It has certainly been a busy last few months as we have been finalising our annual report for the Regulator. This is a vitally important part of our operation and requires a huge effort by ANZRP staff and our Member companies to compile, analyse and review a wide range of information.
Once more, I am happy to report that ANZRP has achieved all regulatory requirements including volume, compliance, reasonable access and a material recovery rate above 90%. This will be presented at the Annual General Meeting in October.
The NTCRS Regulator experienced a number of administrative challenges which delayed the issuing of Statement of Advice Letters to Members this year. This created significant timeline pressure which our team, ably lead by Yvonne Terry, had to manage to ensure our members had the opportunity to claim any exports and thus reduce their liability. After many late nights and weekends working on this we managed to consolidate our export report and claim exports that reduced our Members’ liabilities by more than $600,000. It is this type of dedication to our Members that we pride ourselves on and see as a significant point of difference to our competitors.
I was very pleased to see that such efforts don’t go unrecognised, as shown in the results from our annual Member satisfaction survey. The 2019 survey set out to provide current Members an opportunity to have their say on issues relating to governance, services, advocacy, safety and operational aspects within the organisation.
This year, Member response rate jumped from 17% in 2018, to 29%, and the overall satisfaction rating with the service provided was 98%. I am also pleased to report that ANZRP’s Net Promoter Score (NPS) was 8.4 out of 10.
This year, one concern was identified by Members in the survey. In relation to factors of importance, a notable shift was recorded in the category of price. Its overall rating jumped from 4.4 in 2018 to 8.1 in 2019.
ANZRP has always been sensitive to Member concerns about costs associated to operating a standards based, NTCRS compliant program. We are acutely aware we operate in a price sensitive market, and competition has never been tougher.
In 2019 we met this challenge by reducing program costs through improved workflow and logistics efficiencies. When we commenced operations in 2012, we set the bar at $1.20-$1.30 per kilo. Today we are operating in the mid $0.60 per kilo.
Not only have we maintained standards and halved costs, we have also achieved regulatory requirements and will continue to drive costs down through innovation and program enhancements in the future.
We also continue to drive improvement in the program and are very satisfied to see that a lot of our feedback to the Regulator as part of the NTCRS review has been listened to. We have recently reviewed the draft recommendations that will be submitted shortly to the Minister and look forward to some significant improvements being implemented in the near future. It is our long-term program experience and close relationship with the Regulator that has enabled us to provide them with well-informed and constructive advice on behalf of our Members.
In support of our corporate vision to be a leading and sustainable organisation we obtained our B Corp certification in May, placing us in a select group of organisations that believe in business with a purpose. Last month we were further recognised as one of the ‘Best for the World’ B Corp companies for our governance practices. As CEO of the organisation I am very proud of this recognition and wish to commend Carla Vasconi and Ed Scott-Dickins in our Sustainability and Compliance team for their work in achieving our B Corp certification.
Of course all of the above achievements are of no use if we don’t run an efficient organisation that offers a value-for-money service to our Members. We continue to work on both short and long-term efficiency and cost-saving opportunities, whilst also maintaining our high standards. The current government attention on recycling in Australia is allowing both ANZRP and our recycling partners to invest in the future and I am encouraged by the opportunities I see being explored and developed.
The next year will be an exciting time for ANZRP, the NTCRS program, and the Australian recycling industry. With the support of our Members we are well placed to capitalise on emerging opportunities and I look forward to reporting back to you on our progress.
Stay safe,
Warren Overton, CEO
