It’s not always about the money. Sometimes, we assume that the consumer has to get paid to recycle, and there has to be something in it for them. On the contrary, we just launched a new option where consumers are happy to choose to give us their devices because they know it’s going to be recycled responsibly — and we see a lot of usage.
According to the University of Colorado, “Those who are most affected and have the fewest resources to adapt to climate change are also the least responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions — both globally and within the United States.” Promoting climate justice is an incredibly important environmental responsibility that is slowly becoming more and more recognized. In this interview series, we are talking to leaders who are helping to promote sustainability and climate justice. As part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Neil Fried.
Neil Fried is the Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at ecoATM, the largest and most-trusted phone recycling partner worldwide. Fried has spent the last 20+ years driving strategy, corporate, and business development in the world of digital media, advertising, and technology markets. He is an operational and strategic partner in high-growth and turbulent markets. Fried’s career highlights include closing 20+ M&A transactions with $5B+ in purchase price, raising $100M+ in capital, closing 100+ strategic partnerships, and leading 10+ strategic investments.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit. Can you tell us a bit about how you grew up?
Looking back, I’ve always been an incredibly curious person. From a young age, I’ve always loved taking things apart, such as remote controls and electronic systems. I would just take the screws out and try to figure out how systems work. I was never scared of taking something apart and not being able to put it back together. I think this fascination has always stuck with me. I studied engineering in college — I was always sort of wanting to understand the mechanics behind everyday items. I’m a competitive person, and I’ve always been fascinated by the curiosity, the nuts and bolts of a problem. I love pursuing goals that don’t come easily.
Everyone has a cataclysmic moment or marker in their life which propels them to take certain actions, a “why”. What is your why?
I was never exactly as gifted as I would have liked when it came to sports. My hand-eye coordination was never as good as I wanted it to be, but I have always been highly competitive, so I found an outlet to compete in my professional life, which has been a driving force in my career decisions. I’m competitive off the field in every position I’ve ever held and lead teams with the same mindset. I’m always trying to create products that create lasting impact and empowered teams by ensuring they feel confident every step of the way.
You are currently leading an organization that is making a difference for our planet. Can you tell us a bit about what you and your organization are trying to change?
With more than 7,000 locations, we are often the only recycling option in communities without curbside or even drop-off recycling. We know we play an important role in helping communities recycle in any way they can, and we want to expand that with options like Recycle Flow, where consumers can actually recycle any device at our in-store kiosks. Normally, when we set up our machines with our retail partners, customers have an expectation that they’re going to recycle something and get paid, but we also understand that sometimes people just want to recycle, so we’re trying to figure out how to make it easier for them to do both. That benefits both the retailers and our customers. We have so many people who come to work for us because of this mission.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
One of the many “aha” moments I’ve had at ecoATM involves just understanding the scale that we operate at. I’ll never forget walking into our reverse logistics facility in Louisville, Kentucky, where we process almost 150,000 devices a week. I had seen pictures of our machines, but I couldn’t comprehend the scale of a warehouse with 150,000 phones organized and processed. I describe our business as the intersection of robotics, e-commerce, fintech, and environmental activism. We’re checking all four of those boxes at once. Just seeing it all come to life at this facility was a little overwhelming — in an amazing way.
None of us can be successful without some help along the way. Did you have mentors or cheerleaders who helped you to succeed? Can you tell us a story about their influence?
Before my time at ecoATM, I spent time at Yahoo, LiveRamp and Axiom working in marketing technology with enterprises who buy and access software. I felt like an explorer, an entrepreneur, and a conductor, all at once. So many people helped me shape my goals, my skills, and my viewpoints, especially some amazing entrepreneurs who started businesses that I ultimately acquired. I’m always very inspired by people who can take an idea and bring it all the way to market.
Thank you for that. Let’s now move to the central part of our discussion. Let’s start with a basic definition of terms so that everyone is on the same page. What does climate justice mean to you? How do we operationalize it?
We all want to live in a world that’s as nice as the world that we grew up in, right? We want to feel the warmth of the sun in the summer and the coldness of the snow in the winter. I think that there’s this notion that as humans, we are potentially disrupting ecosystems just by definition of there being 8+ billion of us on the planet. When I think about what we’re doing as a society to potentially harm the planet, I always think about what we can do to counteract those potentially harmful actions. How do we balance it out? How do we give back to the environment as much as we’re taking from it? I see ecoATM as a way to help balance out every day human acts that can potentially harm our planet. It brings me joy that we can help our partners create elevated levels of sustainability. Even inside of our business, we’re looking for ways to operate in a more sustainable way, whether it’s in how we process devices or ship our kiosks or heat and cool our operating facilities. We also host give-back days where employees get together and volunteer in a way that helps the community from a recycling perspective. Life shouldn’t just be about taking from the earth — but giving back to it. For eco-ATM, this is certainly the path that we’re on — adding balance to the ecosystem.
Science is telling us that we have 7–10 years to make critical decisions about climate change. What are three things you or your organization are doing to help?
In our daily operations, ecoATM is consistently trying to save our planet from the devastating effects of climate change. For over 15 years, ecoATM has been a leader in the recommerce revolution, which expands access to affordable technology and recycling e-waste to millions of consumers a year. But the fact that billions of electronic devices are discarded into landfills every year means we all still have a lot of work to do. The circular economy, which maximizes the lifespan of objects and the natural resources used to create them, will be a critical part of every future society. We all have a role to play in reducing demand for mining new raw materials and manufacturing more devices.
Are there three things the community, society, or politicians can do to help you in your mission?
We would love for the community to be more aware of our kiosks. I’m not sure that many people realize that there’s a sustainable outlet like ecoATM where they can recycle their electronic devices and even things like batteries. I’d love to see all forms of recycling supported in the U.S. the way they are in Europe, where recycling initiatives are all sponsored and evangelized by the government. I think many consumers think their only chance to recycle is when they buy a new phone and if they miss this window, their devices have no safe way to be recycled. I would love for more consumers to know that they actually have the option to recycle these devices, rather than letting them sit in landfills.
How would you articulate how a business can become more profitable by being more sustainable and more environmentally conscious? Can you share a story or example?
When partners deploy an EcoATM, they can make a profit and encourage their consumers to recycle. The value proposition that we see with our partners is that we pay rent to be in those locations, and we drive consumers back into those locations. Very rarely does someone see our kiosk and just so happen to have all their old phones on them, right? They go home; they price their devices, and they come back. We’re rewarding consumers by paying them when they recycle. We see around 70% of that gets spent back in store. I used this word earlier, and I say it very seriously — we’re a fintech company in some regard. We’re converting garbage into cash and helping to recycle something that has intrinsic value that has previously been overlooked. So, customers get extra cash by recycling and stores see higher sales. It’s a win-win with a ripple effect throughout the community.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started promoting sustainability and climate justice” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
1 . Don’t always accept the status quo — even if things are going great.
2 . Don’t be afraid to take risks. You learn the most when you fail. When you win, you don’t always know why you won. When you fail, you can usually determine the reasons why you failed.
3 . It’s not always about the money. Sometimes, we assume that the consumer has to get paid to recycle, and there has to be something in it for them. On the contrary, we just launched a new option where consumers are happy to choose to give us their devices because they know it’s going to be recycled responsibly — and we see a lot of usage.
4 . Expect the unexpected. With the technology landscape everchanging, we always need to ensure that our kiosks are ready to accept the newest tablet or smart device. Never stay stagnant — always push your businesses and teams to grow and evolve.
5 . Always help teams to think about the big picture. Remind folks not to just focus on their tasks — remind employees to take a pause and think about the incredible contributions they are making to the business.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would like to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
Apple is such a big part of our business. I would definitely say Steve Jobs because he did such an incredible job at innovating in this industry. I don’t think ecoATM would exist unless there was a phone that retained its value. I think what’s so unique about the ecoATM business is that we’re recycling phones like people buy and sell used cars.
There’s an ecosystem of sustainability around these devices where a lot of these devices are able to be repurposed and reused. Some devices can’t be reused, but the parts are used to make other devices usable. The idea that someone invented this and turned the phone into a computer using a blend of art and science amazes me. Understanding how Steve Jobs made what was in his head a reality would be what I would want to know.
How can our readers continue to follow your work online?
Readers can continue receive updates on ecoATM at https://www.ecoatm.com/ and https://www.linkedin.com/in/njf29/.
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success on your great work!
How Neil Fried Of ecoATM Is Helping to Promote Sustainability and Climate Justice was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.