Your time is valuable, so one of the best things you can do is proactively protect it.
Solving waste issues is a waste of time because
They don’t actually solve anything
You’re not paid to solve endless loops of waste issues
It steals time from other projects
It’s important to invest in your waste management process. Unless you have solid waste disposal strategies, problems are going to keep coming back.
Let’s learn how to optimize your solution methods is critical - you, your staff and your bottom line will all stand to benefit.
Waste Solutions Aren’t Always Long-Term Fixes
Any solutions that aren’t built into your contract are shaky ones.
We can’t change the fact that oftentimes waste haulers often have lousy customer service. But we make sure our clients have peace of mind by controlling price hikes, limiting ancillary fees, and making service provisions.
If you have bad service, but your contract doesn’t have a service provision clause, you won’t have much recourse when your hauler strews garbage all across your parking lot for the third time this month. You may convince him to come back and clean up his or her mess, but they don’t have much incentive to stop doing it.
If you receive a surprise price hike, it’s unlikely your hauler will listen to your complaints unless you can point to language on your contract that specifically prohibits them.
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And honestly, sometimes what you don’t know is used against you. If you don’t know how the hauler industry works, it can be hard to fight an inaccurate billing error (which, by the way, happen about 10% of the time). It can be difficult to make a case for fair pricing for your company if you don’t really know what’s fair.
Just two months ago, one of our clients’ haulers got a 900% price hike and insisted it was normal. We successfully confronted the hauler because we knew this is not an typical industry price hike. It took quite a few phone calls, but it was a burden the client didn’t have to handle on their own.
Once your contract includes language that protects your interests - and your time - you can use it to show the hauler that they can’t leave trash on the grounds or raise prices when they feel like it.
The devil is in the details - make sure your contract is airtight. And when all else fails, having some insider industry knowledge can really come in handy!
Your Aren’t Paid to Babysit Your Waste Hauler
It can take an extraordinary amount of time to resolve waste issues. You may wait on hold for the better part of an hour, then speak to someone who is cagey about getting quick resolution to the problem - or who may insist that it’s not a problem at all. Then the solution might not work, or may take so long to put in place it’s caused other problems!
You and your staff aren’t paid to solve endless loops of waste issues.
Unless your job description is “Hauler Intermediary” if you’re spending more than an hour or two a month resolving trash issues, you’re spending too much time.
Your Time Should be Your Own
Any time spent babysitting your hauler is time taken away from other projects and priorities. If you weren’t problem solving trash issues, what else could you be doing? Responding to client issues? Evaluating budgets?
Your time shouldn’t be infringed on by poor service issues. You shouldn’t have to constantly be distracted by waste issues - small or large.
Resolving Waste Issues Permanently is Critical
Stop the endless cycle of waste issues! Evaluate and permanently fix your contract so that it becomes a tool in your defense - not something that hurts you.
Insert language that limit your price hikes - this will give you fiscal stability since you’ll be able to predict waste expenses with certainty. Include clauses that limit or drastically reduce fees, and that have clear consequences for consistent poor service.
You can’t stop haulers from being haulers. But you can make sure you have recourse when you and your company aren’t being treated fairly, which will ultimately save you time - and money.