Stéphanie-Laure Zoro in Côte d’Ivoire

In this new blog series, I’d like to ask some questions to people from different countries, backgrounds, professions, and genders who have all one thing in common: volunteering. I hope you’ll get inspired by their journeys and take the leap into volunteering.

Notice: The positions, views and information contained published here are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily represent my views or opinions.

Stéphanie Laure Kouadio is a Project Management Officer Lead (PMO) and Executive Assistant specializing in strategic event management, skills transformation, and leadership development. She is the first Ivorian recipient of the PMI Chapter Leadership Impact Award 2025 – Sub-Saharan Africa, a global recognition by the Project Management Institute (PMI) honoring exceptional leadership, service, and measurable impact. As Vice President of Events at PMI Côte d’Ivoire, she designs and delivers high-impact programs and conferences that bring together professionals, students, and institutions to foster leadership, knowledge sharing, and community engagement. Her journey reflects a powerful personal transformation—from searching for direction to becoming a recognized leader—which now fuels her mission to inspire and empower others. Certified OKR Leader and instructional design and training engineer, she focuses on transforming skills into drivers of sustainable performance. Deeply committed to youth empowerment and women’s leadership, she promotes volunteering as a powerful platform for employability, personal growth, and leadership development. As an entrepreneur, she creates innovative and customized solutions for businesses and individuals. Her mission is to build a generation of African leaders capable of driving meaningful and lasting change through action.

Connect with Stéphanie-Laure on LinkedIn to know more.

How did you begin to volunteer?

I began my volunteering journey in 2021 with an NGO called Top Innovation. At that time, I had already earned a Master’s degree in Health Sociology and was pursuing another Master’s in Project Management. But beyond my academic achievements, I felt something deeper a sense of searching. I wanted to find my place, understand my purpose, and most importantly, create real impact. Everything changed the day I attended a youth employability program. There, I met the president of the organization. That encounter became a turning point. For the first time, I realized that I didn’t have to wait for opportunities I could create them.

So I made a simple but life-changing decision: to serve. In 2023, following the recommendation of my mentor, Mymy Christian, I joined the PMI Côte d’Ivoire Chapter. I started modestly as an assistant in the events team. I observed, I learned, and I committed myself fully. Very quickly, what began as an experience turned into a missionOver time, I grew into greater responsibilities, eventually becoming Vice President of Events. Beyond the titles, the real story is transformation. I contributed to structuring operations, strengthening execution, and transforming key events such as International Project Management Day into flagship experiences. We scaled our event delivery capacity from about 7 events per year to over 35, including webinars, afterworks, and high-impact initiatives. But my greatest achievement is not just in numbers it is in people. In volunteers who dared, who grew, who found their confidence. In the culture we built together: one rooted in collaboration, ownership, and continuous learning.

Today, I can say this with conviction: volunteering didn’t just change my journey—it transformed who I became.

Why did you continue volunteering?

Because volunteering stopped being something I did… and became who I am. At first, I was simply looking for experience, for direction, for an opportunity. But along the journey, I discovered something far more powerful. I discovered growth. I discovered purpose. I discovered impact. Volunteering challenged me, stretched me, and revealed strengths I didn’t know I had. It gave me a space to learn by doing, to lead without waiting for permission, and to contribute to something bigger than myself. But most importantly, it connected me to people—to mentors, to teams, to young individuals who were just like me, searching for their path. I continued because I realized that volunteering is not just about giving your time. It is about building yourself while building others. It is about transforming lives—including your own. And today, I don’t just volunteer to grow anymore…I volunteer to inspire, to open doors for others, and to prove that service can become a pathway to leadership, opportunity, and lasting impact.

How has volunteering helped you in your career? Could you share two examples/stories, please?

Volunteering has not only supported my career, but it has also opened the doors to it. Most of the skills I use today were built through hands-on experience as a volunteer.

First example:
 Through my journey at PMI Côte d’Ivoire, especially as Vice President of Events, I developed strong capabilities in leadership, project structuring, and execution. I learned how to plan, coordinate teams, manage stakeholders, and deliver high-impact events. This experience became a real training ground.

Today, as a PMO Lead, I am responsible for structuring projects within my organization. The methodologies I apply, planning, coordination, and performance tracking, are directly rooted in what I learned through volunteering. Even my ability to manage events professionally comes from that experience.

Second example:
 Volunteering also helped me build confidence and visibility. Leading initiatives, speaking in front of teams, and managing responsibilities prepared me to operate in professional environments with clarity and impact. It gave me credibility, not just skills.

So for me, volunteering was not just preparation it was transformation. It gave me experience before the job, confidence before the opportunity, and impact before the title.

Would you encourage other people to volunteer, and if so, why?

Absolutely, without hesitation. Volunteering is one of the most powerful and accessible ways to grow both personally and professionally. It gives you what traditional systems often cannot: real experience, real responsibility, and real impact. Through volunteering, you don’t just learn you practice. You develop leadership, communication, problem-solving, and the ability to work with others. These are the exact skills that organizations are looking for today.

But beyond skills, volunteering changes your mindset. It builds confidence. It helps you discover your strengths, your purpose, and your potential. It connects you to people who can guide you, support you, and open doors you didn’t even know existed.

In many contexts, especially where access to opportunities is limited, volunteering can become a true gateway into employment, into leadership, into transformation. So yes, I strongly encourage it because volunteering doesn’t just prepare you for opportunities…it prepares you to create them.