We thought we had a few more years before the exodus of baby boomers. But the newspapers of today and tomorrow are telling a different story, one where thousands of employees are being laid off or agreeing to voluntary layoffs, as is the case with Best Buy. In some instances, these employees are boomers on the edge of retirement who have years of experience, and they’re walking out the door with it.
Some of us may have been quick to the punch and instituted knowledge transfer programs in preparation for those eminent retirements, but others may have taken a wait-and-see approach.
Now because of the economy, your business may be forced to let some that personnel go. Is it too late to try and get that knowledge back? Is it taboo to work with employees who have lost their jobs in the same way you may have worked with boomers post-retirement? And if you don’t, will your business face more hardship once the economy has turned around because your institutional knowledge and experience is gone?
