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Motivating for the Long Term

Valuation Trends in the ARM Industry
The recession had a negative impact on the value of ARM companies over the past 12-18 months, but with improving conditions, there are signs that valuations are on the rebound.

Strategic Planning for 2010: Driving Sales Results
One powerful way to set a course for sales success is to take a good look at what worked in the past and find ways to replicate that process moving forward. Kaulkin Ginsberg has some suggested topics for discussion as you forge your sales plan for the coming year.

Balance Sheet Management: A Tale of Two Agencies
What do your financial statements tell you about your company's financial health? We review the balance sheets of two anonymous companies side-by-side to show how business choices are revealed in these financial documents, illustrating how two companies with identical revenues and expenses can have vastly different prospects for future growth.

Mixed Results to Date for Mergers and Acquisitions in the Accounts Receivable Management Industry
Reflecting the broader economy, the overall deal value of mergers and acquisitions in the accounts receivable management industry (ARM) has declined compared to last year. Despite the reduction in deal value however, transactions are still taking place and there are signs that activity will improve in Q4 and into 2010.

Creditors Are Shifting Strategy: Soon, Less will be More
As a result of economic pressures, a shift in creditor strategy is taking place in the industry. This change in approach has the potential to reshape many collection agencies in the coming years -- in ways that are not at all obvious today.

Does Your Online Advertising Pass the Stress Test? Eight Questions to Answer Before Your Next Campaign
Based on nearly 10 years of experience working with advertisers on insideARM.com, we've developed a quick list of tips to help you get the most out of your online marketing campaigns.

Mergers and Acquisitions in the ARM Industry Surprisingly Active
There is a consistent level of seller and buyer interest in the ARM industry, but the economy has changed the nature of deals taking place. This year, there are fewer large-scale deals involving private equity or strategic buyers, but industry buyers are still in the market looking for acquisition opportunities.

The Business Case for Engaged Employees
In times of economic uncertainty, many high-quality employees are focused on keeping their jobs, but this should not be cause for employer complacency. The long-term benefits of an engaged workforce are well-documented, and cultivating engagement should always be part of a company’s growth strategy.

Obtaining Financing for a Collection Agency in Today's Market
It has been difficult for small to mid-size businesses to secure growth capital in this economic environment and it is especially challenging for collection agencies. However there are funding sources available if you know where to look. Kaulkin Ginsberg details some alternate options to consider.

Welcome Tax Season
Thanks to income tax refunds, the first quarter of the year has long been the best time of the year for collections. 2009 seems to be following the same pattern as prior years. Although recovery rates as a whole are still poor year over year, many recovery executives are reporting feeling better now than they have in many months.

Six-Sigma Methodologies Can be a Fit for ARM Firms

What Makes a Collection Agency a Best Place to Work?
Employee retention is a huge factor for containing costs for most ARM companies. As a result of our recent Best Places to Work in Collections program, we've learned some of the leading attributes that lead to employee satisfaction.

Survival Tips to Weather the Economy for Bankcard/Credit Card Agencies
The economy has been especially hard on agencies focused on the bank card/credit card arena, and predictions persist that unemployment could further dampen recovery efforts this year. Here are a few thoughts to consider for positioning your firm to survive -- and even grow -- during this turbulent time.

Minimize Losses or Maximize Profits?

The 5 E’s: A Creditor’s Guide to Managing Outside Collection Agencies
As a creditor, how do you ensure that you hire and retain the best collection agencies available? Collection management pro Chris Coelho offers to-the-point advice for working with the right agency.

Big Banks Seek Regional, Midsize Partners as Downturn Slams Profits
With its first quarter acquisition of United Bancorporation of Wyoming Inc., Wells Fargo & Co. may be signaling a potential course that could unfold for the banking sector for 2008.

Accounting for Bad Debt: Charity Care, IRS Form 990, and ARM
A powerful healthcare employees union has pushed a major hospital into a tenuous position regarding the accounting recognition of its bad debt: squarely between the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the IRS.

Valuing Your Business: Clients Make all the Difference

Private Equity Legend Enters the ARM Industry – Big Time

Creditors Exercising Options for Receivables Management
With so many choices of partners to help with accounts receivable management, how do creditors choose which company to go with? A basic understanding of the market is a good place to start.

Effective Ways to Create and Motivate a Winning Team

Negotiation and Vendor Contracts

ARM Business Planning for 2007

6 Steps to Retaining Your Best Employees

They Made a List, Checkin’ it Twice
As the accounts receivable management industry recovers from the holiday season, my mind wanders back to a much-ballyhooed December missive from Collection & Credit Risk, the “TOP 10 INDUSTRY RANKINGS.”

Getting On Track with Onboarding
First impressions are important in all interactions, even with new employees.

Maximizing the Productivity and Effectiveness of Collectors – Part 4
Negotiation techniques in collectors can often lead to higher payments by debtors. So how do you teach proper negotiation tactics?

Maximizing the Productivity and Effectiveness of Collectors – Part 3
Every collector in a credit granting organization has a different collection style. But which style is the most effective?

Maximizing the Productivity and Effectiveness of Collectors – Part 2
Every collector in a credit granting organization has a different collection style. But which style is the most effective?

The Role of Technology in Deductions and Dispute Management
Collectors working in an A/R capacity for creditors shouldn't be burdened with disputes over invoices. So what systems can you put in place to take the dispute out of the collectors' hands?

Maximizing Productivity and Effectiveness of Collectors – Part 1
Credit-granting organizations tend to forget the most important factor in collections – the collectors who make contact with customers every day.

Predicting a Cure for Collections-Induced Customer Attrition
Customer attrition is a topic that has exclusively been the domain of marketing and customer service in the past. But now, the collections department may need to think about it.

The Need for Autocash in the Collection and Deduction Process
The use of automation software and technology on important initiatives like ERP and CRM is commonplace today. But many organizations are overlooking automation in accounts receivable to focus on the higher profile projects, and this can lead to trouble.

Separate Your Agency from the Competition
As the collection agency marketplace gets more competitive, what can agencies do to separate themselves from their peers?

Early Findings from the Kaulkin Report
Kaulkin Ginsberg has released the sixth edition of the Kaulkin Report. Given the role that this publication serves in the accounts receivable management (ARM) industry, this is an important milestone for the firm. As the publication’s primary author, this is also an important milestone for me – in more ways than you might expect.

Using the Law with Collections Efforts for Increased Recovery
The ongoing pursuit of collecting debt has prompted an increased desire and need to streamline time-intensive tasks, and to enable collections agencies, law firms and legal departments to improve productivity with existing resources to recover more debt as quickly as possible.

One Size Does Not Fit All in the World of AR Best Practices
To create an effective solution for collections and dispute management, companies must address their unique challenges. Companies need not search for that ONE best practice blueprint that solves every issue.

Seven Habits - and Rewards - of Highly Efficient Collections Operations
Imagine if your collection centers knew the best hour of the day to contact each delinquent account. Now, imagine that your calling strategies were intelligently coordinated, consistently executed, and impervious to disruptions.

Optimising the H-factor
An organisation’s collection strategies can only be effective if the collectors within the organisation successfully execute these strategies.

Effective Communication: The Client-Vendor Dilemma
Many factors can affect a relationship between a client and a vendor. But the easiest to correct is communication.

Expert Roundtable: Nearshore and Offshore Outsourcing
A Conversation with Leaders Actively Participating in Nearshore or Offshore Outsourcing

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