IT has taken on the aura of a young person's game, but is age really so important to employers when they're weighing a candidate's value? Not necessarily, says Rick Gillis, an author and career expert. "It's about being able to demonstrate your accomplishments," he told CIO's Sharon Florentine. "Most IT firms want to know one of two things: Can you make them money or can you save them money? Then they'll want to hire you, regardless of your age." Click here to see banking-related tech jobs. Indeed, that's something of a consensus among tech recruiters and hiring managers: They want candidates to show them how their work will benefit the bottom line. Consequently, it's important for candidates of any age to know the business impact of their work. For example, Gillis spoke of a former client who'd written nearly 10,000 lines of code for a bank, but couldn't quantify the results of his work. Spurred to dig, he discovered the code fixed some major security flaws with the bank's ATMs, eliminating the need for expensive service calls. As a result, the firm saved more than $500,000 per year. That's the kind of result that gets employers' attention. Keeping up to date is also critical. Many experienced tech professionals deride new technologies as "flavors of the month," but taking that attitude risks tripping yourself up. Companies want their employees to be adaptable and willing to learn new things. "If you've been looking for a job for six months, you have to realize how much has happened in that time—learn about emerging technology. Know the terminology," Gillis said. "Be able to show that you've added to your knowledge and your skills." Mike Capone, CIO at ADP, agreed. "Age, in and of itself, doesn't matter, but adaptability does," he told Florentine. "That's not always a skill you're born with, but it can be learned."

Related Articles

• How to Deal With Age Issues in an Interview
• Job Hunting Tricks for Older Tech Workers
• IT Job Hunting at 50: Stress Value of Your Experience

Image: Rido/Shutterstock.com