Farewell: Prof. Dr. Jürgen Deller - Not Silver, but Gold

Jürgen Deller had just read a major article in the newspaper about “silver workers” when he received an email from Korea. A colleague at Seoul National University asked if he would like to serve as an external reviewer for a doctoral dissertation on the Later Life Workplace Index. For more than 20 years, the work and organizational psychologist had been researching how people can continue to work even in old age—and what organizations need to do to make that possible. “The fact that this news reached me on the very morning of our interview shows me that the topic has lost none of its relevance—quite the contrary,” says Jürgen Deller.

In the early 2000s, he attended an event on “The Future of Work” in Berlin. There, the researcher met representatives from an international insurance company. The discussion centered on the future of retirement security and the idea of a potential “fourth pillar” of retirement income. This gave rise to a question that would shape Deller’s subsequent research: If policymakers and business leaders assume that people should work longer—do these people even want to? And if so, under what conditions can this be achieved?

Deller and his team began collecting and analyzing data. Many older workers wanted to continue working. “Work gives structure to daily life; people want to pass on their experience, participate in society, and feel needed,” the psychologist summarizes. One statement from the surveys conducted at that time has particularly stuck with him: “We’re not silver—we’re gold,” said an older worker.

But the desire to continue working alone was not enough. “Companies and institutions must also be willing to create appropriate working conditions.” The initial studies gave rise to a research program that increasingly focused on the conditions under which older people can work in organizations. At the same time, the idea emerged to make the quality of these later-life jobs measurable.

The Later Life Workplace Index was therefore intended to be more than just a scientific measurement tool. It was meant to provide companies with concrete guidance on where to start. Working conditions were to become measurable—and thus also changeable.

Deller’s research on the relationship between aging and work thus led to concrete tools that are used internationally. The Later Life Workplace Index is now being applied in projects in more than 40 countries. The research spans from European countries to Israel, Ukraine, and Russia, and now— —to Asia as well. For Israel, for example, versions of the tool were developed in Hebrew, Arabic, and Russian.

Even today, Deller’s work extends beyond the university. He collaborates closely with the OECD and participates in joint initiatives—such as those addressing issues of work design in connection with artificial intelligence and demographic change. One goal is to integrate scientific findings more effectively into political decision-making processes and international organizations.

The fact that Deller’s academic work is so closely linked to practical applications also stems from his own professional background. Before embarking on his academic career, he spent several years in leadership roles in human resources at Daimler-Benz AG. There, he worked in strategic HR and was responsible for executive development.

In 1999, Deller was appointed to what was then the University of Applied Sciences of Northeast Lower Saxony, where he helped shape the development of business psychology. At the time, the field was an unusual concept: psychological knowledge was to be not only taught academically but also directly applied to practical questions and problems faced by organizations.

At the time, it was impossible to predict how successful this approach would become. Nor was it possible to foresee what academic careers would emerge from this environment. Several of Deller’s former doctoral students are now professors themselves. Thus, the connection between academic research and practical application—which has characterized his work—continues to influence the next generation.

“I’ve never conducted research solely for the ivory tower,” says Jürgen Deller. This philosophy continues to shape his academic work to this day. The index is used, among other places, by insurance companies, in healthcare management, and in banks. The Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health is also examining his findings and their potential applications.