"Look for Boomers to continue to flood the entrepreneurial ranks. If you want to keep them (and demographic trends suggest you will need to) then be prepared to offer them the right mix of flexibility, challenge and rewards. All-or-nothing approaches to employment particularly for those nearing retirement age simply won't cut it. Many older workers want to continue to work, indeed many will have to, but continuing in high pressure, all consuming roles is not an option they care to pursue. They want to do something fresh and new that allows them to draw on their deep knowledge about their work, their field of expertise, their industry and their company and its culture. New roles need to be created that keep older workers involved meaningfully but which also offer significant flexibility and choice in when and how much they work. Mentoring, consulting, and project-based assignments appeal to older workers burned out by the grind of full-time work but not ready for retirement."

The first observation is that it is young people between 25 and 34 years of age who are the most active entrepreneurial group of the population regardless of the wealth of the country from which they come. After the age of 35, all populations show a steady decline in entrepreneurial activity. While some minor differences can be observed between individual countries, the pattern has remained unchanged since GEM's inception in 1999.