Who Do You Want Collecting Your Money?

How do you find good collectors? That was a question posed to me recently and my answer was, you have to know what you’re looking for. Too often, companies make bad choices when they select their credit manager or collection supervisors. As long as the credit function falls under Finance or Accounting, accountants will hire the credit / collection group. To the detriment of the goals and objectives of the company, accountants hire accountants to do the collection work.

In his book, “Taking Care of Business” the eminent psychiatrist David Viscott, M.D. describes three basic personality types: dependent, controlling and competitive.

A customer service rep may be a good example of a dependent type. Someone who needs to belong to a group, needs a routine and security and yearns for stability. They are not generally, leaders. They require a lot of supervision and they will follow whoever gives them the most attaboys.

Good examples of a competitive type are sales people. Like sports competitors, sales reps are goal oriented, driven to be recognized for their accomplishments, striving to improve on their numbers, be it sales units or dollars sold.

Good credit people should fit the competitive type. You want someone who sees collections as a game. Collecting the money is the objective. Good collectors strive to collect more money, or a higher percentage of the receivable, or whatever goal is set out for them. They want to be recognized for the work they do and they need benchmarks. Set a target and they will go after it.

Controlling types are people who, according to Dr. Viscott, “want to control you, write the rules, define the terms, and give the directions.” He continues, “They are rigid, ruled by precedent, and are likely to be limited in their creativity. Since controlling people are loyal only to the things that give them power, others do not feel loyal to them.”

This may describe a stereotypical credit person. However according to Dr. Viscott, controlling types “number all the top accountants”.

Managers look not only at experience and expertise when they are hiring. They also consciously or unconsciously consider their compatibility. You are going to hire someone you can get along with.

A sales manager will hire a young protégé, someone with the same competitive spirit, energy and drive. A controller will be looking for someone who is organized, systematic, and attentive to detail. They also tend to hire like personality types. Controlling types hire other controlling types. So, rather than hire a go-getter collector, they hire someone, like themselves: one who manages “by intimidation and manipulation not by understanding.”

In short, accountants are probably not likely to seek a competitive person for a collection spot, just like they would not consider a competitive type to calculate the budget because, accountants are not comfortable with other personality types. Thus, they hire the wrong person for the job.

End this trend, and let CreditPowers help you find the right candidates for your credit needs. We know what you are looking for.

For more information e-mail us at patrickpowers@sbcglobal.net