EY appoints Laurence Buchanan and Patrick Ruijs to EMEIA roles

EY has promoted Laurence Buchanan and Patrick Ruijs to EMEIA leaders of its Customer & Growth practice.

The Customer & Growth practice of EY helps organisations across sectors with optimising the key pillars of their customer strategy and operations, across sales, marketing and service. The wing helps clients with designing customer growth strategies, re-imagining products and services through human-centered design, innovation and business and technology transformation.

Leading the practice for Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa (EMEIA) are the duo of Laurence Buchanan (based in EY’s London office) and Patrick Ruijs (based in Amsterdam). Both brings an extensive track record in sales & marketing, commercial effectiveness and digital transformation to the role.

Laurence Buchanan is a partner in the UK and holds the Customer & Growth EMEIA role alongside his position of CEO of EY Seren, a design and innovation agency (EY acquired Seren in 2015).

He works with clients to help them understand and respond to the opportunities and threats posed by digital disruption and then re-imagine growth through human-centered design, innovation and business transformation. Buchanan has worked across a wide range of sectors, including telco media, life sciences, retail and sports.

Prior to joining EY in 2012, Buchanan spent several years at Capgemini Invent, where he was a Principal, and at SAP, where he was EMEA Vice President for CRM.

Buchanan: “I believe that digital disruption creates both untold opportunities and existential threats for clients in every industry sector. I work with EY clients to help them navigate the difficult path of re-imagining their businesses model, customer experience and end-to-end operations, in order to survive and ultimately thrive in the age of transformation.”

Patrick Ruijs has been with EY as a partner since 2018, when he transitioned to the Big Four following the acquisition of VODW. Ruijs leads EY VODW, a sales & marketing consultancy and design agency, a role he will maintain alongside his new Customer & Growth remit across EMEIA.

A specialist in customer experience, commercial excellence and product & service innovation, “I help organisations to develop rock-solid relationships with their customers.”

Ruijs works with clients (mostly large corporations) with setting their commercial strategy, and the delivery. “I love to bridge the connections between the boardroom and sales, marketing, customer services, or technicians and product managers. Strategy is about taking action, not just about endlessly talking and budgeting.”

Commenting on the appointments, Pierre Beaufils, Global Business Transformation Leader at EY, said: “I am very pleased to announce the promotions of Laurence and Patrick. We look forward to their leadership and contribution.”