First, let me share some good news. Despite wars, economic upheavals and climate changes, global life expectancy has increased markedly over the past 70 years, from 45.7 years in 1950 to 72.6 years in 2019. Even with the drop caused by COVID-19, we are still outliving our parents and grandparents by a significant margin.

Today, living into the 90s or even the 100s is more likely than ever before, particularly with a commitment to making healthy life choices, to say nothing of large-scale improvements in healthcare, sustainability and infrastructure that also increase longevity at the societal level. The 50s, back in the day, were considered the sunset years of our careers. Professional advancement, learning new skills and challenging ourselves with engaging projects all seemed far less important when the goal was to coast for a few more years until punch-out time. Now, many of us extend our careers into our 60s or even 70s. We may do this out of a need for extra income in our later years, to evade boredom or because we simply enjoy the work too much to leave. Personally, I enjoy the chance to continuously learn and contribute within my field. Given this added career length, coasting is, for many people, no longer feasible or desirable. One thing that sometimes cows even seasoned, talented executives is the sense of working alongside people who are much younger than they are, in some cases, closer in age to their own children.

How is it possible to stay relevant and valued as a 50-something in a workplace dominated by young, energetic, digitally-savvy 20-something peers? For Human Resources in big corporations, it’s important to think about age gaps in a strategic way. If a company is hiring 20-somethings purely to save a buck on salaries, they’ve effectively chosen to participate in a race to the bottom. These departments need to look, instead, at hiring the right candidate, taking into account values, attitude and, perhaps most important, experience. A superficial perception of “fit with company culture” that is actually hidden ageism is not only unethical but will result in companies losing a significant competitive advantage. Rather than feeling intimidated by the youth or vitality or........

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