack of skills. An employee can be personally plateaued or organizationally plateaued. Plateauing becomes dysfunctional when the employee feels stuck in a job that offers no potential for personal growthConsequences:Plateaued employees may become angry, frustrated, bored, stagnant, less involved and motivated in their work. Ultimately effect on performance and cause a decline in the performance in the organization.There are four principal career categories: Learners. Individuals in an organization who have a high potential for advancement but are performing below standard (e.g., a new trainee). Stars. Individuals in an organization who are presently doing outstanding work and have a high potential for continued advancement. Solid citizens. Individuals in an organization whose present performance is satisfactory but whose chance for future advancement is small. Deadwood. Individuals in an organization whose present performance has fallen to an unsatisfactory level and who have little potential for advancement.Naturally, organizations would like to have all stars and solid citizens. The challenge, however, is to transform the learners into stars or solid citizens and keep the current stars and solid citizens from slipping into the deadwood category. Furthermore, there is a tendency to overlook solid citizens. The learners, stars, and deadwood usually get most of the attention in terms of development programs and stimulating assignments. Neglect of the solid citizens may result in their slipping into the deadwood category.Obsolescence: Obsolescence a reduction in an employees competence resulting from a lack of knowledge of new work processes, techniques, and technologies that have developed since the employee completed her education Not just a concern of technical and professional occupations all employees are at risk Obsolescence needs to be avoided if companies are trying to become learning organizations Additional Steps to Avoid Obsolescence Provide employees with the opportunity to exchange information and ideas Give employees challenging job assignments early in their careers Provide job assignments that challenge employees and require them to stretch their skills Provide rewards for updating behaviors, suggestions, and innovations Allow employees to: attend professional conferences subscribe to professional journals and magazines enroll in university, technical school, or community college courses at low or no cost Encourage employees to interact in person or electronically to discuss problems and new ideasMidcareer change:Career change has been viewed as movement into a different occupation that is not a part of a typical career path. Career routine is a cycle of common, ongoing behavior that develops through earlier experiences of psychological success. Reasons to make career changes:Individual factors: Individual factors include dissatisfied with current occupation, Need for greater achievement & contribution, ones age, health, interest, values and alteration in family relationships. Environmental factors:Environmental factors includes loss of ones job, change in technology, economies forces, corporate restructuring/ downsizing, changes in reward system, increase job demands, and other issues.Healthy reasons for changing careers during midlife years: Reaching a career plateau Becoming obsolescent Becoming bored Feeling underused being in a position for which one is under qualified Recognizing that the original occupational choice was inappropriate Wrong reasons: Dissatisfied with oneself as a person Depression Anxiety over feeling of morality Over evaluation of ones own competence and worth Intense competition for status with friendsObstacles to career change: Financial (salary cut, loss of income in a new business) Time related (time required to train for a different business) Psychological (uncertainty and insecurity about becoming competent in different field) ORGANIZATIONAL ACTION DURING MIDCAREERHelp employees to understand mid career experiences Top official, must first appreciate the issue facing midcareer employees Avoid overreacting to employees Develop useful programs Develop interpersonal relationship with those party who is in midcareer Educate organizational member in midcareer through seminar, workshop, supports group.When employees understand that they are experiencing natural then they can deal it more effectively. If they are fail to understand this situation then doubt and frustration my produce. Provide expended and flexible mobility opportunity: Because of few opportunity of promotion during midcareer, job rotation and job enlargement also lateral moves can be used to keep plateaued employees stimulated, challenged and motivated. Downward mobility can be effective when new, lower position demand more skills, talents those currently employee doesnt have.Utilization of current job:Midcareer employee may improve the current job by building in more variety, challenge and responsibility. Take participation in task forces, project teams. One factor that improves the work experience of solid citizen is the presence of accurate job duties and performance objectives.Encourage and teach mentoring skills:Midcareer employees have broader experience and particularly fit as a mentor younger colleague. Special lecture and group discussion on midcareer issue can be developed to accomplish this also midcareer employees need training on how to coach, counsel and provide feedback. Training and continuing education:Organization must support and endorse continuing education, participation in such activities is often discouraged and unrewarded by individual supervisors. One significant function of continuing education is preparing midcareer employees who wish to engage in a career change. Job rotation and continual job challenge are the most effective deterrents to obsolescence. Organization should encourage their surplus mangers to take early retirement. Broaden the reward system: Instead of focusing on promotion and compensation as an incentive for effective performance, alternative reward should be considered. Organization should also maintain the effectiveness of employees experiencing midcareer plateaus.INDIVIDUAL ACTIONS DURING MIDCAREERSelf assessment is critical in midcareer. Specifically, individuals should conduct periodic self assessments and reappraisals to determine whether their interest, values, and skills are in line ith their established goals and plans.Reflection of midcareer change: Impact of the change on their family Risk of severing relationships with friends and colleague in current organization Possibility of reduced status in community Time require to build reputation in a new field Possibility of experiencing psychological depression for some time.Dealing with job loss: Companies that lay off employees can experience lowered job commitment, distrust of management, and difficulties recruiting new employees. Job loss causes stress and disrupts the personal lives of laid-off employees.In the midlife job loss may create the self doubt, and arise some questions related to ones competences, also faces some financial and marriage strains.Reasons of termination: Poor job performance Corporate wide downsizing Unfavorable financial and economically conditions faced by company Violation of company policy Some unethical behavior Outcomes of job loss:Job ones loss becomes the causes of reduce the happiness, self esteem, increase depression, anxiety, death rates, suicide, mental and psychological illness.Responses towards job loss: Individual has experience four types of initial responses to loss of the job. Sense of shock and disbelief (individual assume job loss wont happen to them) Anger at the company and its management Sense of relief (uncertainty and stress of potential termination is finally lifted) Sign of escapism (display little or no emotions)To minimize the negative consequences of the job ones loss organization should follow some suggestions offered by Harold Kaufman like: Treat the employees with dignity and respect Choose private place for dismissal Time the dismissal to maximize the degree of emotional support the employee can receive from family and friends Dont end the dismissal session prematurely LATE CAREERThe primary tasks of the late career are to remaining productive, and to prepare for effective retirementProductivity:Remaining productivity is important to the late career employee. There are several obstacles to remaining productivity during the late career like rapid change in technology and older worker has limited education and skills. Effect of midlife career plateaued is negative on the performance of late career employees.To prevent the obstacles to remaining productivity during the late career do some things like; Older workers should receive the training they need to avoid skill obsolescence and to be prepared to use new technology Older employees need resources and referral help that addresses long-term care and elder care Flexibility in scheduling to allow for care of sick spouses, return to school, travel, or reduced work hours Assessment and counseling to help older workers recycle to new jobs or careers, or Transition to less secure positions whose responsibilities are not as clearly outlined Companies need to ensure that employees do not hold inappropriate stereotypes about older employeesPreparation for retirement:Because of part time positions and change in attitude it is difficult to determine actually age of retirement. Retirees can be differentiated from non retirees based on the following: Retirees tend be older Age is more than 50 years Less of their time working for payAttitude toward work: Leave the work role may be leaving behind a part of oneself Work provide the feeling of usefulness and purposeful Work provide the opportunity to fulfill basic needs for affiliation, achievement, power and prestige Work also provide financial rewardPreference towards or against retirement vary from person to person on the bases of health, work, and personality. Government and organization polices, employee background, attitudes and social circumstances affect the decision to retire. ORGANZIATION ACTION DURING LATE CAREERPerformance standard and feedback:Clear standards of effective performance should be developed and also communicate the old employees. In case of poor productivity and performance should be stated in clear behavioral term about the consequences of ineffective performance and option to improve the performance. Education and job restriction:Ongoing learning opportunities, through integrating to stimulating, responsible job assignment and continuing education can play a major role in the revitalization of the late career employee.Organization should develop a model for combating the obsolescence Training need assessment Training for upgrading the skills Evaluate and review the training effectiveness Long range planning to identify future retraining needs. Development of retirement planning program: Retirement planning program should be focus on both intrinsic and extrinsic aspect of retirement Program should be run in two way communication and provide opportunity for counseling Program should begin at least 5 years prior to anticipate retirement to allow adequate time to address all issue Previously retire person can be use as a information resources Spouse participation in retirement planning program can be beneficial and should be encouraged Special retirement plan should be offer for strongly committed employees Establishment of flexible work patterns:Many organizations prefer that the more competent adaptable late career employees continue working beyond normal retirement age and that others take early retirement. A system of flexible work patterns may enable both of these aims to be met. Organization encourage the less talented to take early retirement. To avoid costly litigation, companies need to make sure that their early retirement programs contain the following features: The program is part of the employee benefit plan The company can justify age-related distinctions for eligibility for early retirement Employees are allowed to voluntarily choose early retirement

INDIVIDUAL ACTIONS DURING LATE CAREER:Pre retirees are encouraged to gather relevant information about their: Psychological aspects of retirement Housing (i.e., transportation, costs, proximity to medical care) Financial planning, insurance, and investments Health care plans Estate planning The collection of benefits from company plans and Social Security

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