Lynne Cuzen, Talent Procurement Lead for Africa, EY Supply Chain Services (SCS).

My name is Lynne Cuzen (MCIPS) , and I am currently the Talent Procurement Lead for Africa at 安永 Supply Chain Services (SCS).

My career with the 安永 organization began in Recruitment. SCS took a chance on me, and I took a chance on myself. I was approached by the Regional Lead back then to consider a position in EY Procurement Services. I spent ages researching and discussing with him to understand what procurement was about. I took the opportunity, which was a lateral move for me, and spent my first few years just learning, trying, and making many valuable mistakes. I became a Member of the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply (MCIPS) during this time, which was a big asset for me on my procurement journey. I have done, run and managed many procurement projects; some changing the landscape of how we procure, others just setting the foundation for safe and streamlined procuring. But the one project that has stayed in my heart, and will never leave, was the recent SCS Stepping up for the Children program, part of the EY Ripples corporate responsibility program that provides EY professionals the opportunity to positively impact the lives of millions of individuals by using their skills, knowledge and experience.

SCS Stepping up for the Children is an outreach program that has and will continue to benefit not only a country that is in desperate need of upliftment and hope, but also the procurement industry as a whole. It all started when having a friendly chat with my colleague (who is now my Director, Evangelos Theocharis ) while at a team meeting in Lisbon, about the orphanage. He suggested that we “do” something. A proposal was put together, and the moment we presented to our leadership, they approved and supported the project with huge enthusiasm. There is something to be said about the caliber of leadership one finds themselves working with.

Through this program, we managed to fund 60 Orphaned or Vulnerable Children (OVCs) worth of educational costs. We had volunteers from SCS mentoring the OVCs from afar as well, and we learned from these mentors that being in contact with these youth and learning how you can be a part of their developmental journey is an irreplaceable opportunity for mental and emotional wellbeing of the mentor, as well. We have recently scoped a phase 2 to this program, which I am so excited about – watch this space!

I have learned many lessons on my journey, but the ones that have made an impact on me are as follows:

• Be bold! Back yourself, and you will find a way! A person often knows their worth is more than the world is getting from them. But fear holds us back.
• Always focus on how you communicate – always try to improve, no matter how advanced you already are. That doesn’t mean use bigger words; in fact, jargon often loses people. Keep it simple and relatable.
• Enjoy the process of learning and be comfortable “not knowing”.
• Summon your inner grit – the ability to just keep going with resilience.
• Celebrate your womanly strengths: intuition, emotional intelligence and compassion.

Disclaimer: The views reflected in this article are the views of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the global EY organization or its member firms.