Beyond the Numbers: Including Age in Representation and Diversity Efforts

The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.

By Jala Morrow
July 29, 2024

Representation in government helps to produce effective and efficient governance and administration. Diversity and inclusion efforts allow various perspectives to be incorporated into decisions and policies that directly impact people, public programs and services. Rightfully so, we often see race and gender highlighted as essential factors of representation and diversity in public agencies. While race and gender are critical components in representative and diverse governance, we should strive to include age as an equally important factor for consideration and measurement.

Race and gender statistics and data offer visualizations and snapshots of the public sector workforce, demonstrating that progress has been made towards increasing representation and diversity. However, the emphasis on age is often lacking, creating very real and usually harmful consequences. For example, new employees may immediately recognize the race and gender of their colleagues, managers, supervisors and executives. However, new talent may also identify that they are much younger or older than the other individuals in the organization. This can create a lack of comfort and increased hesitation to connect. As a result, new hires may wonder how they can create meaningful connections with their coworkers. Without purposeful and productive connections, opportunities for improved effectiveness and efficiency may be missed.

Vital connections among employees of various ages offer space for unique perspectives to intertwine and coexist to share unique priorities, concerns and values. These relationships are significant as we see large waves of retiring government workers. Furthermore, past organizational structures may be eliminated as tenured employees leave the organization for retirement or other opportunities. Then, more nuanced and comprehensive structures, behaviors and understandings can be nurtured to improve government and governance. Tending to the public’s needs and desires can be strengthened by welcoming mixed generational perspectives of the administrators and bureaucrats who serve the public in various capacities.

Opportunities to integrate intergenerational discussions and viewpoints cultivate improved organizational performance and service to citizens through inclusive policies and procedures. These benefits can be realized through offering participation in mentorship, program evaluation and policymaking. These avenues can assist in supporting employees in their entire identities. Our identities, including our age and generational identity, influence how we interact and engage at work.

Who we are is directly connected to what and how we are, depending on where we are. Age shapes perspectives, experiences, understandings and insights. Organizations can welcome this variety from onboarding and orientation to regular and routine recognitions. As such, organizations should design efforts to demonstrate their appreciation of various identities and demographic factors. Furthermore, supporting intergenerational perspectives can limit and mitigate the negative consequences of ageism. Age discrimination is real, although it may not be as apparent as other forms of discrimination.

So, what does it really mean? Age is “just a number,” but it represents a lot, including identity. Age is a significant number; it is a crucial factor to consider when planning representation and diversity organizational goals. We must adjust and broaden organizational practices to properly attain and achieve equity in our policies and programs. Therefore, considering and prioritizing age in administrative and bureaucratic representation and diversity is critical and imperative. By ignoring the importance of age and its impacts on the public sector workforce, the needs and desires of the public will not be genuinely addressed and fulfilled.

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Author: Jala Morrow is a Public Administration and Policy Ph.D. student at the University of Texas at Arlington. Jala was also a Founders’ Fellow, Class of 2023.

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