The Tech Industry’s New Friend: Boomers

The 49-year-old engineer applied for the tech company job, not expecting much to happen. For years, he’d received rejection letters from big tech firms, often overlooked in favor of hires he perceived as less experienced. Then one day, he got a big surprise: The firm wanted to hire him.

At a rate that defies common conceptions about Silicon Valley, tech firms are starting to snap up older workers. Hirings of employees with over 10 years of experience rose by 27% from 2023 to 2024, according to a new analysis by venture firm SignalFire. It jumped 40% for those with five to 10 years under their belt. Meanwhile, hiring for new grads is down 25%, again turning conventional wisdom on its head. “An experienced applicant is very likely to beat out a new grad,” says Paul Fogel, sector leader for professional search in the Software practice at Korn Ferry.

Fogel says the shift may have more to do with a tightening job market in tech than any new appeal for older workers. For over a year now, there’s been a lull in tech hiring, with tech firms eliminating 214,000 jobs in April, while the national unemployment rate held steady. The sector is still also in the shadow of over-hiring new grads in 2021 and 2022, for which some firms are now correcting. Meanwhile, many tech firms have reduced their onboarding and on-site training programs since the pandemic, discouraging them from bringing in too many green employees, while increasing the appeal of already-up-to-speed job candidates.

Whatever the causes, the timing for new openings for older workers, especially boomers, couldn’t be better. Many have either put off or plan to put off their retirement because of tightening economic conditions. According to one survey last year, two-thirds of workers say they are planning for a “phased retirement” by gradually reducing how much they work over several years.

Tech company start-ups, of course, have always been a tough landscape for older employees; many rank-and-file employees don’t see opportunities to join start-ups until a fast-growing company has expanded significantly, five or 10 years later. “As they mature, they bring in people at a variety of different ages,” says Dan Petrossi, senior client partner in the Global Technology practice at Korn Ferry. These days the industry is particularly friendly to retirement-aged executive experts such as chief revenue officers, who often have retired from operational roles but serve as interim executives or coaches, and are popular in private-equity backed companies.

Entry- and junior-level roles are still posted, but experts worry with more experienced workers snagging those jobs, tech firms may face long-term issues not having younger workers ready to take over. “When someone picks up and leaves, the company has to rebuild that expertise,” says Matt Bohn, senior client partner in the Technology practice at Korn Ferry. He notes that staff trimming is not restricted to new grads. Firms are also cutting high-end roles like chief innovation officer. “These roles are a little fuzzier, and viewed as more discretionary,” he says.

For those who want to continue being swiftly hired in tech, experts advise sticking to highly-sought specialties, which have avoided the impact of the current tech hiring trends. “People coming out of elite programs with AI or machine learning foci are getting hired, at all experience levels,” says Fogel.

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