Jobseekers in their 30s and 40s have begun slimming down their resumes to reflect only the past 10 years of experience and limiting their public work history on LinkedIn and professional websites, according to Business Insider.
Online resume advice gurus are also encouraging middle-aged jobseekers to hide clues that could give away their age. It can be tricky when many companies require applicants to share their college graduation year, but it has become a survival tactic for mid-career employees trying to avoid appearing too inexperienced or too experienced.
Even the AARP recommends “age-proofing” your resume. They also suggest focusing on the past 10 years of your career and getting rid of signs that inadvertently reveal one’s age like an @aol.com or @yahoo.com email addresses.
About 90% of workers over 40 say they’ve experienced ageism, according to a 2024 survey by Resume Now. Research shows that AI can exacerbate discrimination on the basis of race and gender in the hiring process, and hiring platform Workday is being sued for its screening technology that allegedly discriminates against candidates by age. The company has repeatedly denied the allegations.
Leverage your experience
Author and New York University Stern School of Business professor Suzy Welch shared some advice for older jobseekers on her podcast Becoming You in November.
While she didn’t mention anything about hiding your age, she said the key to winning over hiring managers is proving you can match younger candidates’ stamina and cultural fluency while showing off your industry know-how.
She encouraged people of all ages to form so-called “irregular relationships” and get comfortable speaking with younger and older people who could be potential coworkers. For older candidates, understanding younger people can convince hiring managers that you’re a good “cultural fit.”
“[Gen Z and young millennials] have a totally different language. They care about totally different things. They have a totally different sense of humor,” she said.
Welch also advised more experienced candidates to stop focusing on past experiences in interviews and look towards the future.
“Your currency is your currency,” she said, adding that keeping up with market, industry and geopolitical trends is a must for older candidates. “You have to prove that your currency is forward thinking. It’s out ahead. And that’s true of everybody, but the onus is much higher on the oldsters.”
She explained that it’s easier for hiring to assume that older candidates are stuck in their ways and less likely to adapt to a new company. “What they’re afraid of is your wealth of knowledge about what’s been.”
Welch urged jobseekers to articulate what they can do that younger people can’t do. Naturally, older candidates are better at recognizing patterns because they have more experience, which makes making decisions easier, she said.
“You can navigate a crisis because you have been through so many. If you’ve been around in the workplace, you’ve seen hard times,” she said.
