WORKSHIFTER - Dispatches from the New Executive Frontier

As someone who has built a business around the need for accomplished professionals in the workforce, I found Sean Silverthorne’s recent BNET blog post on baby boomers choosing to work longer a breath of fresh air. Sean highlights a recent Merrill Lynch survey which found that 7 out of 10 baby boomers are working past the age of 65, with almost half of those adults never planning to stop working completely.

While this trend is something I have seen played out in the media a lot lately, many have speculated that the reason behind this trend is that the boomer generation did a poor job of saving for retirement and therefore must continue to work for financial reasons. And though I am sure this is the case for some, there are also a large number of accomplished professionals out there who are looking for a way to continue to utilize their skills but in a more flexible way.

In Sean’s post, he highlights a comment made by Tammy Erickson on Harvard Business regarding the topic, which mirrors this idea:

“Yes, people certainly want to work in different ways — with more flexibility and control. Most do not want to work as hard or as long as they are in their 50’s for another thirty years. But most want to work.”

I think it is refreshing to have this dialogue and see the response. Sean’s blog alone has over 55 comments on it with his readers’ opinions on the topic. I’m interested to see what my readers think as well!