Avoiding the Workforce Crisis:

Program Highlights

• How to develop leaders when your staff prefers "balance" instead of challenge.
• Why 1/4 of your Gen Xers and 1/3 of your Gen Y's are actively looking for another job—right now.
• The bell-shaped career path, and how to keep your Boomers dialed in.

The impact of demographic trends and generational differences is already causing trouble for employers. Fewer individuals are entering the workforce, and those that do tend to have lower qualifications while at the same time presuming higher expectations. Tamara Erickson explains how different generations of employees perceive the workplace, and describes how to attract and retain workers with this viewpoint in mind.

Savvy employers will need to cast their nets far and wide: recruiting at multiple points, offering lateral career opportunities, and investing in development. And for retention, Erickson advocates "retiring retirement," introducing greater flexibility, and engaging the hearts and minds of your employees by giving their work meaning and personal value.

Tamara Erickson is coauthor of the book "Workforce Crisis: How to Beat the Coming Shortage of Skills and Talent." She is a recipient of the Harvard Business Review McKinsey Prize, and a lead contributor to research initiatives on human resource practices and employee engagement.