THINK AND GROW DIGITAL

What the Net Generation Needs to Know to Survive

and Thrive in Any Organization

By Joris Merks-Benjaminsen

With Illustrations by Thera Benjaminsen

Who says I’m too young to be CEO?” For a generation raised to think any kid may be the next Zuckerberg, and growing up in a digital world, the workplace establishment can be a rude awakening.

Millennials enter the business world with fresh ideas, a flexible work style and a non-hierarchical mindset. They discover a seemingly archaic office environment mired in meetings, politics, “ordered thinking,” formality, structure, and middle management. This hierarchy harms both young professionals and the companies they work for. Digital natives may struggle to fit into the existing culture, hindering a brand’s ability to attract and keep young talent.

The brightest CEOs know digital natives are their way forward. They can help organizations keep pace with a lightning-fast rate of change fueled by the internet and technological development. For young professionals, adopting a new way of thinking about growth, success, and trajectory, is a way of reframing perspective in the workplace.

Written by Google executive Joris Merks-Benjaminsen, THINK AND GROW DIGITAL: What the Net Generation Needs to Know to Survive and Thrive in Any Organization (McGraw-Hill Professional; December, 2014) is a guide to help millennials develop and balance their talents to become the ambassadors of change that companies need while building a career that fits their lifestyle. He shows this fresh generation how to create their own workplace without limitations; create their own job role, atmosphere, and success; and attract great people.