Diversity & Inclusion
DIVERSITY & INCLUSION
BREAKING BARRIERS AND BUILDING LEGACIES: THE RISE OF FIRST GENERATION PROFESSIONALS
Who is Necla Kaplan?
experience of navigating two worlds.
What is First Gen?
Necla Kaplan is the founder of First Gen
“As a first-generation professional, I was
Necla founded First Gen to empower first-
and works at ABN AMRO, where she began
the first in my family to pursue higher
generation professionals by providing the
her career in 2017 through a management
education and a corporate career,” she
resources and community they need to
traineeship. Since then, she has focused on
explains. “This brought both opportunities
succeed. First Gen addresses the unique
innovation, digitalization, and proposition
and challenges. While I was motivated to
needs of those who are the first in their
development.
succeed, I entered the corporate world
families to take these steps. “There’s a lot
with no prior exposure, unfamiliar with its
of unspoken pressure on first-generation
Born in the Netherlands to Turkish parents,
social norms, and without any role models.
professionals,” Kaplan explains. “We often
Necla’s journey has been shaped by the
I was forging a new path.”
lack social capital and networks, which
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