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When Greg Giczi retired in February, his company threw him a party. Giczi had spent 12 years as president and general manager of WNIT-TV, a public television station based in South Bend, Indiana. Public broadcasting isnt known for lavish budgets, so the party took place at the studioa big, open space with dramatic lighting, Giczi describes. There were appetizers, wine, and beer, as well as heartfelt speeches. A huge snowstorm hit that night. But that didnt stop a roomful family, coworkers, and others from coming out to celebrate Giczi; one person traveled over two-and-a-half hours. The board knew Giczi had been eyeing some electronics, so they gave him a nice gift card to Best Buy. I was very humbled, says Giczi, heartened by colleagues attendance and kind words, especially on such a miserable weather night. That was significant and especially meaningful to me, he says. But these days, such a send-off capping a career lifetime feels increasingly . . . uncommon. A couple decades ago, a successful career went like this: Join company. Work there. For decades. Announce retirement from the same company. Company throws you a big party. Live happily ever after. A gold watch may even be involved in a tradition that reportedly dates back to the 40s. But when you think about how many similar events have dotted your calendar in recent memory, that story feels more like a fairy tale. (Especially that gold watch part.) Today, the workplace experience is instead marked by job-hopping, mass layoffs, dragging staff back into offices kicking and screaming, and the employee-employer contract feels more fraught than ever. Not to mention more folks arent even retiring in the first place. Shifting expectations While theres no entity that tracks workplace parties and their attendance, other data indicate that the changes in workplace recognition (like retirement parties) are real and complex. With remote and hybrid work more common, the days of employees toiling together under one roof are largely gone, even with return-to-office mandates. Plus, data from a 2023 HubSpot survey found that a whopping two-thirds of the 5,000 workers surveyed said they feel disconnected from their coworkers. In the hybrid work world, its more likely that people may not even know who some of their coworkers even arelet alone whos retiring, and when. A 2025 study published in the Journal of Vocational Behavior found that people who worked on-site rather than hybrid felt more of a sense of belonging with the people at work. In addition, attitudes about company gatherings seem to have changed, too. A 2023 survey by HR software platform Visier found that nearly two-thirds (64%) of respondents have either cut back on company events or stopped going altogether. Additionally, a tolerance for forced fun, especially among Gen Z workers, feels at an all-time low, too: Nearly seven in 10 (69%) would prefer a larger annual bonus to attending a holiday party at all. On top of that, more seniors are choosing to continue work via side gigs, and are retiring laterif at all. In many ways, the fading grandeur of the retirement party is a strange encapsulation of several threads in the workplace, each one having profoundly changed peoples professional lives in recent years. Taking an individualized approach As a result, some companies are more intentional about tailoring that recognition to the employee and the team, rather than some ideal of a company night out at a posh restaurant or country club, a practice which had already been on the decline for decades. For example, Atlanta-based accounting and advisory firm Smith + Howard is planning to honor a longtime employee with an in-office retirement celebration this quarter. But CEO Sean Taylor says that, while this particular employee loves that kind of gathering, not everyone might. For more introverted folks, getting a cavity filled might sound more fun. Not to paint with a general broad brush stroke, but many accountants tend to be a little more reserved, he says. So over the years, Taylor says other retirees have opted for less grandiose celebrations in favor of lunch with a few close coworkers, a donation made in their name to a favorite charity, or even just an email recognition that went out to the team. We want to honor what they want to, because it’s as much about them and their individual careers, Taylor says. Knowing your employees and what they prefer is an important part of being a good leader, he adds. Thats good advice, especially considering how a few years ago, NBC News reported that a Kentucky man with an anxiety disorder won a $450,000 award after fallout from an unwanted birthday celebration his former employer threw for him. Party on (but watch the cost) But despite the transformations at work, event planner Lisa Ivler says that retirement parties are very much still a thing. She helps companies plan them regularly. Recently, Ivler planned a send-off for the founder of an architecture firm who spent nearly five decades in his business. The event was held at a luxe, New York City venue, and had a catered dinner, with live entertainment to boot. Images of his lifes work were projected on the walls. The entire company, former employees, and family members were invited; it was a wonderful evening that truly captured his legacy, she says. She says that retirement celebrations still happenbut some organizations budgets might not allow for fancy restaurants and expensive gifts, or be as splashy as the NYC event. Research backs up that notion: A May 2025 PwC survey found that economic volatility has 62% of companies cutting costs, adjusting financial forecasts, and shifting suppliers. Still, she thinks that the intent is the point. We really cant lose these taditions. People spend so much of their lives working, she says. Retirement parties are just one way to really honor that individual and the impact that they’ve made. Some are still celebrating Currently, the job market is tight: the present trend is job hugging, in which nearly half of U.S. workers are hanging onto their roles for dear life. But generally speaking, job-hopping has become significantly more common in recent years across many industries (though Gallup data from 2024 shows that job tenure hasnt actually changed that much over the decades). Either way, there are some sectors that will always love honoring its retireeslike academia, says business etiquette expert Carla Bevins, who teaches business management communication at Carnegie Mellon Universitys Tepper School of Business. Faculty often spend decades at the same institution, she says. Retirement celebrations mark that sustained contribution and create a bridge between the past and future of the institution. Wake Forest University uses its annual celebration of each years retirees as a sort of induction into the universitys retiree group, says Mary Lucal, the schools vice president and chief human resources officer. She says the university gets access to the institutional knowledge [the retirees] carry. Many even return to the university to work part-time. Thats a common refrain among retirees these days, regardless of industry. A 2022 AARP survey found that 57% of older adults who havent yet retired plan to delay retirement for financial reasons. Twenty-nine percent of retirees 50 and older already are employed or plan to continue working. More recent data from this year found that 6% of retired people returned to work in the last six months alone. So, more people are working longer, and some might plan to continue working even after they announce their retirement. And thats not as easy as it sounds. Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas says job cuts this year are at their highest level since the pandemic, and up 55% over last year. A small survey from Resume.org estimates that six in 10 companies may lay off employees next year. Throwing a fancy party when youre also cutting staffeven in the name of honoring someones years of servicemay not be a good look. Companies arent the only ones seeing the impact of cost-cutting pressures. In the 2025 Meetings Today Trends survey, meeting and event planners reported their top three challenges as: increasing cost (90%), lower budgets (45%), and declining attendance (31%). Some folks on social media dont even want to go to their own retirement parties, let alone one for someone else. Its all about the message So, retirement parties arent really dead. But they look different than the fancy roast and toast soirees that often come to mind at their mention. Giczi says these events have never been one-size-fits-all. Organizations have always done things according to their own cultures. How they treat retirement is just one facet of that culture. The point is that doing something to recognize people when theyre leaving sends a message to the entire organization.It says, We value you, and we want to acknowledge what you contribute to your organization, rather than, Well, thanks. Heres your final check, he says. And that sends a message to the folks who are still at the companyand how the organization values them.
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E-Commerce
Below, Eric Becker shares five key insights from his new book, The Long Game: A Playbook of the Worlds Most Enduring Companies. Eric is the founder and chairman at Cresset, an award-winning multi-family office with billions in assets under management. He also co-founded Sterling Partners, a value-added, growth private equity firm. With his long history of starting, backing, and nurturing companies, Eric advises founders, entrepreneurs, private equity partners, and ultra-high worth families. Whats the big idea? Companies that last not one generation, not two, but for a hundred years and beyond share certain things in common. It is no accident when a company ends up lasting, rather than being sold. What it takes is setting your business up intentionally for the long game. Listen to the audio version of this Book Biteread by Eric himselfbelow, or in the Next Big Idea App. 1. Recognize a moment of truth Businesses dont fail for a lack of vision. They usually fail because of a lack of great execution. Its knowing what to do and when to do it that makes all the difference. Thats a moment of truth. Im fascinated with moments of truth. In a lifetime, how many moments of truth might there be? Its probably less than 20, or maybe less than a dozen. Theres just not that many of them. Learning to identify a moment of truth is an incredibly important skillwhether its deciding where to live, who to marry, choosing a career, or what kind of company to start. Every leader faces critical moments of truth, but recognizing when you are faced with that decision is essential. The ability to not only see and accept that you must act but also recognize when you shouldnt. A moment of truth is what follows. A Centurion has this special talent of recognizing moments of truth and making the necessary pivots. They learn who they can trust in these moments and make critical, tough decisions. If you make the right decision in a moment of truth, it can change everything. 2. Adopt a myth-busting mindset Centuries-old businesses are often seen as dusty, bureaucratic, or slow and resistant to change. But Ive found its the complete opposite. Centurions are some of the most agile, adaptive, and forward-thinking organizations in the world. Theyve mastered the art of adaptation because their very existence depends on it. Companies today that will likely outlive the next century share the same qualities. This is the idea of embracing resiliency, adaptability, and vision. Legacy organizations have a great sense of urgency. They dont tolerate poor performance, and they dont sit on their laurels. They have a sense of priority, importance, and timing. Centurions are some of the most agile, adaptive, and forward-thinking organizations in the world. Take a business like Ferragamo, or families like the Vanderbilts who have operated the historic 130-year-old Biltmore Estate since 1895, and even the famous Smuckers Family. On the surface, they might seem like echoes of the past, rooted in history and resistant to change. But dig a little deeper and youll see theyve survived through war, the Great Depression, the Great Recession, the Pandemic, natural disasters, competition, technologyyou name it, theyve seen it all. A myth-busting mindset helped them survive. Think about what stereotype you are working against. How can you break the myth? How can you hone that survival instinct to do whatever it takes to change perception and move your company forward? 3. Be a super steward Embracing stewardship supersedes any other mission-critical priority. Very few leaders or families truly understand what this means when we say it. Stewardship is recognizing that the enterprise is greater than any one individual in the organization, including you. Every decision you make is made with the understanding that this move will protect and preserve the company for generations to come. Thats not how most entrepreneurs and even many family businesses operate. As a result, there is a crisis happening in America right now involving succession. But when you consistently demonstrate that stewardship supersedes everything else within your organization, that ethos ripples into every facet of your organization and becomes ingrained within your business or family and onto the next generation. Its a big mindset shift, but stewardship has the power to become the protective shield for everything you love most. Thats how you start to build your legacy. Ive seen it time and again: when employees understand and are included in their companys mission and principles, and believe in it themselves, theyre proven to be more committed. Youre essentially building a dedicated army of stewards, passionately carrying out the founders vision. 4. Have a succession plan The best CEOs and leaders realize its not about them. Its about everyone else. They look at the organization or the family and realize that they are responsible for bringing this business into the future. Only one-third of family-owned businesses make it to the second generation, and just 12 percent survive to the third. I had grown up in a family business. My father started a company that lasted for 53 years, which was amazing. But he didnt have a succession plan. Ultimately, the company had to be sold. What had been missing? What had my dad needed to pass his business on? Ethical succession is seen in these 100-year-plus businesses. Having a viable, thoughtful, and ethical long-term succession plan is a critical part of being a steward. Only one-third of family-owned businesses make it to the second generation, and just 12 percent survive to the third. There is nothing that matters more to me than my own family and business knowing and trusting that the value Ive placed on the plan ahead will carry them forward for generations. The family office has to evolve in order to survive. 5. Build centurion culture from day one To break through and to get ahead, culture is critical. Centurions were the commanders that led 100 soldiers in the Roman army, and they didnt lead from behind. They led from up front. They were the strong leaders who set the culture for that group and took them forward into victory. When Avy Stein and I started Cresset, we put culture first and told people to act like owners. Now, 65 percent of Cresset is actually employee-owned. Our 100-year horizon shapes every decision, from technology to talent. From day one, we focused on questions like: What kind of company will we become? How will we treat each other? How will we treat customers and clients? We also told the first 10 team members tht we were on a 100-year journey together, which is what The Long Game is all about. When you build a company with that kind of long-term focus, you dont need an exit. Ironically, thats what makes it even more attractive, because its built to last, not to sell. We developed what we now call the culture card. We took all the principles and practices around great culture and put them all together on one card. Having a culture card is something that almost no business seems to do. And yet, it is the most important tool that weve used in building an organization in less than eight years to over $70 billion in assets under management. Enjoy our full library of Book Bitesread by the authors!in the Next Big Idea App. This article originally appeared in Next Big Idea Club magazine and is reprinted with permission.
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E-Commerce
On October 27, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that President Donald Trump has narrowed down his search to replace Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, whose term does not end until May 2026. Powell, who has butted heads with Trump over lowering interest rates amid the risk of increasing inflation, has said he will serve out the remainder of his term. After his term ends as chairman, his board term still extends until 2028. Trump is expected to announce a Federal Reserve chair replacement as early as December, according to reports. Were down to five,” Bessent told reporters as he was traveling with Trump on Air Force One, according to Yahoo Finance. “Were going to do a second round and we hope to present a good slate to the president right after Thanksgiving. . . . It will ultimately be his choice. Bessent said those five picks are: Michelle Bowman and Christopher Waller, both members of the Federal Reserves board of governers; Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council; Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor; and Rick Rieder, chief investment officer of global fixed income at BlackRock, according to several media outlets per CNBC. Trump’s choice must be confirmed by the Republican-controlled Senate. Like Powell, the new Fed chair will be charged with navigating inflation, the countrys weakening labor market, and stagnating growth. Fed members remain divided on whether the Trump administration’s economic policies, including high tariffs and a push for even lower interest rates, are helping or hurting the U.S. economy, CNN noted. Powell first became Fed chair in February 2018 and was reappointed for a second four-year term in May 2022. His term as a member of the Fed’s board of governors ends on January 31, 2028. Last month, he explained the Fed’s dilemma when it comes to cutting or raising interest rates: whether to use it to fight inflation or instead to help offset a struggling job market (while controlling prices and unemployment). We only have one tool, which is monetary policyreally, interest ratesand [the situation] is calling for different answers,” Powell said. “It’s a very difficult policy environment when your two goals are telling you two different things, you’ve got to make a compromise.”
Category:
E-Commerce
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