Also taking on older people and continuing to invest in training - that has been Numac's strength for two decades. Besides success, it also earned them the Senior Power Prize 2007.
Problem: The Netherlands is ageing and so is the workplace
Solution: A well thought-out sustainable human resources policy. Consider the timely deployment of reintegration and career paths.
Investment: Hiring , training and coaching people of all ages
Yield: A mix where experienced staff and younger staff work together and learn from each other
On machines you write off, on people you add. Under that motto, Ger Camp started his own company specialising in machine maintenance 23 years ago. The group of companies now consists of two divisions: Numac International and Numac Netherlands. Six hundred people are employed in the Netherlands alone, 45 percent of whom are older than 45.
The Venray company may have grown enormously, but that original motto still applies within Numac, guarantees Wim Bisschop, head of HR. Isn't the company struggling with an ageing workforce? Not according to Bisschop. 'We do have an older workforce, but we don't struggle with that. We are not concerned with age, population group or male or female. What we find important is whether someone is a good fit for the job. We also hire older applicants and continue to invest in training for our employees.'
Bisschop sees no disadvantages to this way of working. Older employees may be ill for a little longer on average, but young people are more often on the sick list. Added and subtracted, the absenteeism for young and older employees is the same. Managers know in time whether someone can still handle the work. 'Numac Nederland works very regionally. Each manager has about thirty employees under him, and he knows them. He knows what is going on in his private life, with the children or with his health. The moment we see something coming, say someone has weak knees, we take that into account. For example, by ensuring that someone is so well trained that he can grow into a next position.'
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Knowledge transfer
The result of this corporate culture is that Numac can match veterans with less experienced colleagues. 'The older employees know a lot of machinery inside and out. Young people can learn from that.' Another added advantage is that expertise that has been built up over decades is not lost overnight. 'Our collective labor agreement states that employees can take early retirement from the age of 62. But a lot of people ask whether they can continue, because stopping work from one day to the next is also such a big step. People who are 65 also sometimes continue to work for us on an on-call basis. For example, we had someone who retired at 65. A week later, a customer specifically asked for him for a repair in the Czech Republic. We once agreed in the Netherlands that we would stop working at 65, but that is nonsense.' These are typical issues where a career coach may well help.
The Senior Power Award is not the first recognition that Numac Nederland has received for its age-conscious personnel policy. The company was previously certified as Investors in People (IiP). 'What is interesting for us is the question of how an independent committee views our way of working', says Ilko Wiersma, head of marketing and communications at Numac. 'The longer you work here, the more normal things become. The Senior Power Award helps remind you that things are very well organised here. We agree with the jury's statement that if policy becomes culture, you no longer need policy.'
Offering outplacement for older people, both highly educated and less educated is also highly recommended in this case. CareerSolution offers outplacement in Amsterdam, Utrecht and The Hague.
