Age bias remains a persistent and frustrating barrier for mature professionals wanting to take the next step in their career. Despite bringing unparalleled experience, a strong work ethic and proven reliability to the table, age-related stereotypes can overshadow older employee’s contributions and skillsets, making it increasingly difficult to secure new roles or promotions.

Age bias often stems from misconceptions about mature professionals and the assumption that they are less adaptable, unaccepting of change and find technology challenging. Another common stereotype is that older employees aren’t worth investing in because they are too close to retirement age. All of these assumptions are inaccurate, yet they have the power to prevent older professionals from being seriously considered.

While many organisations have made significant strides in creating more inclusive hiring practices to prevent age bias and other biases from occurring, individual bias can still come to the surface during the hiring process, both subtly and overtly.

The role of recruiters

The process of finding a new role when you’re a mature candidates might seem challenging, but it doesn’t have to feel impossible. While you could go it alone and try to overcome the age-related obstacles in front of you, there is another option to consider: a recruiter.

It might already seem obvious to get in touch with a recruiter to help you find your next career opportunity. But enlisting the help of a recruiter who advocates for mature professionals can be beneficial to you in more ways than one.

Here are a few reasons why recruiters can be the best allies for mature professionals during their job search:

Help you to prepare

Looking for a new role and preparing for interviews can feel overwhelming, especially if it’s been a while. Fortunately, a recruiter can guide you through the process by providing expert advice and practical support that helps you to feel more prepared and build your confidence as you embark on your job search.

They can help you update your CV, so it brings greater focus to your accomplishments and doesn’t include any age-revealing details such as outdated technologies or graduation dates. Their knowledge of the industry will also make it easier for you to narrow down which of your skills and experiences are most relevant to current industry trends and the needs of the modern workplace.

Recruiters can also help with your job search preparations by conducting mock interviews, that include potential questions regarding your age. With the help of the recruiter, this practice run can give you the opportunity to create impressive answers that proactively address employers’ concerns, whilst also emphasising your adaptability, technological skills, eagerness to learn and ability to thrive in multigenerational teams.

Showcase your experience as an asset

Thanks to age bias, many older professionals don’t always get the opportunity to defend their experience or show their true value before unfortunately being overlooked. One of the most powerful ways recruiters can advocate for their older candidates is by showing employers that their many years of experience is actually an asset and a competitive advantage, not a liability.

Rather than focusing on their age or how many years they have worked, recruiters can help organisations instead give their attention to the outcomes of their career, such as strong performance levels or successful project results, an ability to confidently navigate complex situations or lead teams effectively. They can also shine a light on the loyalty and stability they have to offer, which are popular traits needed by organisations wanting to build effective and sustainable teams.

Any concerns or negative assumptions organisations might have about hiring older professionals can also be eased by recruiters, who can offer some crucial reassurance and help them to change their outlooks.

When recruiters act as a cheerleader for their mature candidates and showcase their skills and qualities, they help potential employers see beyond their age and show they are a viable candidate that they should consider.

Encourage age bias training

Age bias can go under the radar at many organisations because it’s often done subconsciously and not necessarily with ill intent. Recruiters are in a prime position to tactfully encourage organisations to start investing in training that will bring awareness to the issue of age bias and what first steps they need to take to address it effectively.

The recruiters can do this by highlighting the tangible benefits that can come from having teams with diverse ages, such as increased innovation, improved retention, opportunities for knowledge transfer and greater problem solving. Additionally, recruiters can recommend reputable training providers or even help to facilitate workshops or webinars themselves.

All of this can help organisations take a proactive step towards building more equitable and effective recruitment processes and therefore making it easier for older candidates to find their next role without fear of bias.

Encourage skills-based hiring

Another way recruiters can be an important ally to mature professionals is by promoting the use of skills-based hiring to their clients. This is a more inclusive hiring approach where each candidate is evaluated on their abilities, rather than their age, education or career history.

This style of recruitment utilises role specific criteria, skills assessments and structured interviews to give candidates the opportunity to demonstrate their practical capabilities, such as soft skills, technical competencies and job specific tasks. As a result, recruiters can shift the focus from age-related assumptions and stereotypes to job performance, making the hiring process more objective and inclusive.

Finding a recruiter

To find the right recruiter to help during your job search, you need to get in touch with a recruitment agency that advocates for older candidates.  You can determine this by checking their website, job ads and social for inclusive language, particularly towards mature professionals. If they use phrases such as "experience in any industry or role” or “mentorship and knowledge-sharing encouraged” or “strong project management and stakeholder communication skills”, you should feel confident about approaching the agency.

Additionally, you should also ask recruiters if they’ve worked with mature professionals before, how they support them and if their clients are generally accepting of older candidates. You could also share your concerns about age bias and any issues you might have experienced during your previous job searches. This can help you start to build a stronger rapport and ensures they are the right person to help you in your search.

Summary

Recruiters can play a pivotal role in supporting mature candidates in advancing in their careers by highlighting the unique value, skills and experience they can bring. By actively championing older candidates, the right recruiter can not only be a support to you, but they can also help organisations reconsider how they view age and experience and bring more awareness to the issue of age bias.

This allyship can help to level the playing field and encourage greater inclusivity in hiring for all, making it far easier for mature professionals to continue successfully progressing in their careers.

For additional support in your job search, you can read our age bias guide here or get in touch with the team for further guidance.