Social Responsibility Skills Exercise: Republic Services Inc. (Recycling Services)

The purpose of this exercise is to help you develop and evaluate your ability to understand and
gain insight into others’ and your own viewpoints as to social responsibility. You will want to
engage the following skills as you work through this exercise.
1. Engage your ability to characterize, understand, and adapt to another’s cultural perspectives
and viewpoints as well as your own cultural viewpoint.
2. Engage your ability to empathize with another’s cultural perspective and viewpoints–
including expressing your understanding.
3. Engage your ability to relate the perspective of the ‘whole’ community–touching on the needs
of various constituencies: economic, cultural, political, and environmental.
4. Relate your involvement and reasoning for your involvement in affairs and events intended to
benefit others (community-based involvement).
5. Relate your belief structure concerning your impact on others well outside your own domain
of contact – with emphasis given to biases on your part that necessitate thought and
adjustment on your part.
This exercise takes on the onerous task of suspending judgment and stepping into the shoes
and roles of multiple others. Taking the perspective of the whole (i.e. ‘Society’) rather than that
of a sponsor, family, ethnic group, employer, or other entity one belongs to can be both
difficult and stressful. However, estimating how an action or advocacy you make affects others
in other places and perhaps at a point in the future, is a delimiter of the conscientious, caring,
well-educated professional.
II. How the Republic Services Inc. Exercise Works
The Republic Services Inc. Exercise is a written interview exercise. It taps the five skills and
perspectives noted in the previous section. Keep in mind that understanding perspectives of
multiple groups is very necessary in work, social, and neighborhood environments. Employers
expect you to be able to apply the skills this exercise taps from day one.
Okay. Here goes the scenario.
You are about to graduate from UNT. Two months ago, you attended a Career Fair held at the
UNT Student Union. You visited with 10-15 companies at the Career Fair. You left your resume
with six companies: MHBT Insurance (commercial insurance); Lockheed Martin (aerospace and
defense company); Amazon Fulfillment Center–Coppell, TX; Total Quality Logistics (third party
logistics); Republic Services Inc. (commercial environmental solutions); and AVX Aircraft
Company (parts supplier for helicopters). Six weeks later, you have been on two interviews. You
are unsuccessful with MHBT Insurance. You are uninterested in the position with AVX Aircraft.
Therefore, it looks as though you will be continuing your job at Home Depot–at least for the
near future. You are pretty disappointed in yourself and in UNT. Your friends are getting jobs.
And your parents and relatives are planning a graduation party for you. “What the hell am I
going to celebrate?” you ask yourself
Yesterday, you received an urgent email from Republic Services Inc. Republic Services Inc. is the
second largest provider in the domestic non-hazardous solid waste industry as measured by
revenue.
They provide services to commercial, industrial, municipal and residential customers through
190 active landfills, 91 recycling centers, and 75-landfill gas and renewable energy projects
across 41 states.
Republic Services Inc. values are based on the five R’s of the Republic Services Star – Respectful,
Responsible, Reliable, Resourceful, and Relentless.
Republic Services Inc. wants you to interview for the position of Sales Representative –
Commercial/Industrial. In this position, you are responsible for establishing and maintaining
strong working relationships with Republic Services Inc.’s commercial and industrial customers
in Houston. You will use consultative selling to retain and expand business with current
customers. As needed, you serve as the company’s liaison to local officials, community
stakeholders and supporting businesses. This position also requires speaking at community
functions and City Council/Board meetings with a secondary focus on conducting educational
and information outreach with the different media outlets.
You are disappointed that your only option seems to be working for a trash hauler. You can
imagine all the jokes your friends and family will direct at you. Yet, you are excited at the
prospect of having a job with an industry leader and one that pays a reasonable salary with an
option of moving up into management, marketing, or operations supervision. To be honest,
your GPA does not place you in the top 25 percent of UNT graduates. So this job opportunity is
very important to you. It is a real career starter job.
You respond positively to the invitation from Republic Services Inc. Your interview is scheduled
at the firm’s regional office in Houston, Texas. It will take place in one week, one day, and 14
hours. Obviously, you are both excited and scared regarding the event.
Along with the interview confirmation, you are sent an electronic form to complete.

SECTION 1

Answer the following two questions on proper waste disposal and recycling.
1. Your personal stance on corporate and civil responsibilities for proper waste disposal
practices and recycling. Clearly explain, with supporting reasons, why you believe this social
concern is important. You also must include a clear and balanced understanding that there
are varying perspectives that may be different from your stance. You need to demonstrate
that you can successfully communicate on this issue of social concern with other diverse
groups/people who may not agree with you.
2. Your willingness to act in a balanced manner (with due consideration) in situations where
proper waste disposal practices are being ignored. In other words, if you see an injustice
occurring, how will you act? Include your basis for evaluating the actions of others who are
different from you–either culturally, ethnically, racially, economically, or regionally – and
demonstrate a rational, balanced handling of the injustice.

SECTION 2

Answer two questions that provide a broader view of both corporate and
individual social responsibility.
3. Your overall world-view for the future as related to recycling and proper waste disposal.
Include how you hope the world community will evolve in this critical area. Specify key areas
where you will see changes in the practice of proper waste disposal or in enhanced
environmental protection.
4. Finally, Republic Services Inc. then asks you to explain: Your involvement or lack thereof in
environmental or other important social causes –going back as far as your freshman year in
college. In your answer you are to provide specific examples of involvement or, if you have
not been involved, how you hope to be involved in the future after graduation. How you
have changed your personal perspective for the better since you entered college. You are
asked to provide at least one strong example to document your change in perspective.
You have had little time over the past few years to ponder your position on society, the future,
others with different world-views and other views, and the environment in general. Yet you
must generate a truthful, well-stated set of answers.
Lastly, the instructions limit each answer (except the last one) to no more than two hundred
words length.
Please do consider that you may well experience such a series of questions. At least Republic
Services Inc. allows you to write up the answers and submit them in advance rather than
relating them during the employment interview.
III. Answer each of the four questions using full sentences written in proper grammatical format
and with accurate spelling.
Upload the answers to Canvas as a Word (.doc) or a PDF (.pdf) document.
As you prepare your answers, please keep in mind that Republic Services Inc. human resources
staff will use Turnitin to check for plagiarism.
You gather that the accommodation given to the fourth question signals its importance. Good
luck. Please take your time on this set of answers.