Following a career change, Chris Wilkinson is keen to achieve his goals and make a difference through Cleanaway’s Graduate Program. Danielle Cordeiro is ready to get out of her comfort zone and apply her environmental studies in a professional setting, while Brendan Chappell is ready to build his career with a focus on safety and process improvements.

We spoke with Chris, Danielle and Brendan to find out what they’ve learnt about Cleanaway so far and what they’re hoping to get out of the Graduate Program experience.

Chris Wilkinson
“My biggest passion is to make the career change I have committed to a success.”

I completed a Diploma of Logistics at TAFE followed by a Bachelor of Commerce double majoring in Supply Chain Management, Logistics and Business Information Systems at Curtin University. Cleanaway offers meaningful employment and is a place where I can make a difference and be proud of my work.

My current placement is WA Solid Waste Services, based out of the Malaga site but because of COVID protocols I have been working from home. It has been rather challenging starting a new job working from home and I look forward to being able to get out on sites and meet people and see firsthand how Cleanaway operates.

The projects I have been assigned for my first six-month rotation include creating an inventory of existing bins within the Cleanaway network, recording and tracking bin locations and developing flow charts for the bin ordering process.

Figuring out what is expected of me and what I need to do to be successful in my assigned projects has been a challenge while working from home. However, my first month working here has shown me just how willing everyone at Cleanaway is to help me succeed. It is a pleasure to work with such helpful people.

Through the program, I am hoping to take part in meaningful projects that can benefit both myself and Cleanaway. I am looking forward to meeting a lot of people from every level in the company and being involved in some of the innovative projects around fleet and inventory management that Cleanaway will be undertaking. I am also hoping for opportunities to learn and develop skills needed for business analysis.

Outside of work, I enjoy spending time with my family and friends throughout Australia. My hobbies include 4WD-ing, camping, watching sport (especially AFL, where I follow the Richmond Tigers), cooking, travel and, as of last year, the gym. I started a fitness program and I am really enjoying the gym which has been a surprise to me.

Danielle Cordeiro
“Through the program, I’m hoping to gain a better understanding of Cleanaway’s role in a circular economy and the new technologies that we are hoping to implement to facilitate that.”

I am a graduate from Monash University in Melbourne having completed my undergraduate degree in Ecology and Conservation Biology and a Master of Environment and Sustainability. Prior to joining Cleanaway, I worked in hospitality, retail and research and interned at the Infrastructure Sustainability Council.

During the first month of Cleanaway’s Graduate Program, I have learnt that Cleanaway has a strong commitment when it comes to sustainability and environmental safety. They are incorporated into every facet of the business and there is continuous improvement being made to meet our ESG goals. It’s also great to see the implementation of Workplace to connect all Cleanaway employees in a more social way so we can share our experiences.

My current placement is with the Environment team assisting in the data analytics of the environmental audit. Working in data analysis is something I am familiar with as a science student, but I am keen to apply these skills in a professional setting. I’m also looking forward to the challenges of the program and experiencing things outside my comfort zone during my placements.

One of the highlights so far was being invited to the Women of Waste and Resource Recovery breakfast hosted by the Waste Management and Resource Recovery Association of Australia. It was great to hear from women in the waste industry and learn about what their experience has been.

In my spare time I enjoy bike riding around the various trails in Melbourne, baking desserts and painting.

Brendan Chappell
“Through the program, I would like to continue developing myself into the most well-rounded team member I can be, while learning from and teaching others to make Cleanaway as a whole better.”

I have been studying Mechanical Engineering and Business Management at Curtin University in WA and am on the brink of graduation with one business unit left to complete. During the first month of Cleanaway’s Graduate Program, I have had the importance of safety truly ingrained in me, even more than it was before. In the past, I have seen people’s actions not align with what they say about safety but at Cleanaway I have seen multiple proactive steps to ensure the safety of everyone.

Coming into Cleanaway, my knowledge of the Industrial & Waste Services (I&WS) business unit was non-existent. I thought Cleanaway was only household and business waste collections. Within the first month, I have started to learn about some of the many jobs that I&WS can do and how hard our operators work.

In my current placement, I’m hoping to learn as much as I can about the current processes that we offer while critically thinking about ways to continue improving safety. I would like to deepen my knowledge of what our clients want from us and develop ways for us to exceed those expectations through safer and more efficient solutions to the issues they face.

Outside of work and university I am a relatively athletic person who enjoys playing footy or going for a run, especially when the run is accompanied by my partner and my puppy, Tasha. I am pretty sports mad and will get stuck into almost any sport going. I have already enjoyed the thrill of throwing myself out of a plane skydiving twice and look forward to going again.

Cleanaway’s Graduate Program is designed to create career pathways for recent graduates through hands-on experience and insight into Cleanaway and the waste management industry as a whole.

Contact us to learn more about how you can make a sustainable future possible together with Cleanaway.

Maddison Barton is combining her love of the ocean and passion for the environment to contribute to Cleanaway’s mission of making a sustainable future possible together. Kelsey McKenzie is looking forward to gaining practical chemical engineering experience with the Liquid & Technical Services team, while Pir Muhammad Junejo is excited to develop his career and apply his engineering qualifications at Cleanaway.

Read on to hear more from Maddison, Kelsey and Pir about why they’ve joined the Graduate Program and what projects they’ve been involved with so far.

Maddison Barton
“I hope to enhance my communication skills and develop my knowledge surrounding the inner workings of what it means to be a Cleanaway employee.”

I grew up in the Blue Mountains of NSW and moved to the Central Coast to complete high school and university. I believe this is where my love for the environment and the ocean fully developed and led me on the path which I follow today. I completed a Bachelor of Science majoring in Sustainable Resource Management and Marine Biology from the University of Newcastle in 2020. I subsequently enrolled in a Graduate Certificate in Environmental Management and Sustainability from UON.

Through the Graduate Program, I hope to develop my environmental management skills. I believe the program is a perfect opportunity to do so and the support that has been shown throughout my first month is a clear indication of the potential growth that is achievable.

The business scope of Cleanaway is one which you cannot fully comprehend unless you have internal insights and that has been the biggest teaching for me thus far. Between site visits and meetings with various branch managers from different business units, I believe I am beginning to understand the scope and I can only hope to continue my learning and contributing to making a sustainable future possible together with current and future generations.

Prior to joining Cleanaway, I’d seen the trucks collecting municipal waste but understanding the specifics of what Cleanaway does has been an amazing learning experience. On my first site visit I was surprised by the sheer size and the processes that are undertaken and I am looking forward to experiencing more sites and developing my knowledge.

Unsurprisingly, as a marine/environmental student, the environment has always been a passion of mine. As such, I enjoy diving and snorkelling in my free time.

Kelsey McKenzie
“I hope to develop a strong safety foundation as well as implement some achievable process optimisation projects in my current placement with the Liquid & Technical Services (LTS) business unit.”

I’m a graduate from the University of Sydney where I studied a Bachelor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering (Honours). I am passionate about sustainability, so I am very excited to being joining Cleanaway where this is a goal we work towards every day!

During my time with Cleanaway, I hope to challenge myself to always continue learning, develop professional relationships, and get some more hands-on chemical engineering experience. In my currently placement with the Liquid & Technical Services (LTS) business unit, I hope to develop a strong safety foundation as well as implement some achievable process optimisation projects.

I’ve been having a lot of fun in my new role. Some of the highlights so far have been seeing the Homebush and Windsor sites and hearing the leadership team talk about all the different sectors of Cleanaway. I’m looking forward to meeting more of the Cleanaway team as I progress through the Graduate Program.

When I am not working, I love to stay active through skiing, rock climbing and yoga. I enjoy travelling and getting out into nature when I have the chance.

Pir Muhammad Junejo
“I want to develop my skills and gain experience – I had heard great things about Cleanaway’s Graduate Program.”

I completed a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering in Pakistan and a Master of Environmental Engineering and Pollution Control at Griffith University in Brisbane. I am passionate about applying my engineering skills to overcome the global threat of climate change and utilising waste in energy generation.

Since I am just starting my professional career and my entire knowledge is at the level of theory, I can’t wait to learn from more experienced people. Cleanaway is an amazing and diverse corporation where I can grow personally and professionally.

Since starting the program, I have been involved in Industrial & Waste Services (I&WS) weekly team meetings to understand the business unit operations as well as meetings for new tender proposals. I’ve been interacting with branch managers across Queensland to collect information for a report task from which I have gained valuable knowledge of how different sites work. Meetings with the CEO and senior leaders have provided excellent opportunities to learn about different business units.

Outside of work, I am interested in musical instruments and spend my leisure time in jam sessions. I also enjoy socialising with friends and family.

Cleanaway’s Graduate Program is designed to create career pathways for recent graduates through hands-on experience and insight into Cleanaway and the waste management industry as a whole.

Contact us to learn more about how you can make a sustainable future possible together with Cleanaway.

Lachlan Bertinshaw, Thomas Stevenson and Lorie Chong are graduates taking part in Cleanaway’s Graduate Program 2022. Following study in supply chain and logistics, Lachlan is currently working on compliance and process improvement with our Fleet team, while Thomas is using his qualifications in chemical engineering and biomedical science to pursue a passion of process engineering with Cleanaway.

We spoke with Lachlan and Thomas to find out what led them to the program, the projects they’ve been involved with so far and what they’re hoping to achieve.

Lachlan Bertinshaw
“I want to have the authority, knowledge and skill to make active decisions with real business impact and have the conviction to follow through.”

I grew up in Sydney, but I’ve lived in Melbourne since 2018. I completed a Bachelor of History and Anthropology from the University of Otago in New Zealand and have six years of experience in the market research and technology industries. In mid-2020, I decided to make a career change into industries related to sustainability and completed a Graduate Certificate in Supply Chain & Logistics from RMIT in 2021.

The benefit of working with the Fleet team is that they have a high level of oversight into the all the operations nationally, which means it’s a great place to get an entry level understanding of the whole Cleanaway business. Once I complete my Fleet placement, I hope to have an idea for what my next placements could be, and how to really make an impact there.

A highlight of the program so far is how helpful and open the Cleanaway staff are. No matter which department I’ve talked to, every employee I’ve met has been very willing to help me understand their part of the business. Coming from some roles in my past where finding information could feel like running into a brick wall, it’s been so refreshing. I think it’s indicative of a very healthy work culture.

My first month has involved getting a sense of Cleanaway’s business model, as well as the Fleet department’s role. I’ve spent a lot of time learning the fleet compliance metrics (DAMS), and how we collect the data that underpins them. I’ve spent some time diving into fleet repair and maintenance transactions and the effect they have on asset profitability. I’m currently learning all the considerations that go into purchasing new fleet assets to meet customer requirements. I’m attempting to develop a tool that will make this process easier for managers to identify the best asset for their purposes.

My intention at the other end of the Graduate Program is to earn a role that has key strategic responsibilities. That could look like choosing supplier relationships as a supply chain manager, making the business case for a new technology as process improvement manager or updating key routes as a logistics officer. I hope to be put in situations where I can grow the relevant skills: stakeholder management, developing impactful reports, presenting of business cases, analysing processes, making the right decision based on available information, assertiveness and commitment. Basically, I am excited to take on some interesting challenges and grow as a result.

Outside of work, I try and spend as much time exploring Melbourne as possible. I don’t know that there’s a city in the world with a higher density of cool, weird events going on and I love exploring it all. I’ve set myself a goal this year to attend a religious service for all the major religions in Melbourne. I’ve been to Lutheran, Thai Buddhist and Pagan services so far. I also play basketball very badly and am trying to write some short stories.

Thomas Stevenson
“I am keen to see how Cleanaway will make strategic decisions to embrace the circular economy, with projects such as energy-from-waste and materials recycling.”

In 2021, I graduated from Monash University with a double degree in Chemical Engineering and Biomedical Science. What drew me to become an engineer was the opportunity to tackle some of the biggest challenges of our time, particularly the changing climate and the sustainable usage and disposal of resources.

What attracted me to the program was the range of opportunities offered, as well as Cleanaway’s commitment to carbon neutrality and its integral role in creating a circular economy. I am eager to have both practical and technical experiences in a variety of waste streams and locations.

My first placement is with the Liquids Waste & Health Services (LHS) Engineering team. I am excited to see what engineering challenges exist in the waste sector, particularly with the increased stresses of a pandemic and looking forward to creating a sustainable waste management system. Ideally, I hope to work on projects that bring new technologies to the sector, to improve safety systems and to develop an understanding of the wide range of processing activities that occur in LHS.

Through the two-year Graduate Program, I hope to get exposure to a range of teams and to develop a better understanding of how a large industrial company operates, as well as a discovering more about myself and the facets of the business I enjoy.

From the get-go, the emphasis on safety and environment throughout the management chain at Cleanaway has been extremely encouraging. What has surprised me is the passion and enthusiasm my colleagues have for waste. However, it is easy to see why when you work for a company that is striving to have a positive impact on the environment and community.

My personal highlights to date would be meeting the Exec Team over the first week and seeing the expertise and innovation they bring to their roles, as well as visiting several sites to get an appreciation for fundamentals of the business.

Most of my free time is spent on sport or in nature – I’ll do almost anything that gives me a natural hit of endorphins. Pre-COVID, I took every opportunity I got to travel both within and outside of Australia. I even managed to get away to New Zealand for skiing and a road trip last year.

Lorie Chong
“At the end of the program, I would like to be able to build a budget with the experiences and learnings I have gained from my mentors and colleagues.”

I graduated with a Bachelor of Corporate Finance degree from the University of Adelaide. I am so glad to be part of the Solid Waste Services team in Port Adelaide as a Finance graduate. Through the Graduate Program, I would like to work on my liaising skills with internal and external stakeholders. At the end of the program, I would like to be able to build a budget with the experiences and learnings I have gained from my mentors and colleagues.

Everyone is excellent and passionate about what they do here. I’m very grateful to the Port Adelaide team for making me feel so welcomed. It truly feels like a community here rather than just a regular office, and I am excited to be on board to contribute to making a sustainable future possible together.

Currently, I am spending some of my free time in preparation for my upcoming CFA exam. In the rest of my free time, I enjoy being in nature and going camping.

Cleanaway’s Graduate Program is designed to create career pathways for recent graduates through hands-on experience and insight into Cleanaway and the waste management industry as a whole.

Contact us to learn more about how you can make a sustainable future possible together with Cleanaway.