My last article, Busted, Age Discrimination Reveal I gave two
examples of reverse age discrimination. As a short refresher, I was
working two searches for two different companies. In both case they
selected the older more experienced people, over the younger candidates
with less experience. These were both very senior level positions and
even the younger candidates had 20+ years experience. The older
candidates had 30+ years experience.
So if age
discrimination is so wide spread, one has to ask themselves, How could
this happen in two completely different companies and for two
completely different positions?
Regardless
of your viewpoint as to the extent of age discrimination what is clear
there are a few things you can do to help minimize it.
I firmly believe there were two major contributing factors that came together:
- Position level: These were very senior positions and
the two older candidates were not only highly qualified, but were not
taking a step backwards. I am approached on almost a weekly basis by
candidates claiming to be qualified for a search Im doing. Yet, when
I read their resume it is true they are qualified, however they are
over-qualified. For example, a CFO willing to accept a Controller
position, a VP Sales interested in a Sales Manager, a CEO interested in
a VP level job. Im not saying they couldnt do the job Im working to
fill. In fact, most have done the job 5 or 10 years ago. Recruiters are
looking for someone who has done the job 5 or 10 years ago. They were
qualified 5 or 10 years ago. They arent qualified today. - Presentation: In what I believe is one of the most
important blog articles for candidates to not only understand, but to
actively implement into their job search was, The Three Most Important
Words In A Job Search. A job search is all about the presentation. At
the end of the day, the one that makes the best presentation usually
wins. Couple a great presentation with extraordinary experiences or
qualifications and you have a winner every time. So then what is a
great presentation. The most common complaint, feedback, comment or
whatever else one wants to call it for those older candidates is, They
seem like they just want a place to ride out until they retire. or
They come across as just needing a job. Generally, due to a poor
presentation. Some thoughts- If you look old you will be discriminated against. I am not known
for my tact and political correctness. Dont kill the messenger. This
is a fact like it or not. In our job search workbook we talk about the
4 As required to get a job. Appearance is one of them. These were
given to me by a VP Human Resources at Rockwell. If you dont know the
4 As or know them but arent doing them you can get them for free,
just pay the $5 shipping charge. The candidates that were hired, no one
knew their correct age. They all presented themselves extremely well. - Energy/Enthusiasm. Too often candidates come across burned out,
desperate or tired. Their body language even communicates this. The
problem is most candidates think they can mask this. FEW CAN. So few
that it would be inappropriate to assume you are one of the few. I know
you all know this. However, demonstrating these during an interview is
a completely different thing. So if you know this, How are you
demonstrating these? Have you tested your demonstration to a
non-biased (i.e. not your spouse or neighbor) person? If you havent
tested this too ensure you are sending the right energy then you may
have a problem. Again, everyone of the candidates hired, the hiring
manager never questioned their energy or if
, they were just looking
for a place to retire.
Granted
there are a lot of other things one can do to help reduce of
discrimination. Im not suggesting these are the only two. Im just
suggesting these are the two most common I encounter.
If you think
you have been discriminated against then the best way to avoid this in
the future is to ensure you dont fall into one of these categories.
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