Recently, I advised that to engage and retain the young professionals on your team, you must make sure you provide ample opportunity for them. But what about the rest of the team? They’re just as important, and without them there is no team.
Let’s face it, it takes a variety of talents, skills, and experiences to make a truly successful team. It’s those who have a depth of that last attribute that I’d like you to consider today.
Think about the wily veterans on your team. Those people who have seen just about everything and done even more. They can be invaluable to the success of your team and your organization.
An experienced employee brings a unique perspective. She can see around corners, not because she possesses psychic powers, but because she has been at this intersection before. She knows what to expect because there isn’t much she hasn’t seen at one time or another.
An experienced employee can act as a mentor for others on the team, sharing those experiences to help younger employees navigate difficult situations or avoid potential pitfalls.
While still in college, I saw an excellent example of this at work. I was working as an intern in the marketing department for a mid-sized food distribution company. The newly hired head of marketing had among his direct reports the man who formerly held his post. It was an unusual situation that worked incredibly well. Here’s how it occurred.
The recently hired marketing chief was brought in to take over for the company veteran who was nearly 20 years his senior and had recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. The veteran was asked to help get the head of marketing up and running before retiring.
But something unusual happened. The two of them hit it off. The younger man saw the tremendous value the veteran employee could bring to the department and the company. It didn’t take long for him to try, successfully, to convince the veteran to stay on board and be part of the team.
The veteran worker, who still had so much to contribute, embraced his new role as mentor, adviser, and counselor. The marketing chief benefited from the experience and insights of the veteran, as did the entire team.
It took courage to do what the marketing chief did. It was probably tempting to let the veteran retire so he could make his own mark on the company. But instead, he saw the tremendous value the veteran could bring and found a role that worked for everyone.
You see, the experienced employee is a critical part of every team. He brings experience. He brings maturity. He brings perspective. And the good ones bring a quiet confidence that allows them to lead others.
A good manager recognizes all this and embraces it. Who are the wily veterans on your team? Are you getting the most out of the contributions they can make?
Sometimes we have a tendency to overlook the experienced employees because they’re so solid that we take them for granted. They show up every day and get the job done. They don’t need as much management or advice because of their experience. But that doesn’t mean they don’t deserve your attention. Make sure they get it and you’ll be reminded of just how valuable the veterans on your team are.
Thanks for this article. As a seasoned veteran I have seen too many times the new management come in and weed out the “old guys” not realizing that we may not know all the new ways, but have sucessfully done the job for many years and do have a can do attitude and experienced perspective. Don’t forget young ones, we were young once too.
Nice article. As someone relatively new to my current company, which is a company which never had an HR official, the amount of information I have received from veterans who have worn different HR hats at different times is invaluable. As you mentioned, they know the nooks and cranies, and the real world results from certain policies as implemented here.