In the midst of planning her wedding, Abby Schneiderman reveled in the resources at her fingertips, transforming the daunting tasks into an exciting journey towards her big day. Websites, guides, and videos gave her all the dos and don’ts and provided ample space for organization and management. But she found herself thinking: what’s next? Where are the resources to guide her through the rest of those big life moments?

She found information for many life stages, from having kids, to home buying, to retirement planning. But in her research, she discovered that these resources end at retirement. Who’s supporting people with what comes next? While not everyone gets married or has children, everyone encounters aging, estate planning, and death. So, why is there a gap in support? One reason may be that most people would rather not think about these later stages, but postponing such considerations can leave a person’s survivors in a difficult spot. Shocked by the lack of coverage, Schneiderman and business partner Adam Seifer co-founded Everplans, the first modern consumer brand in life and legacy planning.

From Day One interviewed Abby Schneiderman, co-founder and co-CEO of Everplans (company photo)

Schneiderman and Seifer recognized that the first step was to publish helpful planning advice and evaluate if there was an audience actively seeking it. “We started writing content. We wrote 500 original articles on everything like ‘How do you write a will?’ to ‘How do you name a power of attorney?’ to ‘What do you wear to a funeral?’” Schneiderman told From Day One. They posted the content as a blog and were inundated with readers. “This told us that not only was there a need for the content and the resources that we were putting out there, but that there was just a huge gap out there that nobody was helping people with,” she said.

Everplans evolved into a digital vault for storing, organizing, and updating all of the important plans and documents to guide the later stages of life–and afterwards. Shortly after launching, Schneiderman experienced a tragedy that changed the trajectory of everything. Her 51-year-old brother was killed in a car accident. He had life insurance, but Schneiderman’s family struggled to access his accounts, get policies and documents in place, and ultimately, make the decisions no one wants to make on behalf of their loved ones. The pain of losing her brother complicated the hardship of making these difficult decisions.

This tragedy led to the realization that in order to be effective, Everplans needed to reach people before they even started thinking about life and legacy planning. All too often people just begin planning when it’s overdue. “That’s my story, but everyone has a story,” Schneiderman said. And a common theme in these stories is disorganization: our stuff is everywhere.

The average person has hundreds of online accounts to keep track of, on top of sticky notes, notebooks, desk drawers, and other means of storing important information. “And when the time does come, family members should not have to go searching around frantically in the middle of a fog having to find important information,” said Schneiderman.

“Our mission is to help people get organized for themselves today, so that they can sleep better at night. In the event that their families need it, they have access to all the important information,” said Schneiderman. Everplans helps people organize, store, and securely share wills, life insurance policies, health care directives, online passwords, and even the small but important things like family recipes. “We cover all aspects of life, whether they be everyday practical pieces of information that you want to make sure don’t get lost, or extremely critical information that family members need to have access to.”

One of Schneiderman’s key goals is making life and legacy planning accessible to everyone, even folks who tend to be put off by legal, healthcare, and technological complexities. Everplans gives people the toolkits to make informed decisions and make these complicated topics less overwhelming. In addition to all of the content on their website, Schneiderman and Seifer co-authored In Case You Get Hit by a Bus: How to Organize Your Life Now for When You’re Not Around Later and started a podcast to give people the resources they need in a bite-sized, colloquial way.

The company’s founders see their platform as a great equalizer. “Everplans is really leveling the playing field for employees who may not have access to financial planners, accountants, or estate attorneys. It’s inherently educating all employees on the benefits of getting organized. The simple interface, easy-to-use platform, resources, and guidance engine will help get you organized for your family,” said Schneiderman. Everplans was available initially in a retail version as well as through financial services organizations. More recently, the platform became available as a benefit for employers to offer their workers.

This inclusive approach not only helps Everplans’ customers, but also appeals to employers interested in offering Everplans as an addition to their total-rewards programs. Schneiderman pointed to the recent development of a management toolkit, which serves as a “resource for employers, specifically leaders in the organization, on how to have conversations with employees during challenging or pivotal moments.” Many well-intentioned managers lack the necessary guidance to support their employees and navigate tough conversations about life-changing events. Companies run the risk of losing employees when support feels inauthentic. The management toolkit provides employers with culturally relevant guidance to authentically support their employees.

The benefits to employers don’t stop there, Schneiderman says. In a study conducted last year with 1,000 full-time U.S. employees, “we found a direct relationship between productivity and organization,” she said. “When my desk is messy, I’m less productive or when my closet is a mess, I’m frustrated. But also, when you don’t know where vital information is, you are more concerned and you’re less productive–there is this real relationship there.”

By getting people organized, Everplans has a direct impact on productivity, the company asserts. People that are more productive or less stressed generally feel a greater sense of control about their lives. “Over time, as more and more people started using Everplans, we realized the site wasn’t about death–it was about life. Because getting organized lets you live to the fullest, knowing you’re prepared for anything, having done your very best for those you love.”

Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, Everplans, for supporting this sponsor spotlight.

Erin Behrens is an associate editor at From Day One.

Measuring What's Really Happening in the Workplace in 2024

In today’s increasingly digital and often remote working environment, software can help organizations get a better handle on how their teams are tackling challenges and discover ways to fill in the gaps. The highest performing teams are 2.6 times more likely to be investing in performance management software, according to Lattice’s State of People Strategy Report. But of those not using such software, 27% are unsure of how to begin and 22% are even concerned about the cultural implications of doing so.But what does an average day of digital work look like? Does worker behavior vary during a typical workweek–or throughout the year? Workforce analytics company ActivTrak drew on three years of data, from more than 135,000 employees across 1,000 companies to provide an examination of workplace behaviors in its annual State of the Workplace Report.Among the findings: workdays are shorter and productivity remains steady. But at the same time, disengagement is growing, which may lead to problems of underutilization but also presents opportunities to make better use of untapped workforce capacity.In a From Day One webinar webinar, leaders from ActivTrak spoke about their critical findings related to productivity, burnout, technology, and AI usage trends. They discussed industry-specific best practices and benchmarks so you can take action and boost productivity across your organization.The State of the Workplace The goal of the report was “to reveal the current state of work and how organizations can better anticipate and plan for the future,” said Sarah Altemus, manager at ActivTrak’s Productivity Lab. “Notably, we found that workdays are shorter and productivity remains steady. Burnout is in decline, which should boost positive engagement and utilization. However, we did see that disengagement is growing, possibly due to previously burned-out employees who are increasingly checking out,” said Altemus.The study, which covered 2021 through 2023, found that employees were about eight minutes per day more productive in the first half of 2023 vs. the second half. This means that if an organization with 1,000 employees was able to maintain those earlier productivity levels throughout the whole year, it would gain an additional workload capacity of 18 full-time employees, worth approximately $1.1 million, assuming each employee has a $60,000 salary.Employees are also finishing their tasks in less time. The workday got a full 15% shorter from Q1 2021 to Q4 2023, dropping from nine hours and 52 minutes to nine hours and five minutes. Time spent on collaborative activities such as chat and messaging increased slightly. Meanwhile, total digital activity, productive time, and focus time stayed consistent.Sarah Altemus, ActivTrak’s Productivity Lab Manager, led the webinar (company photo)Efficiency, measured in productive time in relation to total time, remained steady. This, Altemus says, is a good thing. “We were creeping into almost 10 hours of ‘on’ connected time a day in 2021. I think a lot of that was really performative productivity, people wanting to be constantly online. And so it's encouraging to see that shift to a more sustainable period of time.”How can employers make the most of this trend? The ActivTrak Productivity Lab suggests utilizing workplace analytics software to boost performance management, enhance employee productivity, and maximize workforce investments. Leaders should continuously analyze current and long-term data to pinpoint gaps and obstacles, and identify employees who may benefit from additional training.A disengaged employee as one who spends greater than 75% of their year in an underutilized state. Distressingly, they found that 20% of employees were disengaged due to underutilization, up 67% since 2021. Meanwhile, 7% of employees risked burnout due to overutilization. 4% of employees in 2023 worked on weekends, down one percentage point from 2022. Often, a small, overworked group of employees is taking on too much.Megan Moller, productivity enthusiast at ActivTrak, says multi-tasking and context-switching is often the culprit. “That can be exhausting,” Moller said. “And so when you are doing that every single day for a period of time, you can get burned out.” Leaders need to assess and track employee utilization to help right the balance.If you don’t find the right balance, the results can be costly. 27% of employees risk attrition due to burnout or disengagement. Employees who are burned out are more likely to leave. And ActivTrak calculated that for an organization with 1,000 employees, a workload imbalance that leads to attrition equals a potential loss of 70 employees, valued at $2.1 million, based on 20% annual voluntary turnover and replacement costs equal to half of a $60,000 annual salary.To combat this, Altemus suggests gathering context through team meetings and one-on-one discussions to identify issues and offer targeted support to employees who are overburdened or underutilized. And leaders should encourage employee development by demonstrating how their daily work contributes to the organizations’ broader strategic goals.AI AdoptionArtificial intelligence is being adopted in the workplace – and fast. 22% of employees used AI tools in 2023, an increase of 50% from Q1 to Q4. While AI usage increased, however, ActivTrak found there was no apparent impact on productivity when comparing employees who used AI tools to those who did not. So that freed up time was not necessarily put to good use.Factors such as industry, company size, and workplace environment influenced AI tool adoption, but generally about one in 10 employees used AI tools. Remote workers were 5% more likely to use AI. 115 unique tools were used, with the free-to-use ChatGPT being the most popular.While the true role of AI in the workplace is not necessarily crystal clear, it’s obvious that AI is not going away. Altemus suggests striking a balance: train employees on effective AI use without solely relying on it. Promote a culture of experimentation and learning by encouraging employees to try new approaches and share what they learn. Offer guidance to ensure AI usage aligns with your organizational goals, and always be mindful of protecting sensitive or proprietary information.A Productive FutureIn terms of productivity, Altemus advises transferring best practices from earlier months to boost output and yield significant gains in the latter half of the year, when productivity tends to decline. To combat burnout and disengagement among employees feeling an unbalance in workload, try redirecting resources to support targeted training and growth opportunities. And with AI use on the rise, there is a need for clearly defined policies around appropriate use to maximize the benefits.Leaders can better understand the current state of their specific workforce using analytics tools, and add context with employee sentiment data gained through pulse surveys. They should always communicate their findings and take action when it’s relevant.Editor's note: From Day One thanks our partner, ActivTrak, for sponsoring this webinar. Katie Chambers is a freelance writer and award-winning communications executive with a lifelong commitment to supporting artists and advocating for inclusion. Her work has been seen in HuffPost and several printed essay collections, among others, and she has appeared on Cheddar News, iWomanTV, and CBS New York.

What a Five-Generation Workforce Means for You: The Myths and Realities

Nick, a senior manager in a global tech company based in Seattle, has worked with people of many different ages, both older and younger than him. His experience is increasingly typical in a workforce that spans five generations, a growing diversity of experience that provides the benefit of workers sharing wisdom across the ages, but also gives rise to problems like ageism–the bias against others based merely on their calendar age. Nick recently learned that one of his direct reports is notably older than Nick assumed. “At that moment, I realized that I had been thinking of him as less serious and more in need of guidance. I knew I had to examine my prejudices about age.”This is the first time in history that such a rich mixture of people from their teens to their 80s are at work. But the implications for business are still being sorted out. In 2020, a Deloitte white paper reported that 70% of executives surveyed believed a multigenerational workforce was important for their organizations, but only 10% felt ready to lead one and understood how it might affect operations.The widespread assumption has been that the generations are distinct enough in their affinities that they should be treated differently. In the Deloitte survey, more than half the respondents said they consider differences between the generations in designing operations and benefits But are these differences more perceived than real? Deloitte’s report cites the new concept of a “perennial” employee, or someone who transcends generational stereotypes.As the Deloitte survey explains: “Why is generation becoming less relevant as a way to understand the workforce? The starting point is that careers have become more dynamic and complex, loosening the historic correlation between age and career progression. Rapid technological and organizational change means that workers must now reinvent themselves multiple times throughout their working lives; at the same time, the broader business culture has shifted to make it acceptable, sometimes even desirable, to promote younger individuals into leadership positions. The upshot is that 65-year-old interns can today be found working side by side with 25-year-old managers, calling into question the assumption that age is a reasonable proxy for understanding people’s workplace challenges and needs.”A 2012 analysis of more than 20 studies supports this view, finding few generational differences in work-related variables like attitudes towards work or technology. Where they do exist, the differences can likely be attributed to variables other than age, like education level.Yet ageism persists. In this story, the first in a three-part series, we'll be looking at how employers can confront this challenge by adopting more age-inclusive practices. There’s good reason to do so, since lack of trust between generations can create unnecessary competition and resentment, to the detriment of working relationships. One experiment found that negative beliefs about older people and how they adapt to new technology led to poorer training of those people. Another survey found that hiring managers view younger workers as having more relevant education and experience and being a better cultural fit with organizations. On the other side is a view that goes as far back as Socrates: young people are flighty, have a poor work ethic, or require constant praise from above. Stephane P. Francioli, Ph.D., a postdoctoral researcher at the Wharton School of Management, has made a study of “youngism” and found that when asked about age-related abuse or discrimination, younger workers report higher rates than bias related to sexual orientation, race, religion, or gender, he says. Could this be because they see the workplace as wholly unfair? No, he says. If that were true, younger workers would also complain about issues of racism, sexism, or anti-LGBTQIA+ actions at higher levels than other age groups. They don’t. Heather Tinsley-Fix is a Senior Advisor at AARP where she helps employers support a multigenerational workforce (company photo)Pigeon-holing different groups can impair how teams work together, says Heather Tinsley-Fix, a senior advisor at AARP, whether it’s saying that older people are not flexible with new tech or younger people have no loyalty. “If someone was young and not tech savvy, they wouldn’t mention it, but if they are older, it gets attributed to age,” she said. “It's often just a knee-jerk reaction.”Abuse and discrimination can take many forms. Younger workers may be asked to run personal errands outside of their job description, or handle on-call hours at night because they don’t have children to take care of. They may be denied flexible work arrangements that parents of young children are given because a manager doesn’t think young, childless employees will work as hard at home without supervision, says Francioli.The problems that affect younger workers are often not addressed because they are not recognized legally, at least at the federal level. In the U.S., the Age Discrimination in Employment Act covers age discrimination in workers over 40, but can disregard other workers. Employers need to be careful not to encourage and reemphasize generational differences by organizing training according to age groups, like courses on how to manage millennials, helping older workers navigate technology, or how your Gen Z staff is different. “There is no scientific basis for any of this, it creates an us vs. them atmosphere, and encourages an in-group/out-group mentality,” Francioli said.One other consideration is how people can project age-related perceptions onto others. An older worker, for example, may believe coworkers think he is slow to adapt to new work methodologies, when they may not feel that way at all. In fact, one study found that what people believed about other generations was usually positive. The outlier was what people thought of younger generations, though young people believed others’ perceptions of them were far more negative than the reality.While putting stereotypes aside, there are still some age-related realities that employers should take into account. For example, companies can consider ergonomic factors when it comes to older workers, as well as developing support programs for staff members going through menopause. But assuming attitudinal characteristics of specific age groups and training workers based on those assumptions is often counterproductive.At the same time, the world is changing fast, so generations are experiencing factors like media and economic conditions in different ways, which shouldn’t be overlooked, says Corey Seemiller, Ph.D., a professor at Ohio’s Wright State University, and author of several books about Gen Z. Understanding those differences can be key to engaging with team members and the future success of your organization. She points to Gen Z, the social media generation, and their comfort with video as a form of communication. “Do you offer the opportunity for them to provide a video resume? Not all of them will, but some might prefer it,” she said.Many in Gen Z are uninterested in public accolades for their work; some actively dislike it, Seemiller says. Similarly, those from Gen X, often called the Latch-Key Generation, experienced a lot of freedom during their childhood and are often averse to micromanagement.Knowing what might discourage different generations and meeting them where they are doesn’t make you ageist. But if, for example, you note that older people who worked in an analog culture for most of their careers are having trouble adapting to a new tech platform and subsequently require special training for all people over 50, Seemiller says, that is when it becomes discriminatory. The best way to support the different needs of employees is to talk to them and treat them as individuals, advises Seemiller. Employers should find out what they want, what they need, and where there is room for improvement. Regular surveys are a good way to do this. All of this can be highly nuanced, but for employers, it will be worth the effort. We are experiencing a great age shift in the workforce. The UN estimates more than a third of the population will be over 65 by 2050. In the U.S., one-fifth of the population will be over 65 by 2030. Better health, and better healthcare, as well as economic circumstances, have led to people working longer. At the same time, the birth rate is declining.Is your organization prepared for fewer younger workers and more older workers? How can you create a culture where ageism and prejudice against anyone, young or old, doesn’t gain a foothold? How can you harness the power of a multigenerational workforce? In part two of this series, we’ll provide actionable ideas and examples of programs that have helped other organizations successfully navigate changing demographics.Editor’s note: From Day One thanks our partner, AARP, for sponsoring this story, the first in a series on how employers can foster age inclusion in the workplace. Interested in assessing how you are doing with age inclusion–and learning more? Try AARP’s new tool, Age Inclusion 101. Just send an email to employerpledge@aarp.org, with the subject line betatest.Lisa Jaffe is a freelance writer who lives in Seattle with her son and a very needy rescue dog named Ellie Bee. She enjoys reading, long walks on the beach, and trying to get better at ceramics.

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