Five Questions That Separate Good Consultants from Great Consultants

No one buys a car and hopes that it will make transportation harder! No buys a steak dinner and hopes they will leave hungrier than when they got there. And no one hires a waste consultant and hopes that their waste management will become more frustrating. 

Your waste management partner should do exactly that - manage your waste. They should be eliminating your headaches, not causing them. 

Ask these five questions, and you’ll quickly know whether a potential consultant is a good fit for your company.

What is your profit objective?

Yes, this is an uncomfortable question, but it’s probably one of the most important. Profit objective plays a critical role in any profession, and it’s going to affect how your waste consultant interacts with you and your waste stream.

If they can’t or won’t answer this question, it’s a good indication that they’re not the type of person you should be partnering with anyway. 

Profit objectives are not the same across the waste industry. Waste Consultants aren’t like brokers. Most don’t charge a flat fee every month. Instead, they share in the savings they find for you. 

Good consultants will tell you that they share in the savings they find. Great consultants will tell you that they won’t charge you unless they find savings.

Consultants vary in how they split the savings. Here at WCI, we typically share in the savings 50-50 with most of our clients. 

What does your audit process look like?

Good consultants will conduct an audit; great consultants will make sure that the audit is incredibly thorough.

You don’t want to partner with someone who is going to find $2000 worth of monthly savings, but miss the $4000 opportunity by not bothering to check your equipment efficiency. 

Consider asking these three questions about the waste audit process: 

• What’s the turn-around time or time commitment? Audits can take quite some time - anywhere from 90 - 120 days. Be suspicious of someone who tells you they can complete their audit in less than two weeks. The more thorough the initial audit, the less you’ll overspend. It’s just that simple. 

• What do you analyze during the audit process? Your consultant needs to be exhaustive. They should look at your contract, your equipment needs vs current equipment, your invoice history, and the frequency of pick-ups. They need to be detail oriented, but also have the wherewithal to be able to see the big picture of your spend, too. 

• How do you share your findings? Will you get a copy of the audit results? What will the next steps of implementation look like? How much will your input be encouraged and accepted? You don’t want to partner with someone, for instance, who doesn’t let you have any say in those who are employed at your site.  

How do you bill us?

Pretend your electric bill suddenly goes through the roof. You go to look at your most recent invoice, and all that’s listed is one number, with one usage date. You have no way of telling what happened, or whether there is a mistake. You probably feel something less than victorious and empowered.

Waste disposal bills are similar to utility bills. How will you know whether you’re overpaying if you can’t see what you’re paying for?

Itemized waste bills minimize confusion, mix-ups, and errors. 

Most consultants will provide you with a monthly invoice. This invoice should list your locations, the services you are using at those locations, and what your cost for the month is. 

Good consultants will give you an itemized bill, but great consultants will provide additional detail about your location savings and comparison data.

What on-going services do you provide?

Excellent waste consultants look for every opportunity for you to minimize your waste disposal expenses. As a result, they shouldn’t stop after the initial audit is complete - they should keep looking for additional savings. 

In our opinion, great consultants offer on-going waste invoice review and service support. When you are having trouble with their hauler, the consultant is the one to resolve it.  And when there is a billing error, the consultant finds it and rectifies it. 

We find that many companies really appreciate the extra time they have as a result. They don’t have to spend hours navigating an endless phone menu, or trying to get in touch with the right representative. All of this gets taken off their plate.

Will you pay the waste haulers?

Most consultants will not pay the haulers for you.

They will renegotiate contracts as necessary, or send bids out to find you the least expensive waste service provider, but they will not pay the haulers on your behalf. 

Our practice is to ensure our clients are paying fair bills. So make sure our contracts are air-tight, and we review invoices to ensure they are in line with the contracts. (This eliminates things like surprise price hikes in addition to errors).

Conclusion

So, there you have it! 

Asking these five questions will give you a clear picture of who your potential waste partner is, and how they can help manage your waste disposal. 

A great consultant will do everything he can do to reduce your recurring waste expenses. They will be transparent about how they are paid and what their billing practices are. 

They will also conduct a thorough initial audit, but then go the extra mile and ensure you continue to experience all possible savings.

Don’t settle for less than ideal fit when it comes to your waste management. 

Your company and staff - not to mention your bottom line - will thank you for it.  

Want even more questions to ask a consultant? Download this free questionnaire to evaluate your potential waste management partner.

Guide to Waste Consultants, Waste Brokers and Waste Haulers {Updated for 2021}

“Consultants and brokers are really the same, right?”

“Are haulers responsible for pick-up, or are consultants?”

“Do brokers work with haulers, too?”

These are some of the questions we get on a regular basis about our industry, and we can’t say we blame people! There are so many roles in the waste industry and it can be really overwhelming. But the more you know about consultants, brokers, and haulers, the better decision you can make about your waste management needs.

Here’s a simple breakdown of the differences and similarities between waste consultants, waste brokers, and waste haulers.

Comparison of Waste Consultants, Brokers, and Haulers

Waste Services Comparison Chart

The waste industry can seem complicated, but having the right information will really help you make ideal decisions for your business.

Let’s look at how consultants, brokers and haulers compare in these categories:

1. Waste Payments and Billing Practices

2. Initial and Ongoing Waste Audits

3. Waste Hauler Selection, Accountability, and Payment

And after you’ve been informed about each of these categories, you’ll have a much clearer picture about what your business or organization needs in relation to waste disposal. We’ve also included one last section at the end about how to know what waste service is right for you.

Ready? let’s dive in!

Waste Payment and Billing Practices

Are you overspending on waste services? Don’t let this be you!

The next time you pay your electric or gas bill, take a quick look at the services listed. You’ll likely see a list of dates and your usage over that period of time. This is called an itemized bill. Consumers tend to appreciate these because they show exactly what they’re paying for - which makes it easier to spot sudden price hikes or mistakes.

Here at WCI, we think this kind of transparency is invaluable and we make sure our invoices reflect this. After we check hauler invoices (more on this below), we address any mistakes then send an itemized invoice to our clients. They can see exactly what they are paying for at each location and which haulers or vendors are being used. This transparency gives you the whole picture of your expenses.

Brokers, on the other hand, will send you a consolidated waste bill that likely will not show their fees, price spikes, or itemized expenses. Consolidated bills have a simplicity that some property managers really like, especially those who have multiple locations. But the convenience can come at a cost. It can be difficult to discern price spikes, or if your hauler has suddenly changed.

But brokers and consultants also differ in how they are typically paid.

As consultants, we are compensated by sharing in the savings we find for our clients. Typically, we share 50-50 in the savings.

A broker, however, will collect his monthly fee regardless of whether you are overspending. Overpaying by 20% for his hauler’s services? That’s unfortunate, and you may not ever find out about it. Spending $2000 more a year on a dumpster you don’t really need? You’ll likely never know.

This tendency to overspend on waste expenses is rampant in every industry we’ve ever serviced: food services, medical waste, retail, multi-family, you name it!

How do we combat it? By conducting extensive audits.

Initial and Ongoing Waste Audits

Due to these opposing profit objectives, consultants and brokers tend to have different approaches to initial audits.

When first setting up a contract, both consultant and brokers will conduct an initial audit. Consultants, however, tend to be much more thorough at this stage; brokers aren’t often as careful. We see this time and time again when people use brokers and as best we can figure, it happens because of the different profit objectives.

We also complete on-going site audits to make sure you aren’t being overcharged. We go over each bill to make sure it’s accurate, and fight price spikes on your behalf. WCI also looks for other ways you’re overspending in your waste and update you as needed. After all, the more savings we find for you, the better off we both are!

But since a waste broker is compensated regardless of how much expense he saves you, they often do not have the financial incentive to conduct exhaustive reviews or perform hauler audits.  

Waste Hauler Selection, Accountability, and Payment

Unless you’re planning on taking out the garbage yourself, you need a waste hauler! There a couple of different ways to partner with one.

You can create a hauler agreement between you and the hauler. But for those with many properties or properties in different states, this can create an administrative nightmare.

So a lot of companies chose to partner with a waste consultant or a waste broker. Both do the same thing: they negotiate with and manage the haulers on your behalf.

But the consultant operates from a partnership model; when we finish our review, we present our clients with a Waste Savings Summary (WSS) that shows our recommendations. We then discuss the best options with our client and implement them on his or her behalf.

The broker, on the other hand, will make this decision without consulting with the client. Occasionally, their selection of waste haulers is the ideal choice for the client - but a lot of times, it’s not. Some of our clients have overspent on their broker-selected hauler by 20-30% a month; something we quickly put a stop to.

Another major difference between consultants and brokers is whether they pay the hauler. A waste consultant will review their invoices, but we don’t pay haulers on your behalf. Brokers do. This can be great for convenience but ultimately leaves you in the dark about what exactly you are paying for.  

Is a waste consultant or a waste broker right for me?

If you want a thorough understanding of your refuse needs and on-going auditing services, consider learning more about the recurring savings opportunities offered by a waste consultant.

But if you find yourself in a position where you don’t want as much say in the haulers you work with, or want the simplicity of a consolidated bill, a broker might be best for you.

It’s really a question of how involved and informed you want to be in the management of your haulers and your waste and recycling streams.

What kinds of issues do you have with your current waste management process? Do you have any recurring frustrations with your hauler? We would love to answer any questions you have. You can always get in touch with us at info@wasteconsultantsinc.net.

Everything you Need to Know about Waste Consultants, Waste Brokers and Waste Haulers

“Consultants and brokers are really the same, right?”

“Are haulers responsible for pick-up, or are consultants?”

“Do brokers work with haulers, too?”

These are some of the questions we get on a regular basis about our industry, and we can’t say we blame people! There are so many roles in the waste industry and it can be really overwhelming. But the more you know about consultants, brokers, and haulers, the better decision you can make about your waste management needs.

Here’s a simple breakdown of the differences and similarities between waste consultants, waste brokers, and waste haulers.

Comparison of Waste Consultants, Brokers, and Haulers

Waste Services Comparison Chart

The waste industry can seem complicated, but having the right information will really help you make ideal decisions for your business.

Let’s look at how consultants, brokers and haulers compare in these categories:

1. Waste Payments and Billing Practices

2. Initial and Ongoing Waste Audits

3. Waste Hauler Selection, Accountability, and Payment

And after you’ve been informed about each of these categories, you’ll have a much clearer picture about what your business or organization needs in relation to waste disposal. We’ve also included one last section at the end about how to know what waste service is right for you.

Ready? let’s dive in!

Waste Payment and Billing Practices

Are you overspending on waste services? Don’t let this be you!

The next time you pay your electric or gas bill, take a quick look at the services listed. You’ll likely see a list of dates and your usage over that period of time. This is called an itemized bill. Consumers tend to appreciate these because they show exactly what they’re paying for - which makes it easier to spot sudden price hikes or mistakes.

Here at WCI, we think this kind of transparency is invaluable and we make sure our invoices reflect this. After we check hauler invoices (more on this below), we address any mistakes then send an itemized invoice to our clients. They can see exactly what they are paying for at each location and which haulers or vendors are being used. This transparency gives you the whole picture of your expenses.

Brokers, on the other hand, will send you a consolidated waste bill that likely will not show their fees, price spikes, or itemized expenses. Consolidated bills have a simplicity that some property managers really like, especially those who have multiple locations. But the convenience can come at a cost. It can be difficult to discern price spikes, or if your hauler has suddenly changed.

But brokers and consultants also differ in how they are typically paid.

As consultants, we are compensated by sharing in the savings we find for our clients. Typically, we share 50-50 in the savings.

A broker, however, will collect his monthly fee regardless of whether you are overspending. Overpaying by 20% for his hauler’s services? That’s unfortunate, and you may not ever find out about it. Spending $2000 more a year on a dumpster you don’t really need? You’ll likely never know.

This tendency to overspend on waste expenses is rampant in every industry we’ve ever serviced: food services, medical waste, retail, multi-family, you name it!

How do we combat it? By conducting extensive audits.

Initial and Ongoing Waste Audits

Due to these opposing profit objectives, consultants and brokers tend to have different approaches to initial audits.

When first setting up a contract, both consultant and brokers will conduct an initial audit. Consultants, however, tend to be much more thorough at this stage; brokers aren’t often as careful. We see this time and time again when people use brokers and as best we can figure, it happens because of the different profit objectives.

We also complete on-going site audits to make sure you aren’t being overcharged. We go over each bill to make sure it’s accurate, and fight price spikes on your behalf. WCI also looks for other ways you’re overspending in your waste and update you as needed. After all, the more savings we find for you, the better off we both are!

But since a waste broker is compensated regardless of how much expense he saves you, they often do not have the financial incentive to conduct exhaustive reviews or perform hauler audits.  

Waste Hauler Selection, Accountability, and Payment

Unless you’re planning on taking out the garbage yourself, you need a waste hauler! There a couple of different ways to partner with one.

You can create a hauler agreement between you and the hauler. But for those with many properties or properties in different states, this can create an administrative nightmare.

So a lot of companies chose to partner with a waste consultant or a waste broker. Both do the same thing: they negotiate with and manage the haulers on your behalf.

But the consultant operates from a partnership model; when we finish our review, we present our clients with a Waste Savings Summary (WSS) that shows our recommendations. We then discuss the best options with our client and implement them on his or her behalf.

The broker, on the other hand, will make this decision without consulting with the client. Occasionally, their selection of waste haulers is the ideal choice for the client - but a lot of times, it’s not. Some of our clients have overspent on their broker-selected hauler by 20-30% a month; something we quickly put a stop to.

Another major difference between consultants and brokers is whether they pay the hauler. A waste consultant will review their invoices, but we don’t pay haulers on your behalf. Brokers do. This can be great for convenience but ultimately leaves you in the dark about what exactly you are paying for.  

Is a waste consultant or a waste broker right for me?

It can seem like there are too many options for waste management!

If you want a thorough understanding of your refuse needs and on-going auditing services, consider learning more about the recurring savings opportunities offered by a waste consultant.

But if you find yourself in a position where you don’t want as much say in the haulers you work with, or want the simplicity of a consolidated bill, a broker might be best for you.

It’s really a question of how involved and informed you want to be in the management of your haulers and your waste and recycling streams.

What kinds of issues do you have with your current waste management process? Do you have any recurring frustrations with your hauler? We would love to answer any questions you have. You can always get in touch with us at info@wasteconsultantsinc.net.

The Definitive Guide to Waste Consultants (2019 Version)

Everyone loves their waste hauler, right? You get top-notch service: your haulers always pick up your waste promptly and they never leave behind a mess or forget to service dumpsters.  And their rates are always fair and never go up.

Are you laughing yet?

The reality is, most people really don’t like dealing with their hauler. They’re hard to get a hold of when you really need them, their service often leaves much to be desired, and their fees seem exorbitant given what they actually do.

Psst! Download our free Guide to Reducing Waste Expenses!

You probably already know that you’re not getting the best service, but what can you do? Who has time to fight for better rates and service on top of everything else on their plate? You don’t, but waste consultants do!

Here at Waste Consultants Inc, (WCI) we don’t like seeing anyone paying too much for waste disposal services. We make sure that you aren’t getting raked over the coals with unfair vendor contracts or deceptive industry practices.  

Most of our clients spend at least $10,000 a month in waste fees - which is a significant recurring expense! We cut these expenses in two ways: through service improvements and renegotiating agreements. We do a free exhaustive waste audit, then recommend cost-saving measures.

Ready to learn more about how we do what we do? Let’s dive in!

Our Six Step Process

Our six step process is designed to find every waste savings opportunity available to you.

After you sign a service agreement , we partner with you to take these next steps:

1. Assign WCI personnel

2. Review waste expenses at all facilities

3. Identify cost reduction opportunities

4. Develop recommendations

5. Implement approved recommendations

6. Provide a monthly saving report.

Our proven process has helped clients in retail, food, and multi-family industries and others better manage their waste disposal.

Assign WCI Personnel

First, we set up a Kick Off Meeting between you and your project manager. This meeting usually happens by phone, but it has happened on-site on occasion. This meeting is a chance for you to get to know your project manager and discuss what the next 60-90 days will look like as they do a detailed review of your waste disposal expenses.

Review Waste Expenses at All Facilities

In order to conduct our comprehensive audit, we need to gather some relevant waste documents. We will need:

1. Copies of the most recent waste hauler invoices - typically just a current copy for each location we are reviewing.

2. Signed Letter of Authorization (LOA) on company Letterhead, which lets us work with your haulers

3. Copies of contracts in place with current waste and recycling vendors

4. Vendor online access credentials (if applicable)

5. List of locations with contacts/managers

We have designed our waste audit to be as non-intrusive as possible to you and those you with whom you work. This paperwork gives us a framework of what your waste needs currently are, and we often also work with our clients by phone as well to get additional information.

Identify Cost Reduction Opportunities

After looking at how you currently manage your waste, we find ways to reduce your monthly waste expenditure.

What specific things do we look at? This varies: every location has different waste needs.

Broadly speaking, we tend to find most of our savings in three ways: in renegotiating hauler contracts, in adjusting the frequency of pick-up, and in getting more efficient waste management equipment.

We may not recommend all of these at every location, but the examples below will give you an idea of some of the ways we identify cost reduction opportunities.

One of the first things we look at is hauler contracts. Is there another hauler that could perform the same services for less? Should you renegotiate your current agreement with your hauler to get better rates?

We also look at the frequency of pick-up. Many of our clients don’t actually need to have pick-ups as often as they do! A recent client, a retirement community, originally had their roll-off dumpster picked up four times a week. After our evaluation, we found that they really only needed to have their trash picked up twice a week. This saved them over $600 a month, or about $7200 a year!

We will confirm with your haulers to find out if your frequency levels are accurate,  and indicate this on our report. We also have the ability to use technology (cameras, sensors, etc) to better understand your needs and develop recommendations to reduce expenses and better manage your disposal needs.

Lastly, we examine the waste equipment you have on-site. Do you need a compactor? Do you need a larger or smaller dumpster? If your have an 8 yard dumpster onsite but it only gets half-way filled before the hauler picks it up, it’s likely a good idea to see if you can get a different dumpster size. Every little bit of monthly savings adds up!

Develop Recommendations

Based on our analysis, we create a recommendations report tailored to your industry and location. It shows what you could save, and what to implement to access those savings. We call this a Waste Savings Summary, or “WSS” for short.

The WSS lists each location and every kind of equipment that location has. We compare the existing waste disposal arrangements with our recommendations for new ones. And we also take into account all recycling streams. As you can see below, not every category has potential for savings, but those that do can be pretty significant.

At this sample location, we were able to reduce the dumpster rental at one location from $758.64 to $267.60.

This, combined with savings opportunities in other categories, resulted in a savings of 25% or $4002.53.

Implement Approved Recommendations

“We typically save our clients 20-40% in expenses per month.”

When our report is ready, your project manager will send it to you or the person responsible for its implementation. They will also set up a phone conference to go over it with you. We give you our recommendations report and explain our findings in detail.  Then, we implement the recommendations upon your approval.  

This report shows exactly what you need to change to reduce waste expenditure. It includes all the information about your current waste management arrangements and shows what your future savings can be. The average varies from location to location, but we typically save our clients 20-40% in expenses per month.

During your follow-up conversation with your program manager, you can ask any questions you want about their findings. Want to know how they were able to save you $300 a month in dumpster fees? Not sure if you should buy or rent a compactor? Want to know more about the dependability of a recommended waste hauler?

Your Project Manager is there to support you and answer all questions you have about how to best manage your waste disposal. And after you decide which recommendations to implement, we work with you to make the necessary changes.

What if there are no savings to be found? We at WCI are compensated only when we find savings for you. If we find no savings opportunity, you pay nothing. We don’t charge fees (like a broker) if our services don’t actually affect your bottom line.

Provide a Monthly Savings Report

Each month, we provide a Monthly Savings Report very similar to our Waste Savings Summary. The report lists your old expenses and your new expenses. It also shows how the waste reduction methods you’ve implemented are effecting your monthly savings.

Prior to sending you this bill, we audit all hauler invoices to make sure that you are not overcharged. We find that bills contain errors about 10% of the time, so we make it a point to review them carefully.

We Partner with You!

So many companies are overspending on their waste management, but yours doesn’t have to be one of them.

Each part of our six-step process is designed to support you in your desire to reduce waste expenditure. We exhaustively examine your waste and recycling streams, then show you opportunities for savings. And we constantly monitor your invoices for discrepancies and for additional expense reduction potential.

What other questions do you have about your waste management process? Want to know more about how we find our clients savings? Let us know in the comments below!

Three Key Differences Between Waste Consultants and Waste Brokers

One of the most significant decisions you can make about waste disposal is whether you hire a waste consultant or a waste broker. This choice can effect your P&L, so it’s important to know the facts about each profession.

Consultants and brokers are similar, but there are some crucial differences. Let’s take a look at how these differences impact their relationship with you, their client.

Waste Disposal Review

Both consultants and brokers will conduct an initial review of the disposal needs at your locations. In this review, they compile basic information like the number of dumpsters, their size, and your current pick-up frequency.

Consultants are often much more expansive in their research and analysis, whereas brokers don’t tend to be as thorough. In fact, we find that brokers typically discover only about 10% of the possible savings at any given site.

Here at Waste Consultants Inc. (WCI) after we partner with a client, one of our project managers completes a free, exhaustive audit. They review the last 6-12 months of your invoices, copies of current contracts for haulers and recycling vendors, and may even do an on-site visit. The project manager then makes a list of expense reduction recommendations.

Waste Disposal Process Implementation

Brokers make waste management choices as seems best to them but consultants let you make these decisions. Consider the way brokers and consultants select haulers.

Brokers can choose haulers based on any number of variables, but the decision is up to them. They act as middlemen to set up hauler contracts on your behalf.

Here’s an example of one such contract. It lists terms and conditions, the number and type of waste containers, pick up frequency, and rates.

Brokers negotiate agreements like the one above. Their hauler selections may align with the needs of your locations, but they may not. And since a broker’s client has little oversight, it can be difficult to tell if their selections are truly in the best interest of that client.

Consultants, on the other hand, let you make the decision not just about which hauler to employ, but the frequency of pick-up, and the waste equipment you use. Our exhaustive audit lets us see where expense reduction methods can be implemented - but we never make those choices on your behalf. We give you all the information you need to make the best decision possible, then help you implement per your direction.  

We often make recommendations like renegotiating service agreements, obtaining more efficient equipment, and increasing frequency control. This past spring, one of our manufacturing clients chose to implement these recommendations at all three of their locations. The client is now saving $12,000 a month in waste expenditures.

Waste Billing Processes

Brokers and consultants differ in how they are paid and in what their bills specify.

Brokers are paid regardless of the savings they find for you. Their broker fee remains the same if they find you $100 of monthly savings or $1000. As a result, many are not motivated to look for the maximum amount of waste reduction options for their client.

Consultants, on the other hand, are paid only when you save. We share in the profit with you only after you have implemented our recommendations. For most companies we work with, we typically share in the savings fifty-fifty.

If we don’t find savings after conducting our audit, you are not charged! This certainly happens on occasion, but for 90% of the businesses we work with, companies typically reduce their waste costs 20-40%.

But brokers and consultants also differ in billing transparency.

A broker will send you a monthly consolidated bill for all of your waste charges. This bill includes all expenses from the trash haulers who service your location or properties. It may or may not be itemized, but it will always include a hauler service fee.

For those with many properties in multiple cities or states, a consolidated bill can provide convenience. While they may be simpler to manage, they are not designed to show you price spikes or make mistakes easy to spot.

At WCI, we take a different approach. We audit all hauler invoices to ensure their accuracy and we also monitor them for unexplained price hikes. And each month, we also send you a savings summary sheet that itemizes your past and present waste expenditure. We want you to see exactly what is contributing to your monthly savings.

Summary

Consultants and brokers approach waste management from two different mindsets.

Waste brokers make decisions about your waste disposal process with little oversight. Their bills can make it difficult for you to tell what services you are paying for or if you even need all of those services.

Waste consultants, on the other hand, empower you to make the best disposal choices for your locations and are only paid when their recommendations impact your bottom line.

If you want a simple, single waste bill and are less concerned about waste management decisions, consider retaining a waste and recycling broker.

But if you value the ability to make informed decisions and having billing transparency, a waste consultant would likely be a great fit for you!

What other questions do you have about the differences between waste consultants and waste brokers? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!