Age diversity at work means employing people of all ages and not discriminating against someone because of how old they are. The main factor in successfully delivering good practice is a genuine commitment by management to make sure that it is implemented and communicated throughout the organisation and beyond.

The initial reaction I had when discussing this topic with various businesses tended to be somewhat on the negative side. It's as if they are programmed to see any change that comes their way as something negative. But change can often work for the best and give a company a whole new lease of life. To stop this negativity we need to act differently in the way we receive and analyse information about change. We need to see and understand the whole picture from the perspective of a wide range of people, no matter how different it is to our initial feelings.

It may be helpful to set out a pros and cons list, but when writing the plus points do not be constantly thinking of the minuses. Some employers have created stereotypes of various age groups and in doing so have become blinkered. And by taking this approach they are, in effect, cutting down the number of potential candidates from which they can recruit.

I've seen examples of young people who have not been taken seriously in certain companies because they were thought to have not enough experience or no work ethic. But these were young people actually taking a fresh approach to tackling a challenge, and the opportunity was lost.

Casual dress, a relaxed approach and plenty of reflective and break-out time within the work place are now seen to be a creative and organic management technique, although some people still insist that this is only acceptable for specific industries only even if they have no evidence to back up their claim.

Some companies hand out redundancies to their older, more experienced staff and bring in a younger executive, only to later realise that they have let years of valuable experience walk straight out the door. So many experienced employees have ended up being brought back as highly paid consultants.

Managers need to try to see the many opportunities that a diverse age workforce brings to a team, seize them and run with them, as opposed to being scared of change.