Study finds universities rarely keep contact with retirees, but benefits exist for schools, former employees when they do

LAWRENCE — University faculty and staff often view their careers as more of a calling than a job. But when they retire, do they remain a part of university life? New research from the University of Kansas has found that very few institutions of higher education in the United States maintain contact with retirees and a case study from one that does so contains insights that could benefit both retirees and their former employers.

Members of KU’s University Senate Retiree Rights and Benefits Committee recently conducted a survey of the university’s retirees’ thoughts on how they deal with the university in retirement, whether they are happy with the level of contact, if they feel valued and what recommendations they have for the university. Most research among university retirees focuses on financial and demographic aspects, how people decide to retire and on individual experiences once they do.

“What there has not been is much about the ongoing relationship between retired employees and the university they served. That is the gap we’re trying to fill with this study,” said David Ekerdt, professor emeritus of sociology at KU and one of the study’s authors.

Researchers decided to combine two surveys for the paper: One of American higher education institutions with four-year degree programs and the case study from all living KU retirees at the time of the survey. Of the 685 institutions contacted, 274 responded, and the vast majority indicated they do not maintain contact with retirees in any form.

When asked if they interview or survey retirees within the first year of retirement, only 11% replied yes, but not with regularity. Three percent said they do so annually. When asked if the institution surveys or interviews retirees periodically post-retirement, only 9% said yes or yes, but not regularly.

“Institutions of higher education essentially said, ‘We do nothing, and if you learn anything, can you please keep us informed?’” said John Poggio, professor of educational psychology at KU and a study author. “Only 9% said they have some sort of regular program in hand. We were shocked. Only 14% responded they reached out once.”

The study, co-written by Poggio, Ekerdt and Edward Meyen, professor emeritus of special education at KU, is part of the TIAA Institute Research Paper Series, and it was published on SSRN and the TIAA website. The research was funded by TIAA and KU Endowment.

KU retiree responses

For the second study, authors surveyed retired KU employees about ties and sentiment, satisfaction with the retirement process, interest in assisting the university and open-ended comments they wished to share. Reporting on faculty retirees, 84% reported KU remains important to them in retirement. Further, 79%, said they maintain a relationship with their friends and associates, and the same percentage said they were satisfied or very satisfied with KU Human Resources during the retirement process. About half of respondents said they were done with their time at KU and ready to move on after retirement, but the other half indicated they wanted to remain engaged, whether by attending campus events, mentoring others about to retire or other involvement.

“They see themselves as contributing to what KU is. They were not 9-to-5 employees. When they fell out of that, they didn’t understand why,” Poggio said of KU retirees who wanted to stay connected. “They expect the university to reach out to them. When it doesn’t, they can get angry and say, ‘Why have you forgotten me already?’”

The survey also found that KU retirees have a strong feeling about the university, but not quite as strong of a connection to their department or unit. The survey found 47% said the university and their former department/unit make them feel appreciated and valued, while 37% said their former department/unit makes them feel like they still have something to contribute.

The survey suggested five key takeaways; the authors write.

• A canvass of retirees can gauge the extent of their affection, ties, gratitude and disposition toward service to the school.
• A survey can reveal retirees’ relative contentment with the way their separation from employment was handled.
• There is no such thing as too much information too often regarding retirement.
• The HR office is but one player in ensuring satisfactory passage to retirement. The department or unit has an important role to play in making things go well, and administrators need to keep retirees as informed as possible.
• There are many ways to be a retiree and many models for behavior in the next phase of life, but all retirees confront the question, “Who am I now?”

The findings of what KU does and does not do well in working with retirees and the general lack of contact with retired university employees across the nation show that maintaining goodwill with retirees can benefit both those finishing their employment and the institutions themselves, according to the authors.

“Retirees are human capital for a university,” Ekerdt said. “As one of our respondents said, ‘Be mindful of the goodwill (or lack thereof) you generate with a very small outlay of funds for retirees.’”