Each week, Startup Decoder shares the story of a mid- or late-career employee or founder working in tech.
Please introduce yourself and tell us a little about your current work.
My name is Alisa and I’m 52. I currently work for a small software company in Colorado that secures the data in cloud applications. The company has existed for about six years and I’ve been there for four-and-a-half years. During the first four years, I was the Director of Marketing and was the only marketing employee for three-and-a-half years. I started the marketing function from the ground up. A few months ago I moved into the Director of Sales Operations and Field Marketing role supporting the growing sales team.
What has your career path looked like?
Almost 30 years of working professionally, all in marketing roles. Most of my jobs have been in the IT sector, working for software companies of various sizes.
What does the “age geography” of your company look like, how do you fit in it, and has that made any difference to your worklife?
We have four people over 50, five people in their 40s, five people in their 30s, 10 people in their 20s. I get along with everyone fairly well, and there is a good culture of mutual respect. However, in my function, I feel old and irrelevant. This is partially due to poor management not leveraging what I have to offer, though I’ve presented it to him frequently. The team I work with is mostly in their 20s, and for a few this is their first job out of college. I am the same age or older than their parents!
I have several friends who work in executive-level roles in nonprofits or trade associations. In these fields, age and experience seem to be respected and very much in demand. My friends are often shocked when I tell them that someone of my age and experience is no longer wanted or needed in the tech world.
In what ways does your experience level make a positive contribution to your team?
I think efficiency, problem-solving, and having experience working without all the “immediate” gratification technologies helps at times.
What are your five favorite tools to use at work? My MacBook Air, all Google apps and shared drives, Slack, Sharpie pens and wall calendars that you can write on.
Do you see yourself as a mentor to any younger employees?
Not in my current role.
What is one word that describes how you feel about this stage of your career? Frustrated. Irrelevant. Not challenged.
Can you recommend any people, books, apps or podcasts that have recently had an impact on your worklife?
- “That’s What She Said” book by Joanne Lipman. Fascinating, enlightening and, at times, infuriating look at communication and behavior between the genders. It helped me better understand some of the behaviors of my male boss.
- “Future Proofing Your Career” webinar hosted by Lisa Lewis of Career Clarity and Fairygodboss. Helped to motivate/encourage me about pivoting careers.
If you could recommend one change that would help eliminate ageism, what would it be?
In recruiting, companies should revise their applications to require only up to the last three or four positions or the last 10 years. Interviews should be held with intergenerational teams. New employees should be introduced to existing staff by saying the value they bring to the company and what the new employee can learn from that existing staff person. I also think it should be mandatory for all young adults to learn about how retirement works in today’s society so they understand better why they very well may be working closely with someone twice their age for a while. Most of the 20-somethings I work with know absolutely nothing about saving for retirement, what it costs to live during retirement, healthcare, etc. (I didn’t either at that age, which I regret!) This isn’t intended to scare them but to make them realize they need to start thinking about it now and to respect and admire those older workers who still contribute to the success of their companies every day.
What’s next for you?
I’m taking a class to learn and be certified as a Salesforce Administrator. I need to get out of marketing and the job prospects for those with Salesforce certifications are enormous. I just don’t know if that includes people over 50. 🙁
We’d love to share your story of work in the startup trenches, too! Jot us an email (nancy@startupdecoder.com) and we’ll get you started.