The South African public service has an ageing workforce that will soon retire with a volume of untapped institutional knowledge that would be a total loss, if it is not retained. The knowledge and capabilities of Baby Boomers (BB), Generation X (Gen X), Generation Y (Gen Y) and Generation Z (Gen Z) are a means to build institutional human resource (HR) capacity. This article examines the extent to which generational competence may enhance the public service HR capacity to provide better services to all South Africans. The findings show that in-organisation education, training and development (ETD) increase institutional capacity. They reveal that the maximisation of generational capacity improves institutional systems and processes. The results show that generational capacity requires renewed mindsets from all generations, and a willingness to collaborate and exchange skills between seniors and juniors. They reveal that the sum of g