Summary Report for:
43-3011.00 - Bill and Account Collectors
Locate and notify customers of delinquent accounts by mail, telephone, or personal visit to solicit payment. Duties include receiving payment and posting amount to customer's account; preparing statements to credit department if customer fails to respond; initiating repossession proceedings or service disconnection; keeping records of collection and status of accounts.
Sample of reported job titles:
Collector, Collections Manager, Credit Clerk, Patient Access Specialist, Patient Account Representative, Biller, Credit Collections Manager, Account Resolution Analyst, Accounting Technician, Billing Manager
Tasks | Tools & Technology | Knowledge | Skills | Abilities | Work Activities | Work Context | Job Zone | Interests | Work Styles | Work Values | Related Occupations | Wages & Employment
Tasks
- Receive payments and post amounts paid to customer accounts.
- Locate and monitor overdue accounts, using computers and a variety of automated systems.
- Record information about financial status of customers and status of collection efforts.
- Locate and notify customers of delinquent accounts by mail, telephone, or personal visits to solicit payment.
- Confer with customers by telephone or in person to determine reasons for overdue payments and to review the terms of sales, service, or credit contracts.
- Advise customers of necessary actions and strategies for debt repayment.
- Persuade customers to pay amounts due on credit accounts, damage claims, or nonpayable checks, or to return merchandise.
- Sort and file correspondence, and perform miscellaneous clerical duties such as answering correspondence and writing reports.
- Perform various administrative functions for assigned accounts, such as recording address changes and purging the records of deceased customers.
- Arrange for debt repayment or establish repayment schedules, based on customers' financial situations.
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Tools & Technology
Tools used in this occupation:
| Autodialers — Predictive dialers |
| Notebook computers — Laptop computers |
| Personal digital assistant PDAs or organizers — Personal digital assistants PDA |
| Scanners |
Technology used in this occupation:
| Accounting software — Austin Logistics CallSelect; JD Edwards software |
| Customer relationship management CRM software — ADS Advantage; Adtec Agency Manager; Ontario Systems FACS; Quantrax Intelec |
| Information retrieval or search software — LexisNexis Banko; TCI XML Credit Interface; W3 Data BatchAppend411 |
| Point of sale POS software — Columbia Ultimate Remit; System Innovators software |
| Spreadsheet software — Microsoft Excel |
| Word processing software |
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Knowledge
| Customer and Personal Service — Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction. |
| Clerical — Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology. |
| English Language — Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar. |
| Economics and Accounting — Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data. |
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Skills
| Active Listening — Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times. |
| Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively. |
| Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents. |
| Time Management — Managing one's own time and the time of others. |
| Mathematics — Using mathematics to solve problems. |
| Social Perceptiveness — Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do. |
| Writing — Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience. |
| Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making. |
| Judgment and Decision Making — Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one. |
| Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems. |
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Abilities
| Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand. |
| Oral Comprehension — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences. |
| Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you. |
| Near Vision — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer). |
| Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem. |
| Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person. |
| Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. |
| Information Ordering — The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations). |
| Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand. |
| Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense. |
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Work Activities
| Interacting With Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information. |
| Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources. |
| Processing Information — Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data. |
| Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems. |
| Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards — Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards. |
| Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work. |
| Communicating with Persons Outside Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail. |
| Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form. |
| Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person. |
| Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job. |
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Work Context
| Telephone — How often do you have telephone conversations in this job? |
| Contact With Others — How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it? |
| Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — How important is being very exact or highly accurate in performing this job? |
| Importance of Repeating Same Tasks — How important is repeating the same physical activities (e.g., key entry) or mental activities (e.g., checking entries in a ledger) over and over, without stopping, to performing this job? |
| Indoors, Environmentally Controlled — How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions? |
| Frequency of Decision Making — How frequently is the worker required to make decisions that affect other people, the financial resources, and/or the image and reputation of the organization? |
| Deal With External Customers — How important is it to work with external customers or the public in this job? |
| Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People — How frequently does the worker have to deal with unpleasant, angry, or discourteous individuals as part of the job requirements? |
| Spend Time Sitting — How much does this job require sitting? |
| Time Pressure — How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines? |
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Job Zone
| Title |
Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed |
| Overall Experience |
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job. |
| Job Training |
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. |
| Job Zone Examples |
These occupations usually involve using communication and organizational skills to coordinate, supervise, manage, or train others to accomplish goals. Examples include funeral directors, electricians, forest and conservation technicians, legal secretaries, interviewers, and insurance sales agents. |
| SVP Range |
(6.0 to < 7.0) |
| Education |
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree. Some may require a bachelor's degree. |
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Interests
Interest code: CE
| Conventional — Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow. |
| Enterprising — Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business. |
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Work Styles
| Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks. |
| Dependability — Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations. |
| Integrity — Job requires being honest and ethical. |
| Self Control — Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations. |
| Independence — Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done. |
| Cooperation — Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude. |
| Stress Tolerance — Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations. |
| Adaptability/Flexibility — Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace. |
| Persistence — Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles. |
| Initiative — Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges. |
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Work Values
| Support — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical. |
| Working Conditions — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions. |
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Related Occupations
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Wages & Employment Trends
National
| Median wages (2006) |
$13.97 hourly, $29,050 annual |
| Employment (2006) |
434,000 employees |
| Projected growth (2006-2016) |
Much faster than average (21% or higher)
|
| Projected need (2006-2016) |
165,000 additional employees |
State & National
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2006 wage data
and 2006-2016 employment projections
.
"Projected growth" represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2006-2016). "Projected need" represents job openings due to growth and net replacement.
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