How senior professionals are redefining career success  

Professionals aged 50 and over now make up one third of the UK workforce and are the fastest growing generation in employment. Globally, approximately 150 million jobs will shift to workers aged 55 and older by the end of the decade. Yet despite this seismic change, fewer than 4% of firms have committed programmes to integrate older workers into their talent systems.  

At FDM, we see the value that decades of leadership, resilience, and lived experience bring to organisations. We see how quickly skills can be transferred, how adaptable professionals are when given the platform to show it, and how powerful it is when experience meets opportunity.  

Many of our consultants come to us following redundancy, career breaks, or major life transitions. Others arrive looking to redirect their expertise into emerging areas such as digital transformation, AI and data. What they share is a desire to contribute, to grow and to remain relevant in a market that often overlooks them.  

This blog highlights four consultants whose journeys challenge outdated assumptions about age and capability.  

From the Royal Navy to technology transformation  

After nearly 30 years in the Royal Navy, Keith Furlong decided to take his skills in leadership, project management and change into a new environment. “I’d spent my career leading teams at sea and delivering large-scale transformation in naval training,” he explains. “When it was time to leave the service, I wanted to keep contributing, to use those same skills in a new way.”   

At FDM, he found a new way to apply that experience. “I’ve always been fascinated by technology,” he says. “In the Navy, I led teams delivering large-scale transformation projects, and I was responsible for providing and maintaining the equipment used for training. I provided training innovations using simulation and tech to replicate real-world conditions. That’s where my interest in change and digital transformation really began.”  

Keith has since worked across financial services, public sector and education industries, helping organisations modernise systems, strengthen governance, and deliver digital transformation at scale.   

Redefining relevance after 60  

For Stuart Morris, the path to reinvention began after three decades of leading high-profile IT programmes across finance, retail, and pharmaceuticals. When he unexpectedly found himself back on the job market, he quickly discovered how age can quietly influence opportunity.  

“The FDM Returners Programme didn’t just offer me a job. It gave me a platform to be seen again. In a market where older professionals often feel invisible, that recognition mattered more than any title.”   

Today, Stuart works as an IT Programme Manager for a global law firm, delivering complex technology integrations and helping shape digital strategy. His approach to staying relevant? He kept certifications current, developed fresh delivery playbooks, and used consultancy engagements to stay hands-on with modern stacks and ways of working. That combination, recent proof of practice plus live credentials, helped him cut through bias and land senior programme mandates after 60.   

“Older professionals offer something AI can’t: perspective, judgement, and calmness under pressure. But staying relevant takes more than experience—it takes openness. Openness to learning, to new tools, to reshaping how you present your value.”   

Rebuilding confidence after redundancy  

Rob Riley spent 31 years working as a digital business analyst for a global bank. When the company moved their BA function overseas, Rob was made redundant and found himself on the job market at the age of 58.  

Looking for a job for the first time in over three decades is a daunting prospect. Like many others in his age group, Rob felt that his age was a barrier to finding a new role.  

He chose not to step back, but to step forward. Through FDM, he re-entered the workforce and is now working for a large public sector client, leading the rollout and adoption of Copilot across the organisation. He’s become a subject matter expert in the technology, educating over 9,000 civil servants on how to get the most out of AI tools.  

“A lot of people are scared by what they don’t know, but if you treat everything as a learning opportunity and are eager to learn, you can learn a lot!”  

Rob’s story shows what’s possible when experience meets opportunity. Read his full story here.  

From motherhood to management  

Malek Labbane had a successful career as a SAP consultant and delivery manager working for top-tier companies around the globe before multiple caring needs at home necessitated a career break. Over the next 12 years, she became a stay-at-home mother of two while running her own interior design studio.   

The time away had taken a toll on her confidence, and she found herself doubting her credentials after her 12-year hiatus. She had almost given up hope of ever returning to a corporate role when she attended a women returners webinar and came across FDM. Meeting other returners and hearing their stories, some with over 20-year career breaks, reassured her that she could do it too.  

FDM helped her overcome her imposter syndrome and thrive in her new role. She’s now working as a SAP Product Owner for a retail client. Looking back at her career journey and how far she’s come, Malek quotes Sir Edmund Hillary. Her advice for potential returners? “Believe in yourself and go for it. It is possible!”  

Read more about her journey here.  

Breaking misconceptions  

When asked about misconceptions surrounding older professionals, Keith believes: “There’s this idea that older generations struggle with new technology or can’t adapt. But my generation has been at the forefront of change, from the invention of computers and mobile phones to the rise of the internet and AI. We’ve lived through, and driven, the biggest technological shifts in history.”  

His message to younger professionals? “Don’t write us off—learn from us. Much of what drives innovation today builds on ideas from the past. Experience is an incredible resource if you’re willing to tap into it.”  

Summary  

At FDM, we believe multigenerational teams are a strength. The journeys of Keith, Stuart, Rob and Malek show that age doesn’t limit innovation, adaptability or ambition. With the right training, support and platform, experienced professionals don’t just return to work, they thrive. 

Are you a senior professional looking for your next role?   

Discover how FDM careers programmes can help you get back to work.