COLLECTIONS OFFICER

Responsibilities

• Initiates pre-collection contact with customers before accounts become delinquent and ensures customers information in database is kept up-to-date.
• Reviews various accounts and reports for accuracy. Requests revisions as necessary.
• Utilizes multi-screens, telephones, written communication to respond to customers, collection agencies, legal team, co-workers and other interested parties.
• Makes calls and collection contacts with customers to keep customers within the City's payment terms.
• Follows up on all accounts, including suspended and delinquent accounts, in order to communicate payment terms and expectations to customers.
• Establishes effective payment arrangements by assessing the debtor's financial viability in connection with legal services staff and follows through on individual payment agreements to ensure compliance.
• Provides information in response to enquiries / complaints made by clients.
• Achieves, maintains and or exceeds collection forecasts to minimize bad debt by working closely with customers, collection agencies and others.
• Maintains logs on all outstanding customer issues.
• Handles and resolves complaints about payment and accounting issues.
• Liaises with Corporate Legal Services and makes recommendations on enforcement action.
• Investigates customer credit rating based on various credit reports.
• Generates collection letters in an attempt to secure account settlement or resolution.
• Work on delinquent accounts in preparation for third party intervention.
• Prepares weekly or monthly reports on delinquent accounts and make recommendations to Manager and senior team members on appropriate enforcement action.
• Analyzes aging and liquidity reports and advises on appropriate account assignment and collection methods.
• Liaises with Collection Agencies and provide recommendations on items eligible for write-off.

Key Qualifications : Your application must describe your qualifications as they relate to :

• Considerable experience in collections, database management, investigation and account settlement.
• Considerable experience working on and communicating payment terms and generating collection letters.
• Considerable experience with Microsoft Office, (Word, Excel, Access, Power Point).
• Extensive customer service experience dealing with the public, by phone and mail.
• Considerable experience working in a high volume call / contact centre environment.

You must also have :

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to correspond and interact with staff in other Divisions, Collection Agencies, Councilors, and representatives from external agencies and organizations in a clear, efficient, diplomatic, discrete and professional manner.
• Good organizational skills, and the ability to work in a high pressure, multitask, high volume team-oriented environment with minimal supervision.
• Familiarity with Collection Agencies Act and City policies and procedures to maximize collections.
• Ability to set up and accurately maintain manual and computerized filing systems.
• Acquired investigative and or tracing techniques coupled with conflict resolution skills.
• Familiarity with government legislation.
• Ability to work flexible and / or varied work hours.
• Ability to work with Third Party Collection Agencies and or Legal Professionals
30+ days ago