While we are in the midst of a recession it might seem inappropriate to bring up the war for talent. But the market reality is this: even with overall unemployment rising, employers are still challenged to find the talent they need.

As many companies are discovering, while this labor market might be flooded with job seekers, that doesn’t necessarily mean they have the needed talent. In particular, companies can’t always find people with the exact skills and experience they need, when and where they need them. Today, it’s also not uncommon to hear executives express frustration about under-skilled, inexperienced, unproductive, and even unreliable employees who will quickly jump ship for another opportunity.

As you might expect from the generation that has had such a significant impact on our society throughout their lives, the Baby Boomers will also dominate this talent market discussion for the next decade.

How can this be? Aren’t the Boomers supposed to be retiring?

Well, let’s start with the fact that they are the single largest component of the U.S. workforce, so their effect is huge. Then, layer in the fact that with the economic downturn many leading-edge Boomers who under normal circumstances might now be retired (or nearing so) must continue working in order to replenish their battered retirement savings. Finally, we must recognize that the next generation (Gen X) is half the size of the Boomers and quite simply has not had enough time in the workforce to build up the same level of knowledge and experience.

The New War for Talent

Baby Boomers were born between 1946 and 1964, which means that today they are somewhere between the ages of 44 and 63. Many worked their way up the corporate ladder - they are happy to continue working in their area of expertise, where their wisdom and experience are valued. Others are choosing to embark on second, or “boomerang” careers.

The fact is, with their decimated retirement accounts many boomers can’t afford to retire. Others recognize that in addition to the monetary rewards they receive there are many psychic rewards from their careers, so they have no plans to ever retire.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that by 2010, more than 51% of the workforce is expected to be 40 or older, a 33% increase since 1980. The number of workers aged 55 and older will grow from 13% of the labor force in 2000 to 20% in 2020.

All of this is good news for employers because most companies are operating much leaner than ever before, and they need to cost-effectively find the most experienced, skilled people they can in order to achieve their objectives.

How to Leverage the Boomers

Now is the perfect time for organizations to assess their workforce. Strategic business owners and executives should evaluate their workforce demographics and the key positions within their organizations in order to identify current and projected talent gaps. It’s also time to develop programs that will strengthen knowledge retention and sharing throughout the company in preparation for the inevitable “brain-drain” that will occur when the Boomers exit the workforce.

How can employers retain the key knowledge and information that is resident in their workforce?

First, they must recognize who has the knowledge. If they want to hold onto Boomers they must adapt to their needs. Many forward thinking organizations are developing policies and programs geared towards recruiting, retaining, and training older workers. Key options that will help attract and retain these mature workers include flexible work arrangements (such as adjustable schedules and job sharing) and should also part-time or contingent employment options. Fortunately these types of work arrangements require lots of self-discipline and maturity, which the Boomers have in abundance!

Next, companies should institute mentoring programs to help train the next generation of knowledge workers and business leaders. Companies concerned about retaining institutional knowledge can’t afford to have their older employees walk out the door with a career worth of expertise and experience.

Finally, employers must have an honest dialogue with their seasoned team members to help them plan for the next phase of their careers. Companies that demonstrate loyalty towards their older employees by offering flexible employment options, will be rewarded with loyalty in return.

Conclusion - Experience Counts

Because of their proven talent, Baby Boomers will be in high demand for the balance of this decade and beyond. They add value not only to employers’ bottom lines but also to the long-term health of our workforce and our economy.

It is a phenomenon we see every day at M Squared Consulting. When clients want experienced business professionals, those seasoned experts who have translated their knowledge and insight into consulting expertise, they call us. Our talent-on-demand business model is an enabler for companies who need seasoned experts, focused on delivering results. We also enable seasoned experts, who no longer want a full-time role, to bring their expertise to market as consultants.

In the final analysis this whole discussion can be distilled down to two words: Experience counts!

I recently read an interesting excerpt of the book Strategy for Sustainability: A Business Manifesto, by Adam Werback.

In the book the author shares research from the emerging fields of biomechanics and biomimicry. In these disciplines scientists are decoding the rules of nature to help form businesses as strong and durable. The foundation of this research is the observation that nature is far harsher environment than any business market: If you are not sustainable, you die. There are generally no second chances in nature, and certainly no government bailouts!

Businesses that are capable of managing through the challenges dealt by a complex and ever-changing world are in a better position to respond strategically and assume leadership roles.

Here are the 10 rules identified in the book, along with my quick thoughts on how they apply to the business environment:

1. Diversify across generations. This is a similar concept to diversifying across clients and markets. There is strength in having a diversity of revenue streams.
2. Adapt to the changing environment - and specialize. There is a multiplying force that comes into play when an organization focuses its efforts. By identifying and constantly strengthening its competitive advantage a company grows stronger and becomes more sustainable.
3. Celebrate transparency. Every species knows which other species will eat it and which will not. Do you know your competition?
4. Plan and execute systematically, not compartmentally. Every part of a plant contributes to its growth. Can you say the same for your organization?
5. Form groups, and protect the young. Most animals travel in groups, which offer strength and efficacy. To succeed in business you must build a team and harness the power of your people. Communicate, collaborate, innovate!
6. Integrate metrics. Nature brings the right information to the right place at the right time. When a tree needs water, the leaves curl; when there is rain, the curled leaves move more water to the root system. What are the vital metrics for your business? How do you monitor and react to them?
7. Improve with each cycle. Evolution is the strategy for long-term survival. How will your business evolve?
8. Right-size regularly, rather than downsize occasionally. If an organism grows too big to support itself, it collapses. Business leaders must constantly ask if their organization is appropriately resourced.
9. Foster longevity, not immediate gratification. Nature does not buy on credit and uses its resources only to the level that they can be renewed. Are you building and growing your organization for the long run?
10. Waste nothing, recycle everything. Some of the greatest business opportunities in the 21^st century will be turning waste (including inefficiency and underutilization) into profit.

Businesses can realize great value from bringing in subject-matter experts to explore strategic and tactical opportunities. Sometimes these ideas are borne from new research like that presented above. Within the M Squared Consulting network we have experts with knowledge and experience across all the major business disciplines and industry segments. The average M Squared consultant has over fifteen years of professional experience and has been consulting for more than five. These seasoned business professionals are as adept at asking the tough questions as they are at determining the best answers for your organization - those solutions which will deliver bottom-line results.

Why do some people succeed far more than others?

This is the primary question asked by author Malcolm Gladwell in his book Outliers: The Story of Success.

The book argues that most people mistakenly believe that successful people are primarily products of a high intelligence and lots of talent. But there are many other variables at play, ranging from their date of birth, to their family’s cultural background, to sheer luck.

But the most important determinant is hard work. In the Chapter called “The 10,000 Hour Rule”, Gladwell states that it takes 10,000 hours to master a subject - no matter the skill, whether it be baseball, a musical instrument, or a computer programming language. There are no shortcuts to this. Hard work is the only proven way to achieve mastery.

As an example we have Bill Gates who easily invested 10,000 hours of computer time before he even reached college. This was in 1973, a time when most top universities didn’t even have computer labs. Before they became famous, The Beatles played at a nightclub in Germany for a couple of years, over 8 hours a day, 7 days a week. This meant they accumulated more live stage time (1,200 performances) in a couple years than most bands get in a lifetime.

In other words, they both took advantage of opportunities before them to earn their 10,000 hours of experience. Obviously, they also had the ambition and drive to actually complete those 10,000 hours. You might begin to wonder if “talent” is nothing more than loving something so much that you don’t mind spending endless hours doing it. Perfection of that skill is wonderful a by-product.

So to be extraordinarily successful, you need both a little luck and a lot of hard work. People can interpret these stories differently. The thing to remember is that between hard work and luck, you can control only one. Good luck is nothing more than a prepared mind meeting the right opportunity. To convert it you must seize that opportunity and take action.

If you don’t put in the hours, there is essentially zero chance of success. If you do, then when opportunity hits, you can flourish. Gladwell goes on to share the Chinese proverb that states “No one who rises before dawn 360 days a year fails to make his family rich.”

Another interesting example of investing the time to achieve mastery comes from the M Squared Consultant Network. The average M Squared consultant has more than 15 years of professional experience and over 5 years of consulting in their chosen business discipline. This extraordinary level of targeted expertise is what allows M Squared Consulting to deliver results at an exceptional value to our clients.

“There’s no such thing as work-life balance.”

That’s the provocative message former General Electric chief executive Jack Welch recently shared with the audience at the annual Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) conference.

“There are work-life choices,” he went on to say, “and you make them, and they have consequences.” Mr. Welch’s comments reverberated across the Web as women (and men) argued over whether it was possible to rise to a high level in corporate America and take time off to have a family.

The challenge of finding work-life balance (or, more appropriately of making “work-life choices”) has become a cultural preoccupation, the regular subject of many Web sites, blogs and newspaper columns. It has even become a standard part of the political candidate vetting process. In his profile of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor, titled “The Way We Live Now”, columnist David Brooks wondered whether Ms. Sotomayor’s marriage ended because of her long hours at the office. And of course it was regularly discussed during last years Presidential election whether Sarah Palin could really raise five children and hold down the job as Vice President. The fact that she subsequently resigned from the Alaska Governorship, citing her desire to spend more time with her family, I suppose adds some credence to the discussion.

So how does the topic of work-life balance relate to consulting?

In addition to the rewarding work, many professionals enter the consulting profession because they seek greater work-life balance. While the hours may not always total up each week to be less than a full-time role, most consultants will tell you that they value the greater control they have over the work that consumes their days, along with greater flexibility over where and how it gets done.

At M Squared Consulting we utilize independent consultants for all of our engagements. These seasoned project professionals have chosen a consulting career path that affords them the magical combination of challenging and interesting work, along with control over the assignments they take on. These are career consultants who enjoy doing the work of consulting for clients. We believe it is the magic combination which allows us to deliver targeted expertise that drives results for clients.

Last week I wrote about the encouraging signs of renewal in the technology sector. Specifically, the shift in mindset from “we must hunker down and ride out the storm” to “lets get going and start growing!”

This discussion begged the question of what steps company executives and boards should take next to gauge their ongoing business viability and define a path going forward. A healthy starting point is asking some challenging, but ultimately enlightening, questions about your business. For example:

• What business are you really in?
• What is your value proposition?
• Who are your ideal clients? How do you best reach them?
• How important are you (your products/services) to clients?
• Have your clients changed? Has the market changed? How?
• Are there any market adjacencies you could explore?
• How differentiated are you?

Many organizations find it extremely beneficial to bring in neutral, third party industry experts who can assess the competitive landscape and help a company to divine its strategy and develop go-to-market plans. No matter what industry or functional area you are in M Squared Consulting has the proven expertise within our Consultant Network that can provide both strategic insight and tactical execution.

It should come as no surprise that many “older” workers are delaying their exit from the workforce. The recession has ravaged most retirement accounts, a fact that is most damaging for those nearest to retirement: the Baby Boomers.

A recent poll by Watson Wyatt, a global HR consulting firm, finds that 44 percent of those aged 50 and over plan to delay their retirement, compared with only 25 percent of those under 40. Although the average planned retirement age for all employees is 65 years old, half of those aged 50 or more plan to retire at age 66 or later.

“The economic crisis has affected many worker’s retirement plans and nest eggs, but those nearest to retirement have been especially hard hit,” says David Speier, senior retirement consultant at Watson Wyatt. “Older workers do not have the time to offset declining retirement account values. For many, the only choice is to delay retirement.”

Three-quarters (76 percent) of older workers (aged 50 to 64) cited the decline in the value of their 401(k) accounts as the most important reason why they are planning to postpone their retirement, followed by the high cost of healthcare (63 percent) and higher prices for basic necessities (62 percent).

Experience Counts

This phenomenon is a double-edged sword for employers…

It will be good news for many of the companies who in recent years have acknowledged they are unprepared to facilitate the transfer of key business knowledge to a new generation of knowledge workers. They now have more time to document critical knowledge and processes, and train the next generation. The downside is that companies will be saddled with inflated benefit costs and subsequent hiring issues once the Boomers do begin their inevitable retirement and the War for Talent again comes to the forefront.

A significant positive factor for employers is that this older talent pool has a wealth of qualities that only come from age (and the resulting workforce experience!) This wisdom is priceless as organizations continue to navigate in these uncharted economic waters and searching for the path out. There is much to learn from experienced business leaders who have confronted many economic, market, and organizational challenges in their careers.

A major part of the value proposition behind M Squared Consulting is that we deploy seasoned experts on our client engagements. These project professionals have years of industry and functional experience that they bring to each client project. Clients benefit from this consulting experience and industry knowledge as our consultants drive results on their critical business issues.