That's true among older workers, too, says John Pallotta, an application and information services analyst at National City Corp., a financial-services firm with $99 billion in assets. "They're very protective of what they know because of job security. They don't want to be pushed out because they earn more than a younger person." Pallotta, who graduated less than two years ago from Ohio State University, works in mainframe support. Of the 250 employees in his division, only 10 are in their 20s or 30s, and age-based stereotyping is rampant, he says. Many older staffers see younger co-workers as lazy kids who surf the Internet all day, while a lot of younger staffers view older colleagues as unwilling to take the time to explain what they know.

IT work, especially for older folks, has been solitary. But younger people are being taught in college how to work on a team. "When I got my degree in IS, a big part of the education was in teamwork," Pallotta says. When the two generations connect, "you have to earn their respect, and then it's all right."

It's not just the youngsters who have to prove themselves. Older workers have to show that they're able to move on to new technologies. The axiom that you can't teach an old dog new tricks is false, Lab Corp.'s Meilahn says. "The guys and gals who know the older technologies, like Cobol and DB2, latch on really quickly to new technologies. Logic is logic." What's more, he says, it's easier to teach older staffers about new technologies than it is to teach young arrivals about the business.

Learning new technologies isn't always enough. Jess Hartmann, CIO and VP at IT training company New Horizons Computer Learning Centers Inc., recently let go an older .Net developer. "He was one of those guys who could pick up any technology and run with it, but he had an air of superiority over the younger guys, even though they were working harder and for less money," he says. "We hated to lose him and his knowledge, but everyone said it was the best for the project."

Hartmann, CIO and VP at New Horizons, recently let go an older, knowledgeable .Net developer for the good of the team because of his "air of superiority over the younger guys."

Whatever the stated reason for a firing or a layoff, people sometimes believe age is the real reason. Last year, Ted Williams was among seven of eight top managers fired at Compass America, an IT consulting firm. "There was a concerted effort to get the age down," because Compass America thought its clients were "more interested in the recent MBAs," Williams says. The timing couldn't have been worse: He was given one hour to pack his things on Sept. 10. "After 20 years of not missing a day of work, I woke up to work on my resumé on Sept. 11."

Williams and a few former co-workers established the Global Information Partners consulting group, marketing themselves as IT pros with 20 years of experience each. It's a successful strategy. Not only have Home Depot Corp. and the Department of Defense signed on, but clients of his old company are working with Global Information Partners.

What about the untested skills of younger workers? "The hot ideas come from the senior folks, but I do get a kick out of going down to Georgia Tech," Williams says. "Those bright, unleashed minds can come out with some cool stuff."

Getting IT staffers of different ages to work together is the challenge for everyone, but the rewards can be enormous, both for the company and for its employees. Lab Corp.'s Meilahn says a successful multigeneration IT organization is like a family reunion: "Sooner or later, everyone jumps in the water, the teenagers are playing pool with the geezers, and age disappears."

Illustration by Jon Conrad
Photo of Jess Hartmann by Beth Herzhaft