What would you do if someone much junior to you was suddenly made your boss? He could be from out side, some whizz kid from abroad, a change of the guard, anything, but there he or she is. In this day and age the over 40s are having to face this rather unusual situation more frequently what with youngsters becoming MDs even before the ink on their college certificates has run dry. The odds are that in the corporate world where no quarter is given if you haven’t made it by 35 you aren’t going to make it to the top echelons, period. So you have 20-odd years of a productive working life with younger people telling you what to do.
It wasn’t like this a generation ago. Seniority and age counted. However smart you were you still had to go through the system, your age playing a vital role as you climbed the rungs on the ladder. Not so now. Technology has messed that one up. Everything is short cuts and smarts. People are seen to be able to deliver regardless of their age or their experience. The right degrees and the right grounding and “Move over Mister, you have been here 16 years so don’t teach me my job” because I am 29 and I am your boss. It is going to happen a lot more.
Not only in the corporate world but even where private ownership is concerned. Sons and daughters no longer start on the shop floor. They inherit the boardroom and the company and second guess dad. You could then find yourself working for a boss who still watches cowboy movies and loves chocbars and plays with his wifi. So, what would you do?
Imagine if he was once your junior and then he went away and now he’s done this course in some exotic grove of academia and plotted his career moves like an astute tennis player and reworked his way back into the original company, not as your subordinate but as your top boss. Now, you report to him. Right fine, there is enough insulation in a large company not to display unhappiness about this young whippersnapper but if you insist on mocking him you will be out of a job in seconds flat. Remember before you raise the protest flag that you are not the flavour of the month, he is.
A friend of mine is having a specific problem with an added rider. His nephew is now his boss. The kid is 20 years younger, has all the qualifications and has come into the job ostensibly to do great things. Now, his uncle is not upset about this relationship, as he is awkward. Other people in the office make him feel self-conscious. His argument is that life has changed, this is the new world, he has eight years to go before retirement, he is good at his job so why chuck it up because his brother’s son is his boss. But it is not easy. Even the boss is not comfortable and they are both walking on eggshells.
“What’s the difference between me and 10 other 50-year-olds in the company who are on his staff, why do they make me feel I should be embarrassed that I am working for my nephew, they are also 20 years older.” True but then logic has never been the texture of this argument. A few months ago he was asked by his nephew if he would like to take a transfer to another city. He refused on the grounds that it would be a downgrading and he wasn’t ready to face a demotion just to make it easy for everyone. His nephew suggested it might be better for all concerned.
And he said, I am not concerned. Would you be?
