AARP Hearing Center
When you’re considering making a move to a new company, it’s a good idea to investigate the culture as you do your research. Because while the labor market is tight, some companies may still be hesitant to hire older workers, says Amanda Augustine, a career expert at TopResume, a career and resume consultancy.
Here are seven ways to find companies that value older people.
1. Start with their website
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If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a website can tell a pretty comprehensive story about a company and its leadership. Joe Mullings, chairman and CEO of search firm the Mullings Group, advises perusing the website to see whether photos represent a diverse group of employees, including older ones, and how many of the staff and leadership photos are of older workers. Look for signs that the company values diversity in all of its forms.
2. Scout their social media
A company’s social media profiles can give you a peek into its culture, Mullings says. Review Facebook and LinkedIn pages as well as profiles of employees. Does the company have workers age 50 and older? What are the company representatives and employees posting on both the firm’s social media and their own pages? (If this feels odd, consider that the human resources department is likely checking out your social media profiles, he says.) By doing this background research, he adds, you can start to build a perspective of what the office's social environment is like among the people you might be dealing with every day.
3. Look around the room
Whether you’re interviewing remotely or in person, the process will give you an opportunity to meet a variety of people at the company. Notice whether there is age diversity among the employees you observe, suggests Monica Parker, director of diversity and inclusion and community outreach at Bracewell LLP in Washington, D.C. “What age representation are you seeing in the interview process? And then also, how are those folks reacting to you as you're talking to them about your experience and what you think you could bring to the organization?” If the company doesn’t appear to have many workers your age, it may be a red flag.