older workers are America’s most valuable assets. While the definition of older workers remains vague, here are some of the results of the survey. Older workers win hands down on punctuality and reliability. They take pride in their job and are more willing to stay until the job is done. Honesty and loyalty rank high with the older workers, and they listen and communicate better than their younger counterparts. Other attributes that come with maturity and experience include personal skills, problem solving in a crisis, and the attention to detail which can save big dollars in the long run. The oldies generally set a good example and are good mentors and role models. They take time to nurture and train others and this is vital to improve progress and productivity. It seems to be a no brainer to utilise the intellectual resources of each generation so that nothing is lost. There is much debate in quantum mechanics whether information can ever be lost. Professor, Stephen Hawking, proposed that information is lost in black holes. Leonard Susskind, a theoretical physicist, disagreed, arguing that Hawking’s conclusions violated one of the most basic scientific laws of the universe, the conservation of information. All a bit puzzling for a humble retailer like me, but I do get that we don’t want to lose information and experience. According to Gray Matters, newly hired workers armed with knowledge provided by mentors will have a head start and a much better opportunity to use their new ideas and creatively make a difference. So next time you are in hiring mode, seriously consider older workers for the right reasons. These relate to simple economics – the exorbitant cost of high staff turnover, training and recruiting in a more youthful workforce versus the benefits of proven successes, abilities, experience and mature standards that older workers bring to the mix. Stuart Bennie is a retail consultant at Impact Retailing www.impactretailing.com.au and can be contacted at stuart@impactretailing.com.au or 0414 631 702