Reader Profile: Sara Bixby

It started with a job out of college writing stories about solid waste for a small daily newspaper. Sara Bixby’s journey would eventually take her to a key industry leadership role when she was appointed SWANA’s deputy executive director in 2013 for administration, information technology, and financial management. Bixby brings significant experience to the table: She served as the South Central Iowa Solid Waste Agency’s director for more than 10 years, growing its net assets from $3.5 million in 2003 to $8.5 million in 2012. Through her marketing efforts to public and private customers, Bixby increased the annual tonnage by 18%. Prior to that, Bixby spent eight years as the lead environmental planner for Forth & Van Dyke, helping clients plan and implement solid waste projects. Before that, she spent two years as a Gershman, Brickner & Bratton senior consultant. Throughout her many posts, Bixby developed skills in financial analysis and rate setting, strategic planning, policy development, research and writing, solid waste management, contract administration, public speaking, and facilitation.

What She Does Day to Day
Bixby’s more than 20 years of working in solid waste management- and her membership in SWANA-gives her a unique background among SWANA’s current employees, she notes. “I try to bring a member’s perspective to our discussions and services,” says Bixby. Some days, it might mean explaining how things work in a public agency or at the chapter level. Other days, it may mean explaining the nuances of how various pieces of an integrated system fit together or how a piece of policy can affect different industry participants in different ways.” Officially, Bixby’s duties focus on the functioning of the office and the association with such tasks as financial management, working with staff and contractors who handle such functions as accounts payable and receivable, human resources, and information technology. Bixby notes that over the course of several months, SWANA staff took the lead in its office move while also performing regular duties. “I’m very proud of them because the organization didn’t miss a day of work,” notes Bixby. “Just like people in the solid waste industry are generally invisible and noticed most when things go wrong, many of the SWANA employees I work most directly with are those the members think about only when something doesn’t work.”

What Led Her Into This Line of Work
During Bixby’s job with a small daily newspaper, the local solid waste director would always feed her story ideas. “You have no idea how helpful that is until you have to come up with a couple of legitimate stories every day,” she points out. “After a while, he offered me a job helping to set up and promote the area’s new recycling program. That led to a job with our consulting firm and eventually to working as the director of a solid waste agency.” She soon had a post on SWANA’s International Board. “When SWANA had an opening, it seemed like an opportunity to continue working on topics and with people-both members and staff-that I really enjoy.”

What She Likes Best About Her Work
“Any given day can find me switching back and forth from internal operations to industry issues multiple times,” says Bixby. “I was used to that variety as an agency director, and it’s nice to find it here, too.”

Her Biggest Challenge
Bixby enjoys a good challenge. These days, it’s mastering a new industry-association management-with its own language, funding sources, and legal considerations as she transitions out of her work in the industry. “SWANA focuses on supporting and providing services to the people who provide solid waste services,” she says. “On a daily basis, I’m learning more about things like membership dues and certification and spending a lot less time thinking about setting tipping fees and increasing compaction.” Some issues are the same regardless of the industry, she points out. Case in point: “SWANA’s Young Professionals initiative was started several years ago as a result of challenges SWANA members were having replacing retiring Baby Boomers and finding ways to work more effectively with millennials,” she says. “Those topics are just as relevant to SWANA as an employer as they are to SWANA members.”