Mentoring at work: a talent development tool for Gen Y and Gen Z

Abstract

The changing demographics, evolving labor market, rapid technological advancements, and dynamic work environment are presenting significant challenges in developing talent at the workplace. In the past, there used to be a single age group dominating the workplace, however, today’s workforce is much more diverse in terms of age and generational differences. In the current organizational context, Gen Y and Gen Z are redefining learning and reshaping talent and the talent management practices. According to Hecht (2022), Gen Y, also known as Millennials is born from 1981 to 1996 and is in the spotlight dominating the working landscape. On the other hand, Gen Z, born from 1997 to 2012, is slowly entering the corporate world. Gen Z, popularly known as Zoomers, post-Millennials, first global generation or “iGen” is bringing forth unique set of fresh perspectives, behaviors and expectations at the workplace. Given this backdrop, managers need to understand their characteristics and invest in ways to develop talent of both the generations in unconventional ways. Traditional ways of talent development, do not resonate with these highly ambitious digital natives. Modern HR managers need to be constructive in their approaches, and need to design innovative ways to bridge the intergenerational gaps.