What's your job about?

I am a procurement and supply chain graduate working in a purchasing team, assisting with the accurate and efficient ordering of goods for the Babcock and Royal NZ Navy Maritime Fleet Sustainment Services contract (MFFS).

My work specifically involves creating, deactivating, and modifying digital parts in an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. My day-to-day tasks vary each day, but I tend to spend most of my time performing checks, confirming information I have been provided before entering data, and liaising with the Navy’s inventory support team. One project I have enjoyed working on in the past is creating part locations in our ERP system so that the whereabouts of items can be digitally traced. This project took significant pressure from a colleague in warehousing who did not have the time to set up inventory locations and earned me respect and praise from my team.

My role as a graduate is to become skilled in multiple roles within Babcock’s procurement and supply chain team. It is to develop the skills expected of me and become a valuable future leader the business can rely on. My role can be tricky as I must balance my day-to-day workload of handling parts requests with my self-development. For example, I meet with a mentor, have regular development discussions with my managers, and make time to learn from others where I can.

What's your background?

I grew up in a small town as the eldest of five children. In high school, I studied and excelled in business subjects like accounting, business, agribusiness, and economics. I volunteered to work for Noel Leeming one day a week during high school to obtain work experience and was subsequently hired as one of their customer service representatives during a Christmas period. From there, I went on to study business at university and decided shortly after to pursue a degree with a major in supply chain management. I achieved an A grade average while at university and often led group assignments. This heavy academic focus was difficult to manage at times with work, as I was studying full-time while working up to five days a week in a fast-food restaurant. At the end of university, I applied for up to 30 positions and received multiple graduate rroleoffers. I picked Babcock over many other large employers, and that is how I have got to where I am today.

• Kindergarten
• Primary school.
• Highschool.
• PaPart-timeork in high school.
• University.
• Part-time work at a restaurant.
• Current role.
• Travel to Argentina for healthcare.

I have been in my current role since February 05th 2024. I achieved my current position by proving myself academically, having an excellent track record with other employers, and selling myself passionately in countless interviews (I also applied for over 40 jobs in my final year of university).

My life began in the small town of Thames, Waikato, New Zealand. I was raised in a Christian family with four younger siblings. I was a reserved, imaginative kid with an interest in nature. As I became a teen, I struggled significantly with living a life I did not want for myself and was no longer the joyous kid that I once was. I relied on the validation of teachers to motivate me, and excelled academically. In my final year of high school, I took the highest-value scholarship I was offered and headed to university to study business. I wanted to study early childhood teaching, but my Mum, being not fully satisfied with teaching herself, told me there was no way. I went into management school unsure about the major I wanted to study, and I selected supply chain management after a lecturer advertised it well. At university, it became clearer why I spent my teenage years so unhappy and made decisions to shift my life from one that was expected of me to something I would value. I worked incredibly hard in all areas of my life and achieved many milestones, such as obtaining my degree with an A grade average nd my current graduate position. At work, I felt supported to achieve other milestones and value the life I have made for myself. I am now in Auckland with four other flatmates (and a cute cat that likes to visit daily for any meat we might have!).

Could someone with a different background do your job?

Yes. I believe that someone from a different background could do my job, particularly if they studied business or majored in project management. For example, I studied supply chain management, but I know my role could be picked up by someone who studied in a different area but has a passion for learning. I think that there would be a greater learning curve, though, and individuals from different backgrounds may need to do their research into concepts like incoterms or material resource planning. For example, my company hired a temporary worker to do some technical work in our ERP system. He struggled to understand the concepts and was very confused for weeks, whereas I had the background which enabled me to pick up the work with ease.

A procurement and supply chain graduate should be reliable, enthusiastic, and committed to following company policies. To me, that means showing up to work with a smile, following rules, and getting stuck into work with a good attitude. A graduate in my field should also have robust communication skills, as there are many entities involved in our supply chain. That means following up with people, asking the right questions, and speaking up about issues when needed. Other necessary qualities are professionalism, honesty, and ethical behaviour (both personally and at work).

What's the coolest thing about your job?

The ‘coolest’ aspect of my job is the industry I am in. I take pride in the fact my work supports New Zealand’s defence capability, and it is a unique experience working alongside Navy civilian personnel. I also love the culture here and feel the company and its leaders care for its people. The task I enjoy the most in my job is data entry. I enjoy entering data into our ERP system with music. It also always brightens my day to hear that I’m a ‘lifesaver’ or that someone appreciates my efforts.

What are the limitations of your job?

The biggest limitation of my job is responsibility. I have backfilled a full-time position while also having graduate work to complete. As a result, I have many projects on the back burner that I would have otherwise made progress on. Another limitation is the logistics of coming to base in person. Traffic, finding a park, and needing to walk 10 minutes from my park to work make coming in person undesirable to me (I much prefer to work from home).

3 pieces of advice for yourself when you were a student...

1. Know that the ‘hard road’ does result in an easier life later. As a student, I prioritised A+ grades and saved money for a home and surgery. Many people felt like I was too self-controlled, but I can absolutely say that a year later, the struggle was so worth it.
2. If something feels wrong, do not let other people dismiss your feelings. Investigate why you feel the way you do and do what you can to fix it before you regret it.
3. You are capable of more than you think. Keep going and keep pushing. If you fail, at least you know you tried and did your best.