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Welcome
 Some phrases are overused. "Going forward" still grates every time I hear it. Likewise a number of years ago the phrase "paradigm shift" was similarly over used and often misused. I was having dinner recently with an ex colleague who I hadn’t seen for five years. She reflected that the approaches we have developed to working with ageing workforces is indeed a paradigm shift. I checked the dictionary "a fundamental change in approach or underlying assumptions." Time will tell if she is right!
Most approaches to older workers focus on the individual. Advocating the value of the older worker, addressing age discrimination, proposing flexible work practices, running retirement planning workshops etc. While I will never back away from these values they simply do not address real business issues. The shift is to an enterprise and strategic approach that faces up to the real business issues and puts in place strategies to both mitigate risk and achieve enduring culture change. It is this shift that I have now talked with people about in workshops, discussed with senior executives, introduced through the Staying On programme and will be outlining at the International Federation of Ageing conference in Istanbul in October. As one senior executive said recently "It is a positive approach that faces up to the real issues we face everyday."
I am looking forward to the International Federation on Ageing conference in Istanbul. It will be an opportunity to test my thinking, further refine my approaches and network with leaders in the field from around the world. I will be tweeting from the conference if you want to follow me @GeoffPearman. I will also send a briefing report to my clients and through this newsletter will summarise some of the themes.
Over the past two months I have been running workshops with BUSY at Work, a Queensland not for profit organisation, to assist small businesses to identity their risks, put in place practical strategies and build capability to address the risks and opportunities of the ageing of their workforces. Over a six month period we are working with two clusters each comprising 4 companies from quite different sectors. These include manufacturing, disability care, financial services, trade association, transport, training and early childhood education. Given that 96% of Australian and 97% of New Zealand businesses have fewer than 20 employees this is a program that is highly relevant not only for small business but for the economy.
I am just back from an amazing and privileged six days in Rarotonga working with the Chiefs and Commissioners of Police from 15 Pacific nations. The focus was my other niche – stakeholder engagement and the application of the methods I have developed to strategic planning. I must say I have never in my 35 years of training and facilitation run a workshop in such a beautiful environment. Despite the "distractions" this was a highly productive retreat.
Congratulations to my colleague Dianne Rogers on her election as the Vice President of the New Zealand Association of Gerontology
If you have any feedback on this newsletter or would like further information on any aspect send me an email.
Geoff
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Soapbox
 Getting the Conversation Started.
How do we get the conversation started? One of the questions I often ask when faced with a knotty issue is; who is best placed to convene the conversation?
When it comes to the demographics of ageing Professor Natalie Jackson has reflected on what she calls the inconvenient truth.
"Some people still have their heads in the sand and view continued population growth as a given. While we have economic cycles, we do not have demographic cycles and that can be difficult for people to accept. This is a new and permanent reality. Overall growth is coming to an end.â€
As I talk to government agencies, peak bodies, professional associations, researchers and unions there is an emerging awareness of the impacts of the demographic shift. However the majority of people I talk to are frustrated that we can’t seem to get a conversation going in New Zealand about the very real challenges and opportunities we face in the same way as it has happened in Australia and Europe.
Political leaders in New Zealand continue to think the only issue to be talked about is the age of entitlement to superannuation/ aged pension. The Prime Minister publicly stated in 2008 that if he were to raise the age of entitlement he would resign – high stakes. As they say no turkey is going to vote for an early Christmas. Consequently any age related discussion even if it is not about the age of entitlement gets closed down.
Can I therefore congratulate Local Government New Zealand who at their conference in July confronted the issue. LGNZ president and Hastings Mayor Lawrence Yule said "the issue was one of the biggest facing the country, yet there was no national conversation about it." He added that LGNZ aimed to co-ordinate a major forum to look at the issue, and would keep bringing it to the attention of the Government. To quote "Otherwise we're going to end up with parts of New Zealand going into major decline,"
Multiple conversations are called for. So who should be convening the conversations? Local government has a role in facing up to the economic implications especially in the regions, but so does central government, business, the unions, researchers……. Bring on the conversations.
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Engage for Success
 If a stakeholder is anyone who can make or break you then what is your organisation doing to engage more effectively with your key stakeholders?
Over the past 4 years I have run one day Stakeholder Engagement workshops through Victoria University of Wellington and the University of Auckland as well as for NGO's and business. The workshops have always hit the mark and taken participants to a new place in thinking about their stakeholders and assisted them to develop practical engagement strategies.
Something is happening! The demand this year has taken off. One of the reasons I suspect is that organisations are recognising that the old methods are no longer delivering the outcomes they had hoped for. In fact the evidence is that many approaches have become counterproductive and are disengaging stakeholders. People are over being consulted - they want to be engaged.
Canadian Don Lenihan argues that “Stakeholders and citizens won’t assume any real responsibility for the plan unless they have a say in developing it. We call this the Golden Rule of Public Engagement. It says that if governments really want citizens and stakeholders to take ownership of the issues, it is not enough simply to ask them their views on the solutions. Governments must engage the public in real dialogue where all parties work through the issues and arrive at the action plan together."
This is equally true for business and NGO's. As one writer concludes “The creation of business value from stakeholder relationships is contingent on a self-reinforcing cycle comprising:
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identifying strategically relevant stakeholders,
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improving the quality of those relationships,
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recognising and fostering opportunities to maximize the benefits of social capital,
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continued or deepening relationships.
The very nature of consultation creates winners and losers and powerful lobby groups. Those who do engage in the consultation process do so as advocates. Lenihan argues that if you invite your stakeholders to help you deliberate on the challenges you face they will become advisors, however if you engage and co-create with them they will become your partners thereby enabling you to develop a more sophisticated understanding of the issues and joining you in implementing the actions.
To learn more about Engage for Success click here or email Geoff
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Upcoming Workshops
Engaging Effectively with your Stakeholders
New Plymouth 18 September
Victoria University of Wellington with TSB Community Trust
For further information click here
Engaging Effectively with your Stakeholders
Wellington 6 November
Victoria University of Wellington
For further information and to enrol click here
Engaging Effectively with your Stakeholders
2014 dates for Auckland and Wellington to be advised. Ask to go on the mailing list or request an inhouse workshop click here
International Federation on Ageing Conference
Istanbul Initiative on Ageing - achieving inter-generational solidarity
4-6 October 2013
Istanbul For further information
Ageing of the Workforce....new economic challenges for business – do you have a strategy?
Keynote address: Otago and Southland Employers and Manufacturers Association Annual Meeting
Dunedin 24 October 2013
Geoff is available for workshops and keynotes in Australia and New Zealand. Contact Geoff here
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Digest
Interesting Facts
Source: National Seniors Australia
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In last weekends Australian Federal election 47% of eligible voters were aged over 50. That is 6,878,213 people.
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38% of the over 50s in Australia were born in overseas countries.
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The economic and social contribution of older Australians is substantial. It includes $84.8 billion from full-time workers, $3.12 billion from volunteers, $5.54 billion from unpaid carers, $1.26 billion from unpaid childcare and $1.69 billion from civic participation.
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If Australia had the same mature worker participation rate as NZ the GDP would be 4% higher.
Recent Reports
Flexi-Super
A discussion paper released by the NZ Government as part of its coalition agreement with United Future. The proposal would give New Zealander's greater choice about when they could first take New Zealand Superannuation. Read the paper here.
Read a critique by Prof Susan St John from the University of Auckland here
Ageing: Moving Beyond Youth Culture.
Havas Worldwide surveyed 7213 people across 19 countries. Read the full report here.
Four headline findings
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The global obsession with youth is undergoing a transformation, as youth and youthfulness become increasingly less tied to one’s chronological age. Rather than shying away from growing old, more people are embracing their later years and the unique satisfactions they bring
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Concerns related to aging no longer center on physical beauty. People are more confident that they have the tools they need to keep wrinkles, paunches, and other signs of aging at bay (provided they put in the requisite effort). What worries them now is loss of autonomy
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Consumption gaps are shrinking as people in older age segments continue to enjoy and employ new technologies, products, and entertainment options. The traditional notion of older people withdrawing from consumer markets no longer applies
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How one ages—and even the manner in which one dies—is increasingly perceived as controllable rather than predetermined. This means people are feeling more pressure and responsibility for a satisfactory outcome.
Articles
Flush but Forgotten
NZ Listener 31 August 2013
Baby boomers are a huge demographic controlling most of the disposable income but their spending power is largely being ignored. Read the article here
New Zealand's Inconvenient Truth
Press release from LGNZ conference. Read here Also view Prof Jackson's presentation that stimulated the press release here
Helpful Resources
"11 Great TED talks for anyone over 50". Recommended by US website Next Avenue. Click here See what you think!
Book
Recently I have been recommending Conversations: how talk can change our lives by Theodore Zeldin. Click here
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Contact Us
Email geoff@partnersinchange.com.au
geoff@partnersinchange.co.nz
Phone: NZ 0210 250 7927
Aust: 0419 148 127
Twitter: @GeoffPearman
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