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Today, we are attending the Go Awards in Birmingham, where The Seven Force Strategic Collaboration Programme has been nominated for the Procurement Team of the Year – Other Organisations award, as well as the Social Value Award – Other Organisations. Our Account Director, Chris Perry, has worked with the Seven Forces to achieve this.
To celebrate, we’ve sat down with one of our Account Directors, Chris Perry, who is in charge of the Seven Force Strategic Collaboration Programme account, and asked a few questions.
How did you get into working in the waste management industry?
It was actually through my manager Roland, who I have worked with in the past and known for several years. I was self-employed for a while beforehand, and I was offered a new opportunity to get into Customer Relationship Management. The role focused on building customer relationships and customer retention, ensuring the continuous satisfaction and development of key accounts and ultimately ensuring a high level of customer retention. From there, I progressed to the corporate team and was offered a Key Account Manager role, mainly focused around the hospitality sector looking after several key breweries, football clubs, and other venues. My role progressed and I became involved in working with the policing authorities, supporting them with the management of a very wide range of waste streams.
What is the Seven Force Strategic Collaboration Programme (or 7F)?
The Seven Force Strategic Collaboration Programme is a procurement partnership that supports the development and implementation of successful service and procurement contracts across seven policing counties in the east of England. This includes the sourcing of waste, recycling, and washroom services. These police forces are Norfolk and Suffolk, Cambridge, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, and Essex and Kent, so there’s enough there to keep me busy!
What is your involvement in the 7F contract?
I am the Account Director for the whole of the 7F account, my role is to develop meaningful relationships that help the partnership deliver on their objectives. This includes ensuring consistency and compliance across the account and the development of projects that deliver on the partnership’s sustainability and social value goals.
What do you find most challenging about managing waste for 7F?
The scale and diversity of the account can be a challenge, time must be managed very efficiently, otherwise, you’ll find there are not enough hours in the day. As well as the proactive work involved, it can also be very reactive, and we must respond to a request on-demand. However, we have an excellent support team and infrastructure in place to ensure we always deliver within the contract parameters. It can be a bit challenging, but I like it that way!
How have approaches changed in the waste management industry over the last few years?
It has changed significantly and there is now much more focus on sustainability and social value and how business partnerships can contribute to wider society. These issues have much more visibility now, with more media focus particularly on public figures like Greta Thunberg and David Attenborough. The waste management industry is not just driving the message alone, government, businesses, and the public play an active role.
How do you see the industry evolving over the next few years?
I envisage more advanced technology around waste processing, such as smart balers and bins that notify the collection service provider when the bins are full, making the operation much more efficient. This type of technology will help to reduce carbon footprint as it reduces unnecessary emptying of containers, therefore cutting down on transport visits. Hopefully, technology like this can be more widely produced and more cost-effective! I’m also hoping that the adoption of the waste hierarchy is further embedded in society, which would make a big difference, as it will reduce the amount of raw materials we are using day-to-day.
Thank you for sitting down with us Chris! Good luck at the GO Awards!
? Did you know...
Zest Recycle will carry out a full review of your existing waste management services and provide a best practice solution for your business?