Where are they now? Interview with Tessa Cullen
In this edition we sit down and talk with Tessa Cullen - a Policy Advisor who worked in New Zealand Government Procurement from 2017 until 2019. Tessa now works at the World Bank, and was visiting Wellington last week with a Cambodian delegation of public finance officials.
Tessa Cullen
What have you been doing since you left New Zealand Government Procurement in 2019?
I was initially seconded to the OECD infrastructure and public procurement unit in Paris. Several ex-New Zealand Government Procurement staff have had this role. This unit covers procurement and infrastructure policy for OECD countries. I covered projects in Slovakia, Poland, and Switzerland while on secondment.
Did you do further study after the OECD?
Yes, I was really lucky to have gained a place at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford in late 2019. I completed my Master of Public Policy in 2021.
What or who has been the inspiration for your public policy and procurement journey?
I credit all my success to my very first manager, Karen English. She hired me right out of my undergraduate degree, and gave me a brilliant first start. It was personal and professional luck.
At that stage, New Zealand Government Procurement was updating the 3rd edition of the Government Procurement Rules. Karen had a clear vision for what could be achieved using procurement as a lever for better public value and outcomes. She is an excellent manager because she simultaneously gave me opportunities to grow, while also protecting and supporting her team! I realise now this combination is pretty special, and pretty rare. I have never had another manager as great as Karen. I was so pleased to see she was awarded a Public Service Day medal last year. So well deserved.
Announcing the 2025 Public Service Day Awards recipients — Public Service Commission Te Kawa Mataaho.
Everything we see in public or private sectors - nationally or globally - has procurement at its core. Good or bad. I had a ringside seat at the evolution of people starting to see the core value of procurement. People starting to wake up to its potential - moving away from procurement as just the government spending money, towards it being a core part of the public financial management discipline. Procurement has a role across market strategy, budget, procurement spend, through monitoring, revision and repeating or refining cycles.
Did you go to the World Bank next?
Yes, I had 4 amazing years based in Washington DC. I was initially placed in the Europe and Central Asia Governance Team, supporting Public Financial Management reforms in Uzbekistan, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, the Western Balkans, and Ukraine.
Working in Ukraine was a professional highlight for me. Despite the invasion in February 2022, we still traveled to Kyiv regularly. The World Bank's work in Ukraine now focuses on maintaining the country’s economic stability, protecting core government service delivery, and laying the groundwork for post-war recovery.
The World Bank has 4-year postings, so in July 2025, I moved to Vientiane, Lao PDR. I now lead the public financial reform programs in Lao PDR and Cambodia.
Where will you go from here?
I am going to be based in South East Asia for the next 4-ish years, so I aim to do a lot of travelling within Laos and Cambodia, and the wider region. I love integrating everything I’ve learned so far in my career. Empowerment and economic growth through procurement is exciting in this part of the public financial reforms in Asia. Procurement is core to efficient and transparent service delivery across the world. Laos and Cambodia are currently undertaking significant reforms in this area, so I am constantly applying my knowledge gained at New Zealand Government Procurement to my work in these two countries.
Your advice to someone starting out now in procurement?
When I was first offered the job in New Zealand Government Procurement in 2017, someone told me not to take it as “procurement is just government buying pens and paper, there is no room for career progression in that field.” They could not have been more wrong. Procurement is central to good governance, to efficient and transparent spending, and to successful service delivery. Procurement has taken me to Paris, Oxford, Washington, and now to Vientiane. Never undervalue what procurement can do, and where it can take you.