Name:  Joe Wakefield

Job title: Director

Time spent in metal recycling: 24 years

1. What does your job involve?
My role as Director is to have the vision of where I want to take the Company, and to identify the priorities that will enable us to achieve our company goals. I am also there to push our team beyond where they think their personal boundaries are and keeping them challenged on a regular basis. I also need to identify the weakest points of the business and then strengthen them so we can continue to move forward.

2. What is the hardest part of your job?
Keeping a smooth flow of scrap coming into the depot with a margin, and managing a competent level of staff to best deal with it. It’s all about the people. Surrounding myself with the best in the business at all levels to meet the high expectations of our suppliers.

3. What three things help you to do your job better?

Without a doubt, technology is rapidly changing the way we trade; it allows us greater clarity at every stage of transactions and movements of scrap metal. At the same time, our third-party hauliers are great and make our volume of trade possible. I really do seem them as part of the team. Finally, we have a brand new, purpose-built office to facilitate our growing team. This has been a fantastic and much needed addition.

4. What are you most proud of in your career?
I’m extremely proud of our purpose-built two acre recycling facility and all of its plant and equipment; in fact, it is the fastest growing site in London.

5. What is the best advice you have ever received?

Why pick one? All those old sayings are so true…‘If it’s too good to be true, it probably is’ or ‘The harder you work, the more luck you will have’, and let's not forget ‘If you are not willing to risk the usual, you will have to settle for the ordinary’!

6. What one thing would we never guess about you?

I love old stuff and want to save everything, especially if it’s from the 1950s-1960s.