Collections Performance Benchmarking Results Available in New Research by the Ascent Group

ATHENS, Ga. –The Ascent Group completed its second annual benchmarking study to evaluate credit and collection performance and practices. Thirty companies participated in the research that examined how companies are balancing the cost of collection to reduce uncollectible debt and improve the bottom line. Results from this study are available in Credit & Collection Practices 2009.

In addition to providing industry-level analysis and benchmark comparisons, the report highlights panel participants in a case study format, sharing current practices, lessons learned, challenges overcome, plans for the future, and business practices that have led to improved performance. The report also examines credit and collection technologies in place within these companies and provides an analysis of strategies and approaches, including the use of risk scoring and modeling technologies.

An executive summary of the research results can be obtained at the following link: http://www.ascentgroup.com/sda/ccp.html.

Top practices identified by the study include:

• Using risk modeling to segment and prioritize collection work.
• Determining new applicant risk through credit scoring and risk analysis
• Making it easy for customers to pay, at all hours.
• Training and equipping employees to do the job right the first time.

Benchmarking study results are available in a printed format, on CD-Rom, and online (downloadable pdfs) at www.ascentgroup.com.

Credit and Collection Practices 2009 is published by the Ascent Group, a management-consulting firm with extensive experience in customer service and call center performance improvement, benchmarking, best practice discovery and a leading publisher of customer service journals and reports.

The Ascent Group offers many opportunities for companies to participate in customer service benchmarking and best practice discovery through its online benchmarking services. Current benchmarking opportunities—Reward and Recognition Programs and Billing and Payment Programs—http://www.ascentgroup.com/bm_opp/bmindex.html