Change is inevitablegiven a long enough time span. That time span has shrunk dramatically in collections since the CFPB has come to power. While many might say some of the things the bureau has done could be helpful for the industry, all would likely say the bureau has brought about gratuitous change to how collection professionals operate. The changes have been in what markets agencies service, what is considered acceptable overhead for operation, and how an agency proves it is in compliance.
An agency’s ability to adapt to change can be greatly helped by its ability to address a particular concern only once and moving on to the next. Collection software can help allow such modifications and maintain them as well. Danai Griffin, chief information officer at Delta Management Associates expressed that Delta’s favorite aspects of their software is the customization. One such system allows management to even create the screens their collectors use to operate.
“The feature allows us to instantly create and modify collection associate screens,” said Griffin. “We have created custom screens for skip tracing, client-specific requirements, loan rehabilitation and borrower profiles to name a few.
“The Report Designer program is another great feature. Custom reports and letters can be created in-house with a few clicks. These reports can then be generated by the team on-demand or scheduled to run automatically.”
Advancements in collection software have helped absorb some of the impact of these changes. Many collection professionals have also expanded their services to accommodate changes in client preferences.
“The collection industry is changing and has been for some time," said Ashlee Hyden, director of marketing for DAKCS Software Systems. “Our most successful customers are working to be overall service providers for their clients and are moving ‘upstream’. This includes working on behalf of their clients in billing or pre-collect account management.
“All collection professionals, departments and agencies are not the same,” said Hyden. “Those that are successful, profitable and growing have differentiated their agencies and departments with unique requirements, business rules and structure.”
Furthermore, maintaining permanence to any changes in the software or an agency’s use of it can also be bolstered by making sure the software is implemented successfully.
“Any software product geared towards the accounts receivable and collection management market is only as good as the team who helps implement, train and consult, convert data and provide custom interface(s) development required for the go-live of the project,” said Hyden. “Be sure to ask thorough and detailed questions regarding this process of your system implementation project manager. If there are not clearly defined, explained or provided references for you to review, be cautious.”
One of the most helpful things collection software could do is simply greet a collector when he/she comes in every day with recommendations on what they should do differently based on new regulations or industry developments. It could be a short, direct and reliable way to make sure collection efforts do not cross the line on a basic level. Fortunately such technology does exist and is welcomed by collection professionals. Griffin described how her system alerts her team of new regulations and reminds them of existing ones. These alerts can be done for state regulations, Do Not Call lists, and client requirements.
While software is a great tool to keep an agency on the ever-changing road of collections the software vendor must be able to support an agency’s efforts with products and implementation.
“Every expense you incur is critical in your operation; selecting the right technology partner is the most critical decision you will make,” said Hyden. “The service level after the implementation is complete is vital to your success.”