Credit Management magazine October 2017

BRANCH NEWS
Tour of the
Rebellion
Brewery
Thames Valley
Branch
AFTER a very blustery and stormy day
of weather, committee members of the
Thames Valley Branch and their guests
gathered at The Rebellion Brewery for a
tour of the facilities and to enjoy tasting
various ales and beers on offer. It turned
out to be a very enjoyable evening both
weather wise and socially.
We joined a significant number of
people at this wonderful place (the
monthly open evening) where we all
gleefully parted with our money to be
given a pint glass and drinks vouchers.
The employees of the brewery were
lovely, encouraging you to have tasters if
you were not sure what you wanted for
your first choice and happily assisting
you to make sure you had a drink(s) you
would enjoy.
Outside in the brewery yard was a
barbecue from which you could purchase
burgers, hotdogs and vegetarian options.
I can vouch for the food, it was delicious,
generous and reasonably priced.
Those who wished to take part in the
tour, were invited to attend at 8.00pm
which, I am told, was very interesting
and presented by the owner. For the
duration of the talk drinks were free – our
youngest guest thought all his birthdays
and Christmases had come at once!
In the main brewery building you
were able to purchase products which
included branded clothes, big jars of pork
scratchings and cold meats among other
things.
All who attended agreed that they had
a great evening and would not object if
this was put on the agenda again. If we
organise one again do come along, I think
you will thoroughly enjoy it.
Author: Dee Weston
Improving credit
management in the
workplace
East of England Branch
BRANCH Chairman Richard
Brown welcomed over
60 credit professionals,
including CICM members
from seven branches, to
the free conference at
Goodman Masson’s London office.
Chris Parker, branch committee
member, and Lola Awosika, both from
Goodman Masson’s credit management
recruitment team, updated delegates
on recruitment trends, and the benefits
which employers now need to offer to
influence and attract candidates.
With performing well in interviews
being top of the agenda, Mike McNulty,
the Performance Business, literally
had everyone on their feet during his
presentation on preparing for interviews
and body language.
An informative presentation on
increasing relationships within the
enterprise and the best way to improve
collections was then given by Russell
Robinson, FICO.
Taking us into the future, John Duffy,
VoiceSage, explored the smart use of
data and new technologies, and proactive
messaging.
Andrew Jenkins, PDX Consulting,
had delegates hanging on his every word
ALTHOUGH their sales teams often
compete in the credit and risk
management market, Creditsafe and Dun
& Bradstreet worked together recently to
deliver a joint presentation to the Thames
Valley Branch about the evolution of
business information at Avnet’s offices in
Bracknell.
The speakers were Jason Braidwood,
Head of Credit & Collections at Creditsafe
Group and Mark Preston, Senior
Consultant Trade Credit Risk & External
Affairs at Dun & Bradstreet. Mark and
Jason gave some interesting background
history on each organisation, and an
during his enthusiastic presentation
on developing the qualities of a growth
mindset to lead a team and harness
conflict.
Branch Committee member Katherine
Bailey, Valor Hospitality, outlined the 2017
Branch Charity Unlock a Life for Lockey,
and accepted the generous donation on its
behalf from John Duffy.
After a splendid buffet lunch courtesy
of Goodman Masson, branch committee
member Atul Vadher, French Connection,
shared his thoughts on being a credit
manager.
Andrew della Casa, The Wine
Investment Fund, detailed its risk
approach, before generously donating a
bottle of fine wine for the Business Card
draw prize.
The lively Q&A Speakers and Expert
panel, was joined by Simon Marshall of
Co-Pilot and Ian Stuart of Altis Consulting.
Richard Brown thanked our hosts for
kindly sponsoring all aspects of the day,
and the speakers for giving their time
voluntarily. He also thanked conference
organiser Carol Baker, and everyone for
attending and participating in this highly
enjoyable and successful conference.
Authors: Carol Baker and
Richard Brown.
Growing importance of
business information
Thames Valley Branch
overview of the current challenges that
both organisations face in a world where
there is an increasing demand for business
information.
Dun & Bradstreet was initially established
as a mercantile agency in New York in 1841
and over its 176-year history four future
US Presidents worked for the Company
and Marilyn Monroe advertised the Dun
& Bradstreet Reference Book in the 1950s!
The organisation has continued to embrace
new technology from the typewriter
and telephone, to APIs and cloud-based
platforms in more recent times. Dun &
Bradstreet has undergone significant
The Recognised Standard / www.cicm.com / October 2017 / PAGE 58