What Drives Us (WDU)

An initiaitve that improved the the behaviour, training and management of our drivers and reduced spend on insurance claims by a massive 84%.

Winner of the 2014 CILT (Certified Institute of Logistics and Transport)NZ award for best safety, security or environmental innovation in supply chain management, logistics and transport.
We operate one of the largest trucking fleets in New Zealand, and over the period between 2009 and 2011 the incidence and costs of insurance claims from driver accidents rose alarmingly, putting our employees and the public at risk and impacting on the business bottom line.
We figured that better understanding our drivers’ behaviour meant we could improve health and safety performance and reduce accidents.  It would also help us find new ways of training, managing the performance of our drivers and improving our recruiting.  
What Drives Us (WDU) was the result and it’s been a stunning success.
Our 720 drivers were psychometrically tested on 200 safety-related questions, the results were then used to build both a recruitment profile for future drivers, and performance management measures which were shared with drivers and their managers. This was followed with a massive countrywide training roadshow and programme, including one-on-one training.
The results of WDU have been extraordinary.  Drivers have better support, managers have been so impressed they have initiated further safety measures on their own; fuel costs were down because of better fuel efficiency, and most importantly, safety related claims have plummeted, reducing monthly spend on insurance claims by 84%, and the total number of claims by 52%.
As a result of What Drives Us, our drivers are better trained and safer on the roads, so people are safer; that’s a win for the community, and award winning for Waste Management.
The initial rollout of the WDU road shows were such a success that the WDU programme is now in place for drivers of all our light vehicles.  This has increased our driver’s awareness of the impact of our activities on other road users, and given those drivers the tools to minimise that impact.
Waste Management’s commitment to ensuring a safe work place is not only important to our staff but also those affected by our activities – WDU is good news all round.