In Focus Risk


A change of approach Over time, we needed to change our approach and, as a result, things got better, but that experience took me right back to my role in the bank. It raised the question: should Credit Control be hidden away, or should it be at the forefront of what a business does? The answer is surely a little of both. Credit Control should be engaged from


the outset of any business transaction, which involves a transfer or sale of goods for a price,


through a defined credit policy. To do that, they need to understand the pressures a business faces – to understand that they need to be involved in it. A remote and disinterested credit team is


like kryptonite to a sales team: blithely applying rules and placing defaulting accounts on stop with little communication is no way to go. In fact, the opposite should happen if a


decent credit policy is in place – and is communicated well. When things do go


wrong – as they invariably will – the credit team should be first on the scene; a little like paramedics for invoicing. Helping colleagues and sales operation to get access to the right places in finance, to raise credit notes, escalate disputes, raise a new bill, and review the contractual rates in the system. So that access is needed on both sides –


and you can do that with a single number – but dependent on the size of business, the ability to work directly with, and speak easily to, credit is critical.


Think about it. Credit Control are the team who will make the effort to find out if the client is happy with their bill, and, as a consequence, the services they receive


Conclusion And this brings me to the final – and most important – consideration: the client. Client interaction with Credit Control can be a really positive thing – seriously! Think about it. Credit Control are the


team who will make the effort to find out if the client is happy with their bill, and, as a consequence, the services they receive. We are not just there for the nasty things in life – as the old advert says. The best teams I have run, and worked in,


had seriously great relationships with their clients. They formed part of the customer- service offering. I have even seen credit in a position where they have facilitated the assistance of a client through difficult periods of cashflow – and that, if done well, manages the expectations of both parties. My conclusion to the initial question of


where Credit Control should sit remains the same as it did when I was an awkward 20 year old. I am now an awkward 42 year old and I believe that Credit Control works hand in hand with the entire business – and should (sometimes literally) sit right in the middle. CCR


January 2017 www.CCRMagazine.co.uk 39


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