old vs young managers
Lorraine is 46 and was retrenched from a managerial position after mentoring a new graduate recruit – a young woman who took Lorraine’s position under a new job description – and she cannot understand why any company believes a young manager is better than an older one."It see it as a great loss to companies, society and individuals if corporations start a movement to replace senior mentors with young graduates,” says Lorraine. "A young recruit might be able to suck a mentor's brains, but that person just does not have the maturity and experience to use what he or she has learned in any constructive way as a manager."
"It takes years and years of practice to get something right," says Lorraine, “and while I am sorry to have lost my position, I am sorrier for the company and my former senior colleagues who are faced with a similar fate as mine.”
"I appreciate that it's not much good telling people this when they feel threatened by a new recruit at work," says Lorraine. "The trick is to get management to accept the benefits of retaining older managers and make sure a mentor protection scheme is operating."
"If you lose your job like I have because you mentored the young woman who replaced you," says Lorraine, "then you have every right to feel bitter."
"The prospects out there for older women managers are not good at all. I will get another job, eventually, but it is likely to be at a much lower level than my previous job - and paying much less, too."
"At a time in my life when I need to save for retirement this situation is so unfair," sighs Lorraine, "and so unnecessary because sooner or later companies will need to acknowledge that young managers are not as effective as tried and true older managers."
Read more about Lorraine:
<< Home