INTHEBLACK November 2026 - Magazine - Page 19
numerous business models within the
one group.
“Residential collection is like a bus type
of business,” he explains. “The winning
formula for that is to maximise your
route density.
“Skip bins are different. You drop a bin
to a customer site and then you have to
come back, like a taxi service. So, how
do you price that? What is your winning
formula for that?
“Then, you move into the recycling
part, which is a factory type of business.
You get your materials in and you process
them. You get a final inventory and you
sell them on to an international market.”
Landfill and energy generation also
add an infrastructure layer.
That deep complexity and the challenge
of managing it all from within one business
has led Ding to consider the way he wants
his team to think, to approach challenges,
to ask questions and design responses.
He does not necessarily want narrow
answers or highly specific solutions — what
he prefers are options.
“I often say to my team, ‘Show me the
universe’,” he says. “Before we drill into the
details, let’s look into all of the possibilities.
Then we can figure out which we should
focus on first and why.”
It is a practical reminder, he says, that
the role of the CFO is to help the
organisation understand its choices,
including consequences and trade-offs.
The role will always have a technical
element, but it is increasingly commercial.
ESG AS A BUSINESS MODEL
At New Zealand’s biggest waste management
business, environmental, social and governance
(ESG) issues are not just a reporting overlay,
but central to the company’s purpose.
If nobody removes waste, Ding says, it
washes down waterways and contaminates
water sources. If it is not removed responsibly,
it is simply burnt. In both cases, the
social and environmental outcomes
are disastrous.
WM New Zealand has a deeply
ESG-related purpose.
“We are one of the important industries
protecting New Zealand’s environment,
as well as our lifestyle,” Ding says. He argues
that ESG must be front and centre for
every CFO as long-term environmental
risk plays a significant role in long-term
financial risk.
“The environment develops the
long-term success for your business,”
he says. “It offers more future certainty.”
Sustainability is also about being
prepared for what the future might bring.
Ding wonders, for example, whether
New Zealand and Australia are moving
quickly enough on technology and
long-term planning. He points to what
he has seen in Chinese truck automation.
“I can see that we are already 10 years
behind China. If tomorrow the driverless
truck is available, can we use it? Absolutely not,
because we do not know the road conditions.
We have not planned.”
The risk is that some organisations,
industries and countries wait until
a technology is mature and ready for
use before they prepare for its adoption.
Here, Ding’s leadership values are
exemplified. Curiosity enables exploration
of new possibilities. Courage is required
to introduce action before stakeholders
have certainty. And alignment is vital
because no company, function or
leader can solve such long-term
challenges alone.
And so, he says, the real work of
contemporary finance leadership is
alignment built with patience and
humility. When people feel safe to
suggest ideas, challenge assumptions
and processes, and admit mistakes, it
is good for the entire organisation. ■
READ
an article on the
evolving role of
the CFO
LISTEN
to a podcast episode
on purpose-driven
leadership
UPSKILL
with CPA Australia’s
global Career Insights
short course
intheblack.cpaaustralia.com.au
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