Dr. Robert Rustman Senior Director

Dr. Robert Rustman is the Senior Director of Human Resources at Lakeshore Recycling Systems. He has served the industry for two decades and excels at navigating the ever-changing HR landscape, leveraging technology and managing multi-generational teams to foster a cohesive and productive work environment.

In an interview with Manage HR, Dr. Rustman shares insights on improving company culture, employee engagement and diversity through strategic initiatives and advanced technology.

A Journey from HR Specialist to HR Leader

I started my career as an HR Specialist at Securitas Security Service in Chicago nearly two decades ago. During my six years at the organization, I was promoted multiple times and eventually moved to New York City, where I led a team of HR professionals and focused on training and development. Later, I became the director of training and development.

At this juncture, I received an opportunity from Comcast, a global media and technology company. After serving different roles in this Fortune 23 Company for over a decade, I resigned as a director of HR Strategy and Operations.

To fully use my potential, I joined Lakeshore Recycling Systems (LRS) to lead their HR team. I report directly to a Chief HR Officer. LRS is a Chicago-based waste and recycling organization. It is the fifth largest privately held waste and recycling firm in the U.S. and the 14th largest overall.

We believe reducing employee turnover is the central requirement for achieving business goals. Fostering a good culture will drive employee engagement in the company. My goal is to improve our company culture and use technology to help our employees work better. For example, in 2024, we conducted our first employee engagement survey and introduced a new Human Capital Management System (HCM) called ADP Lyric. It is a brand new HCM that allows being flexible and preparing our organization for a single platform where we can grow as an organization. This technology helps us improve how we support our employees.

“We believe reducing employee turnover is the central requirement for achieving business goals. Fostering a good culture will drive employee engagement in the company”

I’m passionate about our HR team, which consists of seventeen members. Together, we aim to shift our focus from routine HR tasks to being strategic partners who focus on essential areas like workforce planning, compensation, employee engagement, performance management and talent development. By improving these aspects, we aim to reduce employee turnover, attract better candidates and provide more growth opportunities for our leaders.

In the waste industry, there’s often a belief that leaders don’t need training or skills and high turnover is acceptable. By using ADP Lyric, our leaders now have access to essential information like turnover rates and performance management. These tools help us change our leaders’ mindsets and position our organization for growth.

Building a Culture of Inclusion

Another transformative initiative at LRS was the development of a five-year diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) plan to enhance the organization’s culture. We formed a culture advisory board to understand our teammates challenge. Our five-year DE&I plan will drive to transform LRS by establishing a structured approach to cultivating a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace over time.

We are also initiating the launch of our Self-ID program in the organization. By implementing these measures, we will have more components to measure success and offer better opportunities for our teammates.

Attracting Top Talent: Balancing Union and Non-Union Employees

Waste management is a two-fold industry. We have both union-based and non-union-based teammates in our organization. Mainly drivers and mechanics are members of unions with whom we negotiate and come up with satisfactory pay that also aligns with competitive market prices. For our non-union employees, we not just consider salaries but the benefits we provide to keep our best talent. This includes offering excellent benefits, well-structured bonus plans and competitive pay for our teammates.

Over the next year, we’ll be careful about how we attract new talent and consider using different methods to reach potential candidates. For instance, we might explore recruiting in areas where we haven’t traditionally looked for candidates.

Boosting Productivity through AI

AI is the most helpful tool in the HR industry. We continuously leverage the automation process in ADP Lyric. This helps our leaders focus on their essential tasks instead of getting bogged down in paperwork or complicated manual processes.

We also use Quantum Workplace for our employee engagement surveys, which includes built-in AI functionality that allows leaders to use the insights generated by the tool for faster decision-making, making the survey process easier. The tool also allows for seamless adaptation when creating action plans.

Advice to Peers

An individual should be willing to embrace changes, adopting a thoughtful and strategic approach in their professional role. It is essential to concentrate on understanding how leveraging education will advance their career.

After obtaining my PhD, I chose an organization where I could make fundamental changes instead of remaining as just another employee within a company. Professionals should be prepared for their subsequent roles and try not to stagnate in the same position for an extended period. Numerous opportunities exist beyond one’s immediate surroundings and thinking outside the box is the only way to success.

I aspire to serve as an organization’s chief human resource officer over the next decade, and I hope that my insights will motivate others to pursue greater ambitions.