Zoomers & Boomers: What Global Intergenerational Week Taught Me

Rebranding Age. Reshaping Work. Rewriting the Rules.

As Global Intergenerational Week wraps up today, I’m more energised than ever to make a difference. Why? Because the conversations we’ve had this week and especially today’s Intentionally Intergenerational live today with Avivah Wittenberg-Cox and Jacynth Bassett weren’t just about age. They were about opportunity, imagination and reinvention.

It’s not about fine-tuning workplace culture.

It needs a complete overhaul to make space for every generation to thrive, contribute and grow.

The Old Model is Broken

We’re still working like it’s 1970, building careers up a single ladder, retiring “on time,” designing jobs for one life stage and acting like only young people bring innovation.

But here’s the reality:

-            We’re not a pyramid anymore, we’re a demographic square.

-            By 2030, we will have as many 50+ people in the workforce as under

-            We’re watching capability walk out of the door at every stage of life

o   Parents (especially mums) exit in their 30s.

o   Women in their 50s burn out just as they’re ready to lead and provide senior

representation

o   Over-60s retire off a cliff, taking skills, wisdom, networks, and purpose with them.

o   Gen Z arrives seeking meaning, mentoring, and flexibility and often finds none of

these

We can’t solve this with the same old … We need a total rethink.

Let’s call it Gentelligence thank you Claire Lowson

What If We Designed Work Together, Across Generations?

It’s not one generation stepping aside, it’s all generations stepping forward. Here's some great examples of genius concepts

-           A 55-year-old exec job-sharing with a 30 year old to avoid the 30 and 50 talent drain

-            A returning parent paired with someone transitioning out of full-time work

-            A 60 year old leading a team and being reverse mentored by Gen Z

-            A 70 year old choosing to stay on because purpose doesn’t retire

Let’s call it what it is: intergenerational alchemy. Not just inclusive. But transformative for innovation, culture, and performance.

Bias Alert: We Fear Looking Up More Than Looking Down

Age needs a rebrand.

When we’re young, we fear getting older and actually it’s brilliant. We project decline, irrelevance and invisibility.

But when we get to 60, we’re shocked, we feel energised, vibrant, useful and ambitious. The narrative needs changing. There's a massive gap between how you actually feel at 60, versus how you thought you would feel at 60 when you were 40.

It’s time to rebrand age. We need to be proud and know that we get better and better with age. And young people have something to look forward to.

That starts with connection.

We need to get into schools.

- Mock interviews. Career Q&As.

- Conversations between teens and 70-somethings

- Let’s shatter age stereotypes

You can’t aspire to be what you can't see. You can’t value age if your only reference is a retirement brochure.

It’s Time to Rethink the Shape of Jobs

Careers aren't ladders anymore. They’re Voyages with different horizons, climbs, crossings, bridges, course corrections and destinations

Let’s throw out the not fit for purpose and design:

-            Bridging roles between life stages

-            Different-shaped jobs for different stages

-            Flex tools like job shares, phased transitions and portfolio work

-            Strengths and purpose based roles

Why not create a job for a 67-year-old who wants impact, not hours? Or design a 2 in a role with early talent and a midlife returner?

This is how we future-proof work by shaping it for real lives.

Brands That Get It: Marks & Spencer

Marks and Spencer’s are in the news this week for their cyber incident but I want to celebrate them for their great intergenerational appeal.

My 16-year-old daughter loves it. My 83-year-old mum does too My 60-year-old fashionista friend and her 3 daughters in their late 20s and early 30s

M&S have always hired older staff and mixed the generations. They blend online and retail and welcome everyone of all ages and when you go into a store, you’ll see all the generations. This isn’t just smart retail, it’s a heart-centred business.

The New Lens: The Four Quarters of Life

Thank you Avivah for your new definitions. Let’s ditch the tired generational labels. Instead, think:

• Q1: 0–25   – Learning

• Q2: 25–50 – Achieving

• Q3: 50–75 – Becoming

• Q4: 75+      – Harvesting

It’s not about age. It’s about life stage. And it gives us language that includes instead of divides.

The Business Case Is Absolutely Clear

-            57% of older workers say they’re overlooked due to age

-            93% of marketing spend still targets under-50s

-            But the over-50s hold the majority of the world’s wealth

-            And 80% of women 50+ are open to trying new brands if only they were seen

You want staying power? You need longer tenures.

You want sharper instincts? Institutional memory is your unfair advantage.

You want leaders who don’t burn out or bail? Co-mentoring is the thing

This is how resilient and brilliant organisations win.

What I Do (And Why I Do It)

I help 50+ professionals stay on the career carousel and UPsize, DOWNsize or SIDEsize their careers in ways that feel right for them.

You don't fit into a job box, we'll reshape the role.

And if you’re leading teams, building culture or shaping strategy, I'll help you build something better. For everyone.

The Alchemy Is Already Here - Let’s Scale It

-            Brave leaders doing job shares

-            Boomers with Zoomer Mentors

-            Teachers moving into teaching at 50 and teachers moving out of teaching at 50

It’s happening. Not everywhere yet. But somewhere. Let’s turn that into everywhere