Waste management is a topic that resonates with most businesses—from the sustainability efforts in upstream supply chain to downstream, and all of the technology that supports such initiatives while driving change.
At Tosca, all of these discussions are amalgamated into the overall ethos of the business as it leverages data to add value to its sustainable palletisation products. For someone like Michael Weinberg, Chief Information Officer at Tosca Ltd, although environmental impact is at the heart of the business he works for, he gets to witness a very exciting shift in the way technology can maximise operational efficiency and sustainability.
Describing himself as “goofy and energetic”, what others may see is his clear passion for innovation that doubles as a catalyst for change.
Educated at Emory University, Atlanta, Weinberg studied economics and philosophy at an undergraduate level, later returning for a Masters of Business Administration in Decision and Information Analysis. Straight out of the learning environment, Weinberg brought his keenness and willingness to innovate into the world of work, where he was first employed by the American Retail Group.
Later in his career, he carried the name of some major companies—such as Deloitte—on his CV, exposing him to large global corporations and the Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG).
Despite his education and commercial background, Weinberg says that much of his technology experience comes from personal curiosity. His ability to build great teams, meanwhile, was formed by applying his knowledge in business and consulting environments.
“I joke that I have the lowest IQ but the highest DQ on the team. That’s my goal. I really take a lot of pride in that, and I feel very fortunate that I've built some teams that have done some really incredible things,” says Weinberg.
His successful development into the character he is today is a result of multiple challenges—all of which he continues to demonstrate as he tackles modern-day sustainability and efficiency problems in the supply chain environment.
“Agile development changed the way we look at things, and a lot of things outside of our areas I still don't think have fully caught up to the technology world,” says Weinberg.“The accounting rules were really written for the 1980s and 1990s type of development. They weren't really built for today's agile development methodologies.”
So, how does a leader like Weinberg maintain his positivity and become someone who is courageous in his efforts to develop the industry? As he explains himself, much of his inspiration comes from the people he meets and works with. Aside from this, Martin Luther King is named as a man that shaped his mindset towards collaboration and making people understand his message.
The message here is that sustainability and commercial development go hand-in-hand, which is what drives Weinberg’s performance as Tosca’s CIO.
“Reusable plastic packaging solutions are not only sustainable and better for the world, but they're commercially better for organisations. The most exciting thing about them is the connection of financial benefit through cost reduction and increasing efficiency, while at the same time doing something that's better for the planet.”
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