Accounts Collections Specialist

About the Role

Responsible for payment collections to ensure all past due amounts are collected while preventing the aging of current balances. Handles all customer communications (including dunning, refunds, and statements) and dispute resolution to ensure all customer portfolios comply with established payment and credit terms.

Responsibilities

• Contact customers to pursue payment.
• Review all customer AR balances to ensure billing/invoice and payment accuracy.
• Serve as the main contact for all accounting aspects of the customer’s account.
• Exhibit an understanding of company capabilities and services, and effectively communicate all policies and terms to the customer.
• Provide regular two-way communication between the customer and the company to ensure strong representation and set proper customer expectations.
• Act as a liaison between the customer and the Dispute team to facilitate timely resolution and payment.
• Investigate and recommend solutions to clear service failures and other issues that may prevent prompt payment.
• Escalate customer complaints, disputes, or inquiries to appropriate internal departments or management as needed.
• Issue timely and complete account statements.
• Provide invoices and invoice details.
• Provide Credit and Collection management staff with regular input on all account activity, including status and call reports on a weekly basis.
• Coordinate the dunning process.
• Contact customers to obtain information such as email or phone details.
• Ensure customers pay to the correct bank account and comply with banking requirements.
• Work with Customer Service to determine how to meet customer needs outside normal areas of responsibility (AOR).
• Perform manual processes to meet customer needs outside normal AOR.
• Support cash flow targets by ensuring processes and procedures are completed, quality standards are met, and customer accounts are handled effectively.
• Research and validate credit balances on accounts.
• Identify payment discrepancies and obtain remittance details from customers or internal departments to resolve residual balances.
• Research, resolve, and reconcile all unapplied receipts.
• Encourage customers to utilize credits.
• Coordinate refunds.

Requirements

• Minimum of three years of collections, accounts receivable (AR), or related industry experience.
• Strong knowledge of commercial collections.
• Experience in the shipping industry preferred.
• Accounting software: SAP knowledge in FI/CO and MM modules (preferred).