Monday, February 18, 2002		Article

IT techniques for accountants
Sumesh Raizada

FINANCE and accounts are two disciplines, without which no business can be managed. On these rests all other departmental activities like procurement, manufacturing and sales. Since the beginning, accounting activities are being managed through conventional methods where accountants, finance managers or auditors, use set systems or procedures. However, with the development of advanced software and application specific programs, these functions have also become technology oriented. Several new concepts and processes are now being introduced making accounts functions more relevant and productive for the organisation.

The collection and credit analysts are among those accounts professionals who use latest IT tools and techniques, thereby adding to the improvement in processes and performance of the firm. They analyse the collection performance data and make recommendation to the management regarding decisions to be taken on credits, recovery of advances and collection performance of the company. These professionals generate monthly business performance reporting and perform audits and checks to ensure accuracy of accounting data. They do analysis of balance sheets, insurance covers and other operational heads of the organisation.

Besides having thorough knowledge of MS Office, the professionals need to be aware of application specific software. The basic qualifications required are post-graduation in business management, accounts or statistics with strong proficiency in programming. A person needs to have excellent analytical, problem solving and organizational skills besides being perfect in written and verbal communication.

Presently, position of Credit and Collection Analyst is mostly available in the multinational firms having offices at various locations including India. Therefore, those working in this position have fair chances of getting assignment in other countries or at the firm's headquarters. The job also demands frequent long or short distance traveling. The credit analysts are required to have a strong programming expertise with experience in retrieval of data through multiple platforms. They also need to have experience in financial services and be able to summarize data and present written findings to Senior Management.

Credit controller is a senior position and these are mostly Chartered Accountants with few years of experience in treasury functions, corporate remittances and credit control. The supervisory manager controls a team of collection analyst and is responsible for accounting and financial analysis, audit reporting and resolving financial problems related to the organisation. The salaries earned at senior position are around Rs 4 to 5 lakhs per annum while those at initial stages are around Rs. 2-3 lakhs.

Credit and collection analysts are mostly employed by the software companies, call centers, pharmaceuticals firms, legal consultants, health centres and real estate companies. In real estate, these work as commercial real estate collector and are required to have strong negotiation and interpersonal skills. They have to be strong in report writing programs and skills.

In trading and distribution firms, the credit and collection analysts are responsible for the effective management of credit, collections, accounts receivable analysis and documentation within the guidelines of the credit and collections policies and procedures of the industry. They regularly interact with sales staff as well as customers, in order to manage accounts, payments or any other financial issues. These professionals also establish credit and collections terms for new or existing customers. They coordinate with consultants, institutions, agencies and the sales department to determine risk and opportunities in the business. They monitor customer and market activities and perform financial analysis to evaluate risks involved in the business. They coordinate with customers and local sales department in the handling of payment issues and disputes. They also manage and coordinate specific banking and payment transactions like letter of credits, bank guarantees, tax and duties, etc.

Credit and collection professionals in export house are required to coordinate payment related functions like distributor credits, requests for reimbursement and commissions. They work in coordination with customer service on specific export issues and also manage the credit and collections pertaining to distributors. The qualifications required for this position are degree in account or management with experience in export credit and collection environment. A person should be dynamic with excellent communication skills and be able to work in varied business environments. They should possess sufficient exposure to relevant software.

Collection analyst in large hospitals is responsible for the collections and settlement of delinquent and bad debt patient account receivables. They establish payments plans, filing or following up on insurance claims and referring for legal action. The collection analysts work as a public relations liaison for the hospital and interact with the lawyers, insurance firms and court personnel. They conduct financial screening and income verifications to determine appropriate write-offs or payment plan eligibility, analyse problem accounts and take necessary corrective action, etc.

Qualifications required for the position is experience working in the legal system with knowledge of medical billing and health care industry. Knowledge of CPT coding, third party payer reimbursement policies, proficiency in utilising a specialised software and related computer skills is must.

Collection analyst employed in government revenue department, work for collection of delinquent taxes, penalties and interest administered by the government, perform audits of collection agencies, determine appropriate collection action, provide technical advise to accountants, attorneys and corporations. This position is presently more in demand in the Western countries like the USA.

Credit analysts in consumer products industry are responsible for all aspects of credit analysis and collection monitoring. They review and make decisions to grant account credit to customers, does assessment of risk of financial conditions of customers and review credit limits of dealers. The candidates possessing a graduation degree and credit analysis experience are suited for the job. They should have strong financial, analytical and decision making skills. Strong computer skill including proficiency in MS office is must.

The IT professionals are required to work in the software companies or in the industry for the design, coding, and testing of application programs as well as their maintenance. They are also responsible for organising, developing and implementing the billing and collection software for the organisation and making utilisation of latest communication tools like the Internet, Intranet, etc.

Credit risk control analyst in major banks are employed to verify and release trading input facility, monitor line usage, report overdrafts, coordinate with head office, perform documentation, obtain counter party information and does monitoring of financial and other industries trends, etc. They also make use of latest CRM techniques and methodologies for implementation in their establishment.

Credit analyst in an IT firm is responsible for the credit review of dealer applications and collection follow-up. Additional responsibilities include administering and maintaining the store process, placement of order with outside agencies, reviewing and interpreting financial statements and serving as the main technical person for database management. Qualification requirements include Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, or related field with ability to create database and be able to interpret financial statements.

Overall the position of credit and collection analyst is a relatively new concept in India and is limited to major cities where multinationals are operating. However as more IT and non-IT companies, financial institutions, banks, insurance companies, health care companies shall enter the Indian market, demand and importance for credit and collection analyst shall grow accordingly.