I agree that it depends on much more than talent, but that hypothesis wouldn't explain discrimination against older workers: There's no reason older workers wou

I agree that it depends on much more than talent, but that hypothesis wouldn't explain discrimination against older workers: There's no reason older workers would be less capable in the non-talent aspects of what you describe, and there are strong reasons that they would be more capable: Experience, acquired skills, and maturity. On the other hand, part of creating a team is fitting in, and many organizations take the easy way out and avoid diversity on their teams - even though research shows that more diverse teams produce better results (what good is the 8th team member with the same experience and frame of reference?).