In a rapidly evolving tech landscape, Wipro is prioritizing human talent while leveraging systems for direction, according to Teodora Todoran, General Manager and Talent Skilling Head at Wipro.
“People are the most important, but systems help provide direction, trajectory, and let you know what map you’re on and which direction we want to go as an organization,” Todoran said at Work Compass HR Conference organized by The Diplomat-Bucharest. “Speaking of learning and ecosystems, we’re obviously trying to keep up.”
A key initiative launched last August required all Wipro employees to become AI certified. “It seemed like nonsense at first, but it wasn’t because it started from the basics—to understand the concepts, at least to have a coherent dialogue, to know what ChatGPT is, what prompt engineering does, etc.,” she explained. Basic and intermediate levels have since merged into a new “basic” standard, reflecting the fast pace of change.
Todoran emphasized adapting to client demands: “We must constantly ensure we keep up with our clients’ needs. That means understanding them, setting clearly defined objectives—not just to keep them happy, but to provide what they need.” Training programs are updated continuously—”What was valid in August is no longer valid in March”—as clients demand higher competency levels from day one. “Training is part of daily activity, not just a defined moment between certain hours.”
Shifting focus to younger talent, Todoran highlighted Generation Z’s unique expectations. “Young people and our Gen Z colleagues have different needs. For them, online leadership must be available on-the-spot. They want quick access, instant feedback, and guidance—they need to be guided.”
She categorized Gen Z hires into two groups: “extremely responsible, ambitious, involved ones with very formulated and articulated needs, and others who don’t need as much interaction.” Effective leadership, whether online or in-person, requires flexibility: “We need to be very adapted and flexible ourselves, seeing the need in front of us.”
Todoran advocated for self-set boundaries amid these shifts: “The transformation we need now is to set our own limits and permissions—whether for young employees, older ones, leaders, or online. It’s about how I set my own limits.” This includes balancing work demands: “When my workday ends, whether I need my boss’s support or my team needs me, it’s about how we feel and set our needs and limits.”
Wipro is now in its second year of a multigenerational program to normalize intergenerational dialogue. “We’re trying to uniformize and normalize dialogue between generations—so we don’t say that if you’re older, you’re automatically the boss, smarter, or whatever,” she said. This reduces pressure, stress, and burnout, especially as younger generations openly discuss mental health and psychological safety.
“Newer generations react differently to stress and pressure; they have different needs automatically. We’re just discovering the same needs that, speaking for myself, we’ve ignored,” Todoran reflected. “We look at younger generations as apparently picky—no, they declare their needs. We need to adapt, support them, and allow ourselves to live our emotions and wellbeing.”