He said this was the case not only in the Czech Republic but throughout the former Eastern bloc. This generation, he said, is made up of professionals who, having grown up in a command economy, are building businesses and careers in a rapidly growing market economy. They are the first to "spread their wings" and, unlike their Western counterparts, they have no family or friends who have built careers in this market economy that they can call on.

There has been a wave of consultants and expatriate executives that flooded into Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), many of whom have significant value as mentors, but only to a select few. The majority of these people who were old enough to have built businesses and careers weren't doing so in CEE. The younger ones who were from the region, many of whom were educated in premiere Western business schools, haven't had the breadth of experience that a mentor needs to add the highest value — hence, no vast pool of mentors.

Within the next five years the mentorless generation will become the first mentoring generation in the region. As this generation forms its relationships with the one that follows, which will be the first generation of CEE professionals to have culturally relevant mentors, I would like to offer some food for thought: Mentoring is an ancient and honored tradition in civilized society, and the role of mentor is relatively unchanged today. It is one of teacher, guide and trusted counselor. Or, in the words of Bubeník, "A mentor is someone who can accelerate the learning curve and ensure that you are not the 'pioneer' of all of life's dead ends."