
Senior Manager Collections
- Chicago, IL
- Permanent
- Full-time
- Lead and manage the collections team to meet and exceed cash collection and aging targets.
- Develop and implement effective collections strategies, policies, and procedures.
- Monitor accounts receivable aging reports and follow up on delinquent accounts.
- Partner with sales, customer service, and finance teams to resolve billing disputes and improve customer satisfaction.
- Analyze trends in aging, DSO (Days Sales Outstanding), and bad debt reserves; present monthly AR performance reports to senior leadership.
- Identify and escalate high-risk accounts and recommend actions for legal collections or write-offs.
- Implement and maintain credit policies, and review customer creditworthiness to mitigate risk.
- Oversee collections staff performance, including hiring, training, coaching, and conducting regular performance reviews.
- Collaborate with IT and ERP teams to ensure AR systems are configured to support efficient collections processes.
- Lead or support automation and process improvement initiatives to enhance AR/collections operations.
- Ensure compliance with company policies and relevant regulations, including SOX, if applicable.
- Provide oversight to all processes designed to collect on all billings in alignment with contracted terms.
- Design programs with particular emphasis on early-stage collection that focus on communication with clients and proactive outreach in order to collect cash in accordance with payment terms.
- Create reports on all aged receivables and ensure they are communicated to senior leadership with action plans to collect.
- Manages client issue resolution and escalation processes.
- Acts as a primary resource for clients and internal leadership to resolve all billing disputes and issues.
- Partners with all other finance and accounting functions to resolve any data or billing issues that act as roadblocks to collecting cash.
- Provides leadership to the collections team, designing and optimizing workloads and assignments, managing team output and performance.
- Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or related field required.
- Advanced degree or professional certification (e.g., CMA, CCE) preferred.
- 7+ years of progressive experience in accounts receivable or credit & collections, with at least 3 years in a management or leadership role.
- Experience managing large B2B portfolios, preferably in mid-to-large companies or global environments.
- Familiarity with ERP and collections software (e.g., SAP, Oracle, NetSuite, HighRadius).
- Strong leadership and team management skills.
- Deep understanding of collections principles, credit risk analysis, and customer relationship management.
- Excellent written and verbal communication and negotiation skills.
- Analytical mindset with the ability to interpret data and drive results.
- Highly organized, proactive, and capable of managing competing priorities.
- Proficiency in Excel and reporting tools (e.g., NetSuite, ADP) is a plus.