Coaching During the Transitioning Fifties: When the Traditional Employment Contract has been Broken or Work as We have Known It Doesn’t Work Anymore

J Matts International Journal of Coaching in Organizations 2008

In this article the author explores the role that can be played by coaches for those organizational leaders in their 50’s who are making career decisions, having walked away from positions they have been performing for decades. They are leaving industries or firms where they have enjoyed long tenure, often losing their employment before they were ready. Corporate America continues to be characterized by chronic organizational change, including reorganizations, downsizing, right-sizing, mergers and acquisitions, rising healthcare costs and other workplace changes. At the same time, professionals in their 50’s can find themselves confronted with optional or mandatory retirement, redefining themselves as a result, and creating a new path for the ‘next chapter’. Small business ownership is on the rise, and many who find themselves in this place are looking for careers that blend their skills and create different options and life style changes.