Richard Bate admits he didn’t find waste, it found him – but after 35 years in the industry, he’s glad it did.
Following the sad death of his father, the young Merseysider needed a job to help support his family so he became a weighbridge operator at a waste site – a job he admits he had “no clue” about.
But he obviously had a knack for the role because he was swiftly put through University by his employer (going on to achieve a degree in business) and was soon promoted to a more senior operational role. He then went on to fulfil various roles for some of the UK’s biggest waste management companies.
Richard recalls: “I started off in operations but I wanted to push myself and get out of my comfort zone so without any previous commercial experience I went into commercial role and ended up becoming the number one salesman for the company I worked for.”
Richard joined Yorwaste in 2014, initially to run the company’s waste transfer stations. He soon helped make them more profitable and was offered the job he does now, the company’s Head of Commercial Development.
He explains what this entails: “It’s a very wide-ranging role, overseeing the company’s commodity trading, our key account and brokers and managing our shareholder clients – North Yorkshire County Council and City of York Council and our district council customers.
“I am also heading the transition of bringing Todd Waste Management, who we recently acquired, into the Yorwaste Group, so it’s been a particularly busy time recently.”
Richard says one of the best things about working for Yorwaste is the team ethos.
He says: “There’s a great culture within the company of encouraging people to take responsibility and get involved in decision making.
“Yorwaste has grown rapidly and is an exciting, dynamic business.”
Outside of work, Richard lives with his wife in Richmond, North Yorkshire. Their four children have moved away so the couple enjoy going out for walks with their dog. He is a member of the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), so enjoys visiting different pubs to sample their beer, and as a football fan, he supports Everton, but says he is happy to watch most football on TV.
