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Danyon Thomas - Strategy and Project Specialist

Danyon-Thomas-Strategy-and-Project-Specialist

Danyon Thomas, who joined the company as a graduate in 2018, shares some thoughts about his time at Waste Management so far.

What have you enjoyed about being on the graduate programme?

The opportunity to do real work from the start across the business, be it on a cold Christchurch morning working on RFID (radio frequency identification) technology or with the dispatch team in Hamilton. This variety really helped me appreciate the breadth of our business.

What is your current role?

I’m the company’s strategy and project specialist, and I help our team with the development and execution of our strategy. This involves monitoring our progress and contributing to key initiatives.

What are some of the projects you have worked on?

I’m lucky to get to work on multiple projects that involve different teams. Some focus on improving solutions for our customers, for example looking at complicated waste streams such as food waste and building and construction. Whereas others focus on improving the way WMNZ operates so we can focus on better customer outcomes.

What is most challenging about what you do?

Some of what I do can be slow-burn and take a long time from idea to execution. This can be challenging, but the flipside is I always have several projects on the go which keeps things interesting

Most rewarding?

The people! I work with people from across the business, learn about what they do and what their challenges are. Everyone is totally committed to what we do, and that passion is infectious.

What is something you’d like graduates to know when they are considering joining Waste Management?

There’s so much more to Waste Management than meets the eye. We’re in an incredibly complex industry, but one with huge opportunity to power the circular economy. Joining WMNZ will put you at the centre of supporting the transition to a low carbon economy in Aotearoa.