The Boomers Are Leaving! Course Technology PTR Book Explores Ways to Stop the Brain Drain

BOSTON, June 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Course Technology PTR, part of Cengage Learning and a leading publisher of professional, technical and reference materials, today announced the publication of Surviving the Boomer Exodus: Capturing Knowledge for Gen X and Y Employees by Ken Ball and Gina Gotsill. The book details how organizations are at risk to lose critical knowledge when highly skilled Baby Boomer managers, professionals and craftspeople retire, and outlines methods for transferring knowledge to the next generation of workers. The book also discusses generational trends and learning preferences, types of knowledge in the workplace, and the benefits of creating a culture that encourages collaboration and knowledge-sharing across an organization.

There were approximately 76 million births in the United States from 1946 to 1964, the years commonly called the "baby boom." When these boomers retire, they will take with them invaluable skills and expertise. Authors Ken Ball, a boomer, and Gina Gotsill, a member of Gen X, are longtime followers of workplace trends, and in the book show how demographics will work against certain U.S. industries, such as power and utilities, oil and gas, manufacturing, government, education and healthcare. Despite the media coverage of boomers and how a tidal wave of retirements could impact business, many senior managers are turning a blind eye to the issue.

"Company leaders need to make knowledge retention a priority ... and soon, or they may face significant challenges when they realize the value of the knowledge that's walked out the door," said Ball. "The smartest companies are already planning for this as the next major challenge in the workforce. They realize the skills and expertise of 76 million Baby Boomers, some of whom will begin retiring next year, is too critical to lose."

Surviving the Boomer Exodus is a practical, step-by-step guide that managers and leaders can use to analyze their workforce and the impact retirements could have on business continuity. This book will explore methods for assessing a company's knowledge gaps and explain how to create a knowledge retention, transfer and retrieval plan. Using templates, checklists and case studies, Ball and Gotsill show organizational leaders how to design a knowledge transfer program, create a pilot, implement their solution and evaluate its effectiveness. The authors cover an array of techniques, including mentoring, communities of practice and social networks, giving leaders the information they need to stem the loss of intellectual capital now and in the future.

For more information on Surviving the Boomer Exodus: Capturing Knowledge for Gen X and Y Employees, or to purchase the book, please visit www.courseptr.cengage.com.

About Cengage Learning and Course Technology PTR

Cengage Learning is a leading provider of innovative teaching, learning and research solutions for the academic, professional and library markets worldwide. Course Technology PTR (Professional – Technical – Reference) was formed in 2001 as the retail division of Course Technology. The Course Technology PTR imprint provides learning solutions for hobbyists and professionals interested in learning more about business, music technology, game development, animation, graphic design, programming, certification and a variety of other how-to and technology topics. For more information please visit www.cengage.com or www.courseptr.cengage.com.  

About the Authors

Gina Gotsill is a Gen X writer with degrees in journalism from San Francisco State University and University of California, Berkeley. She is also a fellow of the Poynter Institute, a journalism think tank based in St. Petersburg, Florida. Gina has covered a wide range of business topics that include keeping Boomer skills in the workplace, teaching finance to non-finance professionals, and growth and change in urban and suburban business districts.

Ken Ball is a Baby Boomer and has been closely following aging in the workplace with curiosity for years. At TechProse, the consulting firm where he does business development, Ken tracks knowledge and content management, including training and documentation, for major U.S. clients. He has more than 30 years experience in corporate sales and marketing, including years in the book publishing business, working for IDG Books, publishers of the ...For Dummies computer and general reference books. He has a B.S. in Marketing-Speech Communications from Bradley University.

For more information about Ball and Gotsill and Surviving the Boomer Exodus, please visit their website www.survivingtheboomerexodus.com.

SOURCE Cengage Learning