Member Article

Ex-Veolia General Manager to handle waste and logistics at Ward

Midlands-based metal recycling and waste management specialist, Ward, has strengthened its senior management team with the appointment of Jim Wainwright as General Manager for Waste and Logistics.

With almost 30 years waste management industry expertise, predominantly at Veolia, with a spell as an independent consultant, Jim brings a wealth of corporate knowledge to Ward. This new role represents a key hire, helping the fourth generation family business streamline its operations and set the motions in place for further strategic growth.

Jim Wainwright, commented: “I’m already loving it at Ward. It was a culture shock at first, moving from such a large organisation to a smaller family business, but that’s what is exciting. I love the can-do attitude of the whole team, the pace and the ability to make a positive impact in a short space of time. I’m looking forward to helping Ward grow by bringing some more corporate and structured ideas around transport, sales and recycling, while still retaining the family values that the business was founded on.”

Based out of Ward’s Ilkeston site, the role will cover all five of Ward’s metal recycling and waste management processing plants, with cradle to grave responsibility for drivers, vehicles and waste processing facilities. Jim hopes that the ideas and expertise he brings with him will see positive impacts on sales, customer service, brokers, fleet management and internal processing.

Jim, one of 12 new hires to join the Ward team this quarter, is keen to build engagement with drivers and is currently appointing key roles within the organisation to help with all areas of business development.

James Balfour, Finance Director at Ward, said: “Ward has grown from a 30 strong family business to a staff of over 300 and a fleet of nearly 100 vehicles in a relatively short space of time. We acknowledge that to achieve the next level of growth we’ll need some cultural, organisational and procedural change, plus further development of our people. We started to look for someone with a corporate background who could assist us and Jim more than fits the bill. It’s a pleasure to welcome him to the Ward team.”

Ward is a fourth-generation family business and has quadrupled its turnover in the last 10 years, through continuous investment and innovation in metal processing, recycling and waste management.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ward .