Championing social responsibility through EY’s Amplifier program

Sophie Grooten reflects on her career development journey leading to EY and how she has been realizing her dream of impactful change.

My journey to EY was neither typical nor straightforward, but I have found my place here, and it continues to evolve and develop in fulfilling ways. At the age of 17, while studying at an international school in Norway, I had a clear ambition to make a positive impact on the world. My studies in International Economics led me to exciting job opportunities — with an NGO and later with the UN in Ghana. Africa is also where I met my Danish husband, which eventually brought me to Copenhagen.

I then began my career at Kromann Reumert, one of Denmark's largest law firms, which was a significant shift from international development but fulfilling in many other ways. Over the years, my skills, capabilities and experiences have led me to various industries, including hospitality, real estate and retail, and I have held roles in business development, operations, management and leadership. In these roles, I have always focused on strategy, navigating change and optimizing ways of working. This focus naturally led me to Legal Transformation and Operations, which is what I do at EY today — we advise and support General Counsels and legal departments in enhancing their value to the business.

My desire to support impact start-ups and return to my initial goal of championing social responsibility and making a difference led me to the EY Amplifier program. This is an accelerator program that gives start-ups access to our services and global competency network. The program assists companies with an impact focus, providing 300 consulting hours over a period of three months. 

Alongside a colleague in Consulting, I was paired to BioHalo, an ambitious biotech company, which has developed a greener and more sustainable alternative to harmful PFAS chemicals. I strongly believe that environmental responsibility goes hand in hand with innovation, and that is why it was so fascinating to experience the energy and dedication of the BioHalo team to build a healthier and more sustainable tomorrow. As a joint team, we defined the overall objective of our collaboration: increasing BioHalo’s investment readiness to seek private investors and thereby their potential for substantial growth.

We shared knowledge, best practices, playbooks, and engaged in fruitful sparring sessions with the BioHalo team. It was very powerful to witness the comprehensive value that EY can offer clients when we collaborate. Also, I am confident that BioHalo benefited greatly from our team's diverse skills and capabilities.

Moreover, this experience allowed me to apply my skills and personal interests in a new context, focusing on bringing the best of EY. It was an exciting challenge to use my problem-solving and stakeholder management skills differently and a valuable opportunity for growth and development.

By the end of the program, I felt that I had made a difference, however small, and gained much more in return. I significantly expanded my network across EY service lines and deepened my understanding of our client offerings. This personal development and network expansion will undoubtedly benefit our clients. I am proud to be part of EY, not only for the daily work we do to help clients solve various challenges but also for the opportunity to support impactful start-ups like BioHalo. This work gives me a sense of purpose. While I may not change the world, it feels meaningful to use my skills, capabilities and experiences to support start-ups that aim to make the world a better place, and even more so when we get to do it as a team!

To know more about the EY Amplifier program, click here.