Transmission of vocational skills in the second part of careers: the effect of ICT and management changes

Greenan, Nathalie; Messe, Pierre‐Jean

doi:10.1186/s12651-018-0240-1

Cited by 9 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 36 publications

(35 reference statements)

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“…We fail to find any significant positive effect of other types of training on the probability of transmitting knowledge and only find a low and weakly significant positive effect for the narrowest comparison group when respondents have not effectively experienced a change in working environment. These results are consistent with those found by Greenan and Messe (2018) using an earlier edition (2006) of a French-matched employer–employee survey on computerization and organizational change.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…However, recent studies that have examined the effective transmission of knowledge from experienced employees point out a strong decline of knowledge transmitters over age 45, i.e. in the second part of their careers (Masingue, 2009; Molinié and Volkoff, 2013; Greenan and Messe, 2018). This suggests that the knowledge accumulated by employees approaching retirement age is no longer passed on, which can lead to inefficiencies if younger employees have to relearn on their own instead of drawing on the experience of older employees.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This suggests that the knowledge accumulated by employees approaching retirement age is no longer passed on, which can lead to inefficiencies if younger employees have to relearn on their own instead of drawing on the experience of older employees. To explain this phenomenon, Greenan and Messe (2018) put forward the role of technological change and specifically the introduction of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in organizations. Some empirical evidence show that these innovations accelerate the obsolescence of specific skills acquired by senior workers (De Grip and Van Loo, 2002) and affect them negatively through adaptability requirements (Aubert et al ., 2006; Bartel and Sicherman, 1993).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Knowledge transmission in the second part of careers: does formal training matter?

Messe

Greenan

2023

IJM

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PurposeThis paper examines to what extent formal training targeted to workers aged 45 and over could enhance their knowledge transmission activities specifically in changing work environments. This is a key issue for human resources practitioners. Allowing older workers to keep on interacting with their colleagues and transmitting their knowledge acquired through experience reduces the risk for firms of losing critical knowledge assets.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use French-matched employer–employee data to estimate the effect of participation in training sessions intended to support change on the probability for workers aged 45–59 of frequently showing work practices to their co-workers. To account for selection bias in training, the authors reduce the group of untrained workers to those who wanted to attend a training session but had to cancel their participation for exogenous reasons. Leuven and Oosterbeek (2008) show that this is a valid approximation of a random assignment to training.FindingsTraining with the intention to support change for workers aged 45 and more significantly increases knowledge transmission for training participants. This effect is not strictly related to a supervising role as it is significant for workers without subordinates; it holds when the authors address the selection bias in training by narrowing down the comparison group. When training comes as a response to mitigate the potential negative effects of technological or organizational changes in the work environment, it helps workers aged 45–59 maintain their contribution to the knowledge base of the production.Research limitations/implicationsOur findings suggest that two main aspects have to be borne in mind when assessing the effectiveness of training for older workers. First, the reasons for training must be carefully considered, especially if it occurs in response to technological or organizational change in the workplace. Second, the continuation of interactions between older workers and their co-workers must be factored. If the public debate acknowledges that employee learning and development is critical in times of structural change and crisis, the outcomes of knowledge transmission within workplaces in terms of job satisfaction, turnover intentions, productivity or innovation, which the authors do not cover in this paper, deserve further investigations. In particular, the authors believe that studying how the training that supports technological and organizational change influences the relationship between age diversity and firm productivity is a promising avenue for future research.Practical implicationsThe implication of this article for human resource managers is that there may be a substantial cost to not updating the skills of older workers after technological or organizational change. Indeed, it is likely that a large proportion of jobs will only be partially automated, which implies that while some tasks will disappear, rendering the corresponding skills obsolete, others will persist and the skills associated with them will remain useful to organizations. If older workers are excluded from their work collectives after these changes, because their skills have not been updated through training, the knowledge from their accumulated experience that remains valuable will be irrevocably lost when they retire.Originality/valueThis study sheds a new light on the effectiveness of older workers’ training. Some contributions argue that training for older workers is not very effective because it has no significant effect on employment duration, earnings or relative productivity. The authors show that specific types of training to update skills after a technological or organizational change allow older workers to keep interacting with their co-workers and pass on their knowledge gained through experience, thereby reducing the risk for firms of losing critical knowledge assets.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Knowledge transmission in the second part of careers: does formal training matter?

Messe

Greenan

2023

IJM

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“…A recent review of studies on older workers in digitalizing workplaces concludes with 'a Janus-faced situation' -older workers may experience both challenges and opportunities (Komp-Leukkunen et al 2022). New digital technologies tend to reduce the demand for older workers (Behagfel et al 2014;Greenan & Messe 2018), particularly in sectors with a high speed of changes and a constant need for new skills (Brooke 2009). At the same time, new technology can be a tool to facilitate older workers' participation in the workforce (Nagarajan & Sixsmith 2021), for example, by easing physical strain and providing relief from monotonous, routine tasks.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Older Workers and Work Exit Preferences in a Digitalized Working Life

Solem,

Hauge,

Hellevik

et al. 2023

NJWLS

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With working life being in the middle of both a demographic and a digital transition, a key question is whether digitalization may counteract the policy goal of delaying work exit. Here, we use survey data from the Norwegian Senior Policy Barometer to investigate the association between how digital tools are experienced and the preference for timing of work exit. We find that, even after controlling for various potential confounders, experiencing digital difficulties at the workplace is correlated with preferring to leave work early. A relevant follow-up question is then which factors increase the likelihood among older workers of experiencing such difficulties. The analyses show that workplace conditions are more important than individual characteristics, suggesting that efforts taken to reduce experiences of digital difficulties at the workplace could be effective in preventing early exits.

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“…The reduction of differences in professional skills, especially in relation to rapid technological advances, can be achieved through the provision of training and lifelong learning programs 6,8 . Training programs can enable older workers to improve their skills and continue to perform their duties satisfactorily [9][10][11] .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analysis of a training program for older workers in the use of technology: difficulties and satisfaction

Raymundo

Castro

2019

Rev. bras. geriatr. gerontol.

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Objective: To analyze the potential of individualized training in the use of technology in the work environment as well as the satisfaction of workers with such training. Method: A quantitative, descriptive, interventional and longitudinal study was performed. Workers aged 50 and over, who performed any type of work activity and who had difficulties using technology participated. The following instruments were used for data collection: a socioeconomic questionnaire, a questionnaire about the technology used in the work environment and difficulties with its use and a scale to evaluate user satisfaction with training. The training sessions used the Client-Centered Practice approach. The data were analyzed by means of descriptive statistics and compared using the McNemar test. Results: A total of 30 workers participated in the study (15 men and 15 women), who were aged between 50 and 75 years and had a mean age of 63.3 years (±7.89). The participants had the most difficulty using computers, cell phones, the internet, email and recording and playback devices. After the training, participants exhibited significantly less difficulty in using cell phones (p-value<0.01), computers (p-value<0.01), copiers (p-value=0.03), the internet (p-value=0.04), e-mail (p-value=0.02) and recording and playback devices (p-value=0.04). They were satisfied with the training program, the instructor and with their own performance. Conclusion: The results of the present study indicate the potential of individualized training focused on the needs and interests of older workers so that they can perform work activities involving technology with autonomy and independence.

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Transmission of vocational skills in the second part of careers: the effect of ICT and management changes

Cited by 9 publications

References 36 publications

Knowledge transmission in the second part of careers: does formal training matter?

Knowledge transmission in the second part of careers: does formal training matter?

Older Workers and Work Exit Preferences in a Digitalized Working Life

Analysis of a training program for older workers in the use of technology: difficulties and satisfaction

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