BABY BOOMER BRAIN DRAIN: Firms plan for impact of mass retirements
[5 May 2006 - Chicago Tribune] About once a month at International Truck and Engine Corp.'s headquarters in suburban Warrenville, Ill., a crowd gathers in a large room on the executive floor for cake and tributes to a retiring colleague. The occasion is a reminder of a worrisome reality. The truck maker's work force, like that of the nation, is swollen with employees approaching the end of their careers. More than half the company's 600 managers and executives will be eligible for retirement within five years, according to a 2004 report to the company's board. The finding jolted the company into action, spurring practices such as assigning younger employees to "shadow" veterans before the older workers retire. "All that knowledge is really important -- the culture, the relationships with customers," said Dan Ustian, chairman, president and chief executive officer of International and its parent, Navistar International Corp. "It's vital we get a head start." ...