What Does the ‘Third Age’ Look Like for BioPharma Employees as They Plan for Longer Life Spans?

Ken Dychtwald, PhD, founder and CEO of Age Wave.

Ken Dychtwald, PhD, is the founder and CEO of Age Wave, an acclaimed think tank and consultancy focused on the social and business implications and opportunities of global aging and rising longevity. His client list has included over half of the Fortune 500. Dychtwald has served as a fellow of the World Economic Forum and was a featured speaker at two White House Conferences on Aging.

His article in the Harvard Business Review, “It’s Time to Retire Retirement,” was awarded the prestigious McKinsey Award, tying for first place with the legendary Peter Drucker. Fortune Business Review recognized Dr. Dychtwald as one of the Ten Most Innovative CEOs to Follow. He is the author of 19 books, including Age Wave, What Retirees Want: A Holistic View of Life’s Third Age, and Radical Curiosity.

Q. Building upon a dialogue with a teacher from Stanford’s business school last year, “With 10,000 people turning 65 each day in America, by 2050, the +65 cohort will surpass the under 18 cohort. For those reaching 65 years old today, approximately 50% will reach their 90s. And for those babies born today, over 50% of them can expect to live into their 100s.”¹

With a recent Pew Research finding that nearly one-fifth of Americans aged 65 years and older were employed in 2023,² what do your “Third Age” findings project for the coming years?

A. Dychtwald:Third age is a relatively new concept. During the signing of the constitution, the average life expectancy was around 35 years, and that number has more than doubled to 77.5. Fast forward to today’s modern era and our lives can be distinguished in three distinct stages:

• First Age (0 to 29 years): Learning and development (youth).
• Second Age (30 to 59 years): Work, career, and family responsibilities (middle age).
• Third Age (60 to approximately 90 years): Freedom, exploration, and fulfillment after the major career and family milestones are behind.

My concept of Third Age refers to the macro trends of increased longevity and changing demographics. The Third Age is generally considered to be the period after traditional retirement age (around 60-65) but before advanced old age, typically lasting into a person’s 80s or beyond. During this Third Age, there is more free time and opportunities to try new things.

Also, there is the potential for continued personal growth and development. Finally, there is an ability to contribute to society in new ways. Given my 45-plus years in this space and my engagement with over half of the Fortune 500 discussing the opportunities and challenges for this stage of life, here are my projections and some ideas for you to capitalize on them for your Third Age encore careers.

Identify forward-thinking employers who are actually building talent acquisition and retention of older workers: For some of the readership who do want to stay with a larger Fortune 500 organization, consider those firms which have concrete programs in place to support older employees. As Merck had a seven-year run as Fortune’s Most Admired Company across all verticals,³ I am not surprised of their innovative programming of phased retirement where these programs allow older employees to gradually reduce their working hours while maintaining a portion of their income and benefits.

The value proposition for Merck is retaining experienced talent. In turn, the benefits for employees is the stability of continued employment with the gradual transition to retirement for those who are not ready for full retirement, either financially or personally.⁴

Explore the gig economy: While some older employees might want to work beyond the traditional retirement age to provide financial support for projected longer life spans, they do not necessarily want to go all in as they did during their Second Age period. Rather, working for nine months and then taking off three is an appealing career value proposition and what the ever-growing gig economy provides.

With data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting the overall median age in the pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing sector to be about 42 years,⁵ many of you likely have time to begin planning for your transition into your Third Age. So perhaps invest some weekend hours becoming familiar with “gig” platforms (Upwork, Fiverr, Freelance.com, a-Connect, et al.) and pursue a few small projects to become familiar operating in the gig economy.

Create a new holistic mindset for your own Third Age encore career: As the concept of ageism has evolved since Dr. Robert Butler first coined the phrase in 1968,⁶ leading employers are deploying programs for employees to redefine their encore careers. Individuals should create a personalized life plan that builds both their mental and physical strengths to participate in such offerings.⁷

For instance, Northrop Grumman’s iReturn℠ program is designed to translate the skills and experience employees have developed and provide a path for experienced professionals to return to work after a career break of two or more years.⁸ This timeline is especially valuable for sandwich generation employees who might need to provide eldercare for their parents. And it can also change the perception and fear of employees who take time off to care for their loved ones.

About the Author

Michael Wong is a Part-time Lecturer for the Wharton Communication Program at the University of Pennsylvania. As an Emeritus Co-President and board member of the Harvard Business School Healthcare Alumni Association as well as a Contributing Writer for the MIT Sloan Career Development Office, Michael’s ideas have been shared in the Harvard Business Review and MIT Sloan Management Review.

References

1. https://www.pharmaceuticalcommerce.com/view/embracing-the-60-plus-economy

2. Mikhail, Alexa, Silver lining: The U.S. workforce has more employees over 65 than ever before and it could mean great things for the bottom line, Fortune, January 26, 2024

3. https://www.hbs.edu/leadership/20th-century-leaders/details?profile=p_roy_vagelos

4. https://www.theretirementgroup.com/featured-article/5448115/why-merck-employees-65-and-older-are-still-working-full-time

5. https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat18b.htm

6. https://www.cuimc.columbia.edu/news/robert-n-butler-pioneer-study-aging

7. https://agewave.com/product/what-retirees-want/

8. iReturn: The Northrop Grumman Returnship Program | Northrop Grumman