The increasing workforce participation of Generation Z employees has created new challenges for organizations seeking to improve employee retention. Unlike previous generations, Gen Z employees place greater emphasis on career growth, continuous learning, meaningful work, and organizational support. This study examines the impact of career development opportunities on retention intention among Gen Z employees in India and investigates the mediating roles of job satisfaction, employee engagement, and organizational commitment. A quantitative, cross-sectional research design was adopted, and data were collected from 353 Gen Z employees working across various sectors in India. Covariance-Based Structural Equation Modelling (CB-SEM) using IBM SPSS Amos was employed to test the proposed theoretical framework. The results revealed that career development opportunities do not have a significant direct effect on retention intention. However, career development opportunities significantly enhance job satisfaction and employee engagement, which subsequently strengthen organizational commitment and positively influence retention intention. Job satisfaction emerged as the strongest predictor of retention intention, while employee engagement demonstrated a substantial effect on organizational commitment. The findings indicate that the retention of Gen Z employees is driven primarily by psychological and attitudinal factors rather than career development initiatives alone. The study contributes to the human resource management literature by providing empirical evidence on the indirect pathways through which career development influences retention intention among Gen Z employees in the Indian context. The findings offer practical implications for organizations seeking to design effective retention strategies by fostering employee satisfaction, engagement, and commitment alongside career development initiatives.
Mohite et al. (Fri,) studied this question.