Harrogate businesswoman Victoria Tomlinson launches Expiry Date Never at Leeds Digital Festival ahead of appearance at Harrogate Literature Festival.

A Yorkshire entrepreneur is calling on employers and government to rethink how Britain uses the skills of millions of people over 50, with the launch of a new Pearson book arguing that longer lives and AI are making experience more valuable, not less.

Harrogate-based Victoria Tomlinson, founder of Next-Up, has written Expiry Date Never: Age is the New Superpower with AI expert Louise Ballard. The book was launched at a champagne tea hosted by their client, Addleshaw Goddard in Leeds to close Leeds Digital Festival and Tomlinson will discuss it at the Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival on 25 October.

The book challenges the idea that careers should begin winding down in our 50s and 60s when many people could have another 20, 30 or more productive years ahead. It combines research and practical advice with stories of individuals and employers finding new ways to use experience.

Tomlinson said: “We have added years to our lives without really changing the way we think about careers. People reach 50 and can suddenly find doors closing just when they have accumulated decades of skills, judgement and experience.

“Yorkshire has been a fantastic place to build businesses and test some of these ideas, such as mentoring tech entrepreneurs which are in the book. I would love Expiry Date Never to help start a much bigger conversation about how employers use talent at every age and, just as importantly, help people realise how much they still have to offer.”

The Yorkshire connections run throughout the book. Harrogate GP and Concilio Health CEO Dr Sarah Hattam has written a chapter that examines the medical evidence around purpose, health and longevity. Addleshaw Goddard was also one of the first law firms to run Next-Up's Your Future workshops, helping partners plan for the years beyond full-time partnership with ideas, skills and new connections. Tomlinson says this helps address the hardest part of this stage, which is what do I do?

AI is another central theme. Ballard, who co-founded AI business Atheni.ai in her 50s, has written four chapters exploring what AI means for an experienced generation.

Ballard said: “AI turns the traditional argument about age and technology on its head. It can do extraordinary things incredibly quickly, but speed isn't the same as judgement. People with years of experience bring context, judgement and the ability to question whether an answer actually makes sense. Rather than making experience obsolete, AI could make it more valuable.”

Tomlinson herself has continued to start new ventures later in her career. A former EY London director, she ran Northern Lights PR for 30 years before founding Next-Up in her 60s and subsequently launching a technology platform at 67.

Next-Up now works with professional firms and employers to help people identify how they can use their skills and experience in the next stage of their lives.

Tomlinson has spoken about the ideas behind Expiry Date Never at the FT Weekend Festival in London and is due to appear at a Times and Times Radio event in Manchester on How to Retire Well. She will speak at the Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival at the Crown Hotel, Harrogate, on 25 October.

More information here.