Credit Control Manager (Client Finance - Birmingham)

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The Role

The Credit Control Manager is responsible for leading a small team which manages the recovery of monies from tenants / occupiers. The primary objective of the role is to ensure that tenant debts are recovered in an effective and timely manner in accordance with client requirements. The ideal candidate will have strong experience in high volume credit control processes. This role manages a team of 4 people and would suit either a Senior Credit Controller looking for a step up, or a Credit Control Manager who is looking for a new challenge.

The Credit Control Manager supports the Associate Director and/or Account Manager by:

Responsibilities

• Ensuring arrears are collected on behalf of the client in accordance with clients' debt recovery policies

• Supporting the debt recovery strategy and operating within contractual compliance, including performing within the SLAs and KPIs on behalf of BNPPRE

• Maintaining complete and up to date records of actions to settle arrears and monitoring and reporting on collection performance

• Advising surveyors and clients on the most appropriate actions to recover debts and managing escalation of debt recovery through third party specialists

• Working closely with the Cash and Banking Team to ensure allocations are processed to debt on tenant accounts according to instructions and unallocated cash is identified and processed appropriately

• Continuously improving processes for arrears collection to ensure monies are collected in an efficient manner in accordance with all relevant legislation.

• Work with the Associate Director and/or Account Manager to improve the efficiency, effectiveness and control of credit control operations

• Develop, monitor, and continuously improve operational level agreements which define agreed timescales, responsibilities and deliverables for all services provided by the credit control team

• Provide coaching and support to members of the credit control team to ensure appropriate levels of performance and technical skills are maintained

• Ensure accurate and complete records of debtor payment performance are maintained and that payment reminders are issued to poor payers

• Allocate work within the team to ensure arrears are collected on behalf of clients in accordance with clients' debt recovery policies for the methods and timescales to be employed in escalating recoveries

• Maintain and develop relationships with third party debt recovery specialists to ensure clients receive an effective and economic service if within scope of clients' debt policies

• Ensure all escalation steps to recover debts are agreed with the surveyor responsible prior to initiating action and maintain complete records of instructions, including agreement of both formal and informal payment plans

• Maintain appropriate and accurate measures of collection performance and report agreed KPIs to management at least monthly

• Review collection performance by client and team member and ensure performance targets are met

• Liaise with team members, surveyors, client accountants and clients to ensure that debt collection issues are resolved in a timely manner, and that risks of non-recovery are reported and mitigated

• Co-ordinate provision of periodic credit control reports and aged debtor analyses

• Maintain records of any tenant disputes and/or complaints and manage their resolution in conjunction with the surveyor and client accountant responsible and in-line with clients' policies and KPI

• Act as a mentor and role model to Credit Controllers in their day to day activities

• Implement the company's performance management programme, adhering to and promoting internal performance standards, and ensuring areas for development and improvement are identified and addressed

• Work with risk management and internal audit to ensure that all compliance and control requirements are met

• Develop and maintain effective relationships with other managers and members of the Client Finance team to ensure effective delivery of services in accordance with clients' requirements

• Participate in the selection, testing and implementation of new systems features to support credit control operations

• Contribute to the management of Client Finance as a whole.

Person specification
Qualifications

• Educated to degree level

Essential experience

• Experience of leading a credit control / rent collection team within in a property management or similar environment.

• Must be highly numerate and accurate with strong attention to detail

• Tenacious, presentable, assertive and self-motivated with excellent verbal and written communication skills

• Conscientious and highly focussed, with detailed understanding of credit control and debt collection procedures and an appreciation of data protection issues

• Able to work to tight deadlines and manage time effectively, producing high levels of output with a high level of accuracy

• Understanding of accounting techniques including sales ledger transactions, particularly in a property environment, would be an advantage

• Good people management, interpersonal and mentoring skills, with demonstrable experience of leading a small team

• Committed to the provision of excellent customer service

• Commercially astute, innovative and solutions oriented

• Organised and methodical, able to manage multiple projects

• Good skills in Microsoft Office products (Excel, Word, and Outlook).

• Experience of property management and accounting packages for managing agents (ideally Trace Tramps, or similar packages such as Yardi Propware / Voyager, Qube Horizon) would be a distinct advantage

• Able to deliver data and reports, to then deliver improvements in KPI's

• Able to take on board client feedback and adjust where necessary

• Able to build strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders

• Target driven and able to sense risk and priorities to avoid escalations

• Cash management, accurate cash processing

Desirable:

• Qualification or part qualification in credit control and debt management or a related accounting discipline

• Property management experience

• Client services sector experience

We are proud to offer award-winning benefits to support and reward our employees:

• Heath & Leisure: Private medical cover, 25 days annual leave + public holidays (the option of purchasing up to 5 additional days via flex benefits), health screening, gym discounts, wellbeing support, volunteering opportunities, cycle to work scheme, eye care voucher, travel & retail discounts, travel insurance, concierge service, kids pass, open fairways golf card, great company culture and social events (including sports teams, charity events, art pass), perks at work
• Financial: Pension, life assurance at 8 x basic salary, group income protection (long term disability insurance), interest free season ticket loan, bonus scheme - you will be eligible to participate in the Company's Bonus Scheme, share incentive plan, financial and mortgage advice

BNP Paribas Real Estate is committed to providing a work environment that fosters diversity, inclusion, and equal employment opportunity without regard to race, colour, gender, age, creed, sex, religion, national origin, disability (physical or mental), marital status, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, or any other legally protected status.