The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) says businesses must prepare for a future where four generations of employees work side-by-side, due to escalating retirement ages.

Publishing new research involving more than 900 employers, it said businesses will be at a competitive disadvantage unless they start planning for changes now.

According to the research, less than a third of employees said they foresaw no problem in working with colleagues from different generations. In terms of benefits, most people pointed to inter-generational knowledge sharing.

Meanwhile, just over three in 10 bosses said they took a reactive, as opposed to proactive stance, to issues arise from the UK’s aging population. More than a third said they did “nothing” to ensure access skills from a diverse workforce.

Claire McCartney, research adviser at the CIPD, said: “Despite well-publicised skills shortages and low productivity, our research shows that businesses are not doing enough to recruit from an increasingly age diverse talent pool.

“And even amongst those companies that are, many simply aren’t equipped to manage their age diverse teams in order to maximise their potential. This is a missed opportunity and could put businesses at a serious disadvantage in a four-generation future.”