Credit Management magazine October 2017

TOWN AND COUNTRY
AUTHOR – SEAN FEAST
of risk it represents. This in turn determines
the level of credit you may extend, and the
limits that you set.”
Typically, Frank says, there are two ‘types’
of farmer: The ‘traditional’, family-owned
and family run enterprise; and the larger,
‘business’ farmer, not untypically managed as
a limited company. Frank and his team have to
flex their approach to meet the differing needs
of these customers, but both require the team
to build long-term customer relationships
based on real trust and understanding: “With
family farms, the lines between ‘domestic’ and
‘business’ bills are sometimes, understandably
obscured,” he says.
“Invoices are often still settled by cheque,
but it's the same chequebook that also meets
the bills for the household gas or electric. With
larger farms which may be limited companies,
farmers manage their income and expenditure
through the company, and use their tax
efficiently, In each case, it can sometimes
make it harder for us to see the whole picture in
terms of granting credit, which is why personal
visits and getting to know our customers is so
important.”
Frank says that the commercial team also
plays a crucial role supporting their customers’
ambitions: “They are not ‘salesmen’ in the
traditional sense,” he explains. “The farmers
trust them to give them best advice and trust
their expertise. It is less about ‘selling’ and
more about ensuring the famer has the right
nutrition solutions for their business.
The progress made by the credit team in
the seven years Frank has been in charge has
been impressive. It now provides an end-toend
service, from setting appropriate credit
limits and complying with credit insurance
policy conditions, to providing in-depth credit
risk reports and collecting the cash.
But Frank is honest in saying that some
doubted whether his ‘new ways’ were an
improvement on the ‘old’. It was for this
reason that he approached the CICM to apply
for Quality in Credit Management
accreditation.
EXTERNAL MEASUREMENT
“It was all very well for me to say that things
had improved, but we needed an external
measure to be sure we were on the right path
and to better understand what ‘good’ really
looked like. We considered ISO but then the
CICM launched its new Quality programme
and so after visiting Shell and learning of their
experiences we applied and were soon after
accredited. We have been accredited three
times since.”
Frank is modest about his own achievements
but delighted for his team. In the assessor’s
report, AB Agri’s credit management function
was described as ‘well managed, controlled and
organised with clear policies, processes and
reporting which everyone interviewed in the
department and company understand and have
access to.’ It went on to say that ‘if there were a
league table on ‘best practice’, AB Agri would be
very close to the top.’
The secret, if there is such a thing, to his
team’s success, is in its experience: it has more
than 150 years’ combined experience behind
it, and an average length of service of seven
years. Staff retention is particularly critical:
“The knowledge is all with my people,” Frank
says, “and is invaluable. They know, with
every customer, such things as when the best
“We considered ISO but
then the CICM launched its
new Quality programme
and so after visiting Shell
and learning of their
experiences we applied
and were soon after
accredited. We have been
accredited three times
since.”
Additional industry statistics provided exclusively
to Credit Management by Dun & Bradstreet.
The Recognised Standard / www.cicm.com / November 2017 / PAGE 20