Age is just a Number!

I recently attended the NASSCOM India Leadership Forum in Mumbai.  Being amidst the who’s who of the IT Industry; it gave me a great sense of belonging. I was proud and happy to be home. I then read an article in a periodic publication which said, “SIGNS of middle age were obvious at a recent gathering… It was hard to spot anyone close to India’s median age of 26.” This got me thinking. Does age really matter? The instant debate that began in my mind was inescapable.

Majority of the successful honchos present across the country today are from the older lot, falling in the age group of 50 years and above. But with that age, comes wisdom and abilities to follow direction, mentor those present around, and lead. One reason that counts in their favour is the substantial bit of experience that they have garnered across the years. Such people also tend to be more pragmatic and loyal, and understand the importance of being team players. 

Having said that, looking at it from a different angle, very recently I read about Google’s Andy Rubin, who had been heading the company’s Android division, stepped down and was replaced by Sundar Pichai. Pichai is an IIT Kharagpur alumnus who also heads Google’s Chrome division.

I accept as true that younger workers have more energy and are sometimes more creative. But there is a lot they can only know until they gain considerable experience. Furthermore, these talented young adults are not merely workers. They are also more likely to be entrepreneurs, forming the next generation of companies that not only power metropolitan but also contribute in national growth.

Moreover, a lot of CEOs who are running successful companies are in their 40s and 70s. Many of them think that age has little to do with success and leadership. What matters far more is whether executives see the heart of their career and accomplishments ahead of them or behind.

So at one end there are the young, who find themselves intimidated by the more, experienced and the brainy lot while the newcomers come across as being far smart and faster than veterans believe they themselves are.

As the industries across the world prove that with time evolving continuously, the expertise and opportunities are persistently increasing and hence we see younger CEO’s and MD’s taking over on the top panel of various big organizations. However, it also shows that the age of initiation into the ‘CEO group’ is decreasing and that day is not far when conclaves of experts across industries would see a large group of 20-somethings taking the lead. And it’s yet to be seen how things fare for all.