Credit Management JUNE 2023

CREDIT MANAGEMENT
CM
JUNE 2023 £13.00
THE CICM MAGAZINE FOR CONSUMER AND
COMMERCIAL CREDIT PROFESSIONALS
ROOM
SERVICE
Hotels are open
for business
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
is guiding finance teams to
success. Page 20
How best practice can help
prevent enforcement fraud.
Page 23

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Data: 2022.08.08 18:47:58
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Moneyknows no borders—neither do we

18
CALCULATED RISKS
Tim Vine
JUNE 2023
www.cicm.com
CONTENTS
10 – DULY REWARDED
Insolvency practitioners’ powers to
investigate can bring rewards.
26
PERSONAL SERVICE
Craig Wilson
12 – ROOM WITH A VIEW
The demise of the hotel industry has been
somewhat overstated.
14 – A RECIPE FOR SUCCESS?
Are things about to change for the better
for the UK hospitality sector?
18 – CALCULATED RISKS
How reliable can trade data really be?
20 – RESCUED BY AI
Artificial Intelligence is guiding finance
teams to success despite economic
uncertainty.
23 – PREVENT STRATEGY
How best practice can help prevent
enforcement fraud.
26 – PERSONAL SERVICE
Using data is key for lenders to make
informed decisions and navigate a storm.
12
ROOM WITH A VIEW
Sean Feast FCICM
CICM GOVERNANCE
View our digital version online at www.cicm.com. Log on to the Members’
area, and click on the tab labelled ‘Credit Management magazine’
Credit Management is distributed to the entire UK and international CICM
membership, as well as additional subscribers
Reproduction in whole or part is forbidden without specific permission. Opinions expressed in this magazine do
not, unless stated, reflect those of the Chartered Institute of Credit Management. The Editor reserves the right to
abbreviate letters if necessary. The Institute is registered as a charity. The mark ‘Credit Management’ is a registered
trade mark of the Chartered Institute of Credit Management.
Any articles published relating to English law will differ from laws in Scotland and Wales.
30
IN CREDIT
Melanie York
President Stephen Baister FCICM / Chief Executive Sue Chapple FCICM
Executive Board: Chair Debbie Nolan FCICM(Grad) / Vice Chair Phil Rice FCICM / Treasurer Glen Bullivant FCICM
Larry Coltman FCICM / Neil Jinks FCICM / Allan Poole MCICM
Advisory Council: Caroline Asquith-Turnbull FCICM / Laurie Beagle FCICM / Glen Bullivant FCICM /Brendan Clarkson FCICM
Larry Coltman FCICM / Peter Gent FCICM(Grad) / Victoria Herd FCICM(Grad) / Andrew Hignett MCICM(Grad)
Laural Jefferies FCICM / Neil Jinks FCICM / Martin Kirby FCICM / Charles Mayhew FCICM / Hans Meijer FCICM / Debbie Nolan
FCICM(Grad) / Amanda Phelan MCICM(Grad) / Allan Poole MCICM / Phil Rice FCICM / Phil Roberts FCICM / Chris Sanders FCICM
Paula Swain FCICM / Jamie Thornton MCICM / Mark Taylor MCICM / Atul Vadher FCICM(Grad)
30 – IN CREDIT
People at various stages of their careers
share their journeys.
34 – CROSSING THE FINNISH LINE
Finland is much more than the land of a
thousand lakes.
39 – SOFT POWER
Why soft skills are your superpower
throughout a career in credit.
Publisher
Chartered Institute of Credit Management
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Telephone: 01780 722900
Email: editorial@cicm.com
Website: www.cicm.com
CMM: www.creditmanagement.org.uk
Managing Editor
Sean Feast FCICM
Deputy Editor
Iona Yadallee
Art Editor
Andrew Morris
Telephone: 01780 722910
Email: andrew.morris@cicm.com
Editorial Team
Joe Clarkson, Rob Howard, Roshika Perera,
Melanie York and Mona Yazdanparast
Advertising
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Single copies: £13.00
ISSN 0265-2099
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 3

EDITOR’S COLUMN
The Dambusters, RAF display teams,
and why not to cry in your pint.
Sean Feast FCICM
Managing Editor
AS a journalist of almost 40-years standing, I am well
aware of the irony of saying that the media has a great
deal to answer for!
Certain things, perhaps, I can forgive. Like Kirsty
Young referring to the RAF ‘Acrobatic Team’ during
the Coronation. I expect the Senior Service roared at
that one. Or Sally Nugent talking about the ‘infamous’ Dambusters. I
seriously hope she meant ‘famous’, but you never know with the BBC
these days. Perhaps they wanted to compare the Dams raid to Dresden,
but let’s not go there as the press constantly get that one wrong too.
What I can’t forgive the media for, however, is their constant
negativity about, frankly, everything. Think about it: when was the last
good news business story you can recall? There may have been one
once, if you dig really deep, perhaps a bio-med story, a cure for cancer
or Alzheimer’s, but that will be it. You will rarely, if ever, see positive
stories about engineering, manufacturing, construction, transport or
international trade. And please don’t start me on farming.
If you believed the media’s take on the state of the nation was truly
representative, you would have packed up and gone home a long time
ago, or gone to live as a hermit in some far-off desert island (assuming
you can find one that isn’t sinking – more bad news). But the fact is that
the UK is not quite the poor man of Europe they will have you believe.
Take hospitality. Read the press and you will find only dismal stories
about pub closures, breweries going bust, or hotels struggling to stay
open because of lack of staff, all caused by Brexit. Speak to the people
who actually run these enterprises, however, and you may find a very
different story. You’ll discover tales of success and growth, of passion
and commitment. You’ll meet people excited about the future, the
people doing it, not writing about it, and that’s why we’ve made it our
special focus starting on page 12.
There are two sides – at least – to every story. And for every tale of
gloom and doom, I can find you dozens more to lift your hearts. Have a
read and cheer yourself up. Rather than crying in your pint, you might
actually feel like ordering another.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 4

CMNEWS
A round-up of news stories from the
world of consumer and commercial credit.
Lack of regulation causing
consumer mistrust of BNPL
A
survey of UK consumers shows
concerns about the lack of
regulation in Buy Now, Pay
Later (BNPL) options, with only
16 percent of UK consumers
deeming BNPL ‘trustworthy’.
Almost half (45 percent) are worried that
unregulated BNPL could get them into debt,
and 58 percent of respondents had never
used BNPL options and wouldn’t consider
using them.
The survey commissioned by NewDay,
one of the UK’s largest providers of
consumer credit, also highlighted the
importance of regulations in building trust,
with 78 percent stating they would prefer a
regulated BNPL option over an unregulated
one even if that meant a longer application
process.
The findings also showed a lack of
awareness of BNPL as a form of credit,
especially amongst younger people. Despite
40 percent of 18–34-year-olds having used
BNPL options, the highest age range to do so,
64 percent were unaware that it was a type
of credit and 62 percent didn’t know of its
potential impact on credit scores.
NEW research from Aldermore’s SME
Growth Index suggests that despite the
ongoing cost-of-living crisis, SMEs are
planning to spend an average of £321,000 on
growth strategies over the next year. One in
eight (12 percent) SMEs plan to spend over
£1m investing in growth.
A third of businesses want to expand their
customer base (33 percent) and grow their
current products and services (29 percent)
in 2023, while also reducing costs to combat
the cost-of-living crisis (30 percent).
To reach their goals, business leaders
plan to invest in their online presence. One
in four SMEs (26 percent) will put money
into improving or building websites and
apps over the next year. This is in addition to
investing in digital marketing (24 percent).
Interestingly, following the ‘Great
Resignation’ fears that saw SME-leaders
Written by – Sean Feast FCICM
❝
“It’s clear more
needs to be done to
educate consumers,
and the regulation of
BNPL products needs
to be accelerated.
But as an industry
we also have a duty
to protect consumers
and to lend
responsibly.
❝
prioritise talent spend in 2022, talent
acquisition and increases to employee
salary and benefits are likely to see the least
investment (17 percent each respectively)
over the next year.
SMEs will often turn to business savings
(27 percent) or various forms of business
finance (e.g., asset finance – 11 percent) to
meet their goals. However, nearly two out
of five SMEs (18 percent) will turn to their
personal savings and over one in 10 will
use their own overdraft (12 percent) to meet
business costs.
Despite optimistic plans to invest
heavily in the coming year, the biggest
concerns SMEs are faced with are high
energy costs (24 percent) and doubledigit
inflation rises (24 percent). This will
represent the biggest barrier to business
growth in 2023.
More than three quarters (78 percent) were
unaware that missing BNPL payments could
be classed as a ‘loan default’, which can stay
on credit reports for up to six years making
it difficult to borrow in the future. In total, 48
percent of UK consumers didn’t know BNPL
could impact credit records, and 61 percent
didn’t know BNPL services can result in
defaulting on a loan.
The findings follow HM Treasury’s
consultation on draft legislation to
regulate BNPL credit, following concerns of
potential consumer harm without suitable
affordability checks in place.
Ian Corfield, Chief Commercial Officer at
NewDay, says that while BNPL continues to
be a popular option for younger consumers,
its broader appeal is being hampered by
a lack of regulation causing mistrust: “It’s
clear more needs to be done to educate
consumers, and the regulation of BNPL
products needs to be accelerated. But as
an industry we also have a duty to protect
consumers and to lend responsibly.
“BNPL is here to stay and greater
regulation and protection for consumers will
unleash its full potential rather than stifle it.”
SMEs are looking to spend spend spend
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 5

MORE than £1.2bn was
stolen through fraud
in 2022, a reduction
of eight percent on
2021, according to
new figures from UK
Finance. The number of fraud cases
across the UK was down four percent to
almost three million cases.
Within the total figure, unauthorised
fraud losses across payment cards,
remote banking and cheques reached
£726.9m in 2022, a decrease of less than
one percent compared to 2021.
But despite this apparent ‘good’ news,
fraudsters are finding new ways to
conduct their criminal activities.
Remote purchase fraud, where a
criminal uses stolen card details to
buy something online, over the phone
or through mail order, remains the
biggest category of losses at £395.7m –
although this figure was again down on
the previous year.
Fraud on lost and stolen cards
increased by 30 percent to £100.2m and
card ID theft, where a criminal opens or
takes over a card account in someone
else’s name, almost doubled to £51.7m.
Victims of unauthorised fraud cases
such as these are legally protected
against losses.
As well as ‘traditional’ fraud, more
modern incidences of fraud also
increased. Authorised push payment
(APP) fraud losses, for example, reached
£485.2m, down 17 percent compared
to 2021. Within this, 57 percent of all
reported cases related to purchase
fraud, with case volumes breaking
100,000 for the first time.
Investment fraud continued to be one
of the largest proportions of APP losses
(24 percent), although there was a 34
percent reduction compared with 2021.
Overall, the amount of APP fraud losses
reimbursed increased by five per cent
THE Money Advice Trust has welcomed
Ofgem’s new code of practice for
energy suppliers on the installation
of prepayment meters and has urged
the regulator to make the guidance
mandatory as soon as possible.
The new guidance, which is currently
voluntary for suppliers, bans the
forced installation of PPMs for people
over 85 and those who rely on their
supply for health needs, amongst
NEWS ROUNDUP
Criminals finding new ways to
commit fraud outside of banking
in 2022 compared to the previous year.
The banking and finance industry
spends billions of pounds each year
fighting fraud and economic crime.
However, the majority of fraud
originates outside the banking sector
and UK Finance has conducted
analysis on over 59,000 APP fraud
cases to show the sources of fraud.
The analysis showed that 78 percent
of APP fraud cases originated online –
these tend to include lower-value fraud
such as purchase fraud and therefore
account for 36 percent of losses. Social
media platforms account for the
greatest number of online fraud cases
– around three quarters of online fraud
starts on social media.
Meanwhile, 18 percent of fraud cases
originate via telecommunications –
these are usually higher value cases,
such as impersonation fraud, and
account for 44 percent of losses.
Given so much fraud is initiated
from criminal activity taking place
through online platforms and
telecommunications, UK Finance and
its members have long called for far
greater cross-sector action to tackle the
problem at source.
David Postings, Chief Executive at
other protections.
Joanna Elson CBE, Chief Executive
of the Money Advice Trust, the
charity that runs National Debtline
and Business Debtline, says the new
guidance from Ofgem is welcome,
if overdue: “Whilst this code of
practice sets out more strongly how
energy suppliers should act, it is only
voluntary, and there are significant
gaps in the protection it offers.
UK Finance, is concerned that despite
the billions spent on detection and
prevention, fraudsters are still finding
new ways to commit crime: “Our data
also makes clear just how much fraud
emanates from online platforms and
through telecommunications,” he
explains. The Government’s new fraud
strategy rightly says we need to focus
on stopping it at source and that these
other sectors need to do far more to
tackle the problem they are facilitating.”
The new Annual Fraud Report
2023 was published in partnership
with Feedzai. Daniel Holmes, Fraud
Prevention SME, Feedzai says rapid
changes in technology bring a new
and critical inflection point in the
fraud space: “The risks remain
elevated as fraudsters adapt and use
increasingly sophisticated tactics
and technology to fool consumers.
This report highlights the importance
for banks to maintain their focus
on combining the latest anti-fraud
technology with an approach that puts
consumer education at the core. We
also need a broad coalition of effort
from beyond financial services to
tackle fraud. This combination will
give us the best chance possible to stop
fraud at its source and minimise the
impact on consumers.”
The Government published its
Fraud Strategy on 3 May, with the aim
of reducing fraud and cyber-crime by 10
percent by 2025.
The Strategy outlines three elements:
Government and law enforcement will
pursue more fraudsters and bring them
to justice; Government and industry
will work together to stop fraud
attempts; and the British people will be
more empowered to recognise, avoid
and report fraud when they encounter
it, and better supported when they do
fall victim
Money Advice Trust urges Ofgem to
make energy guidance mandatory
Ofgem needs to make this guidance
mandatory as soon as possible,
especially as forced installation of
prepayment meters continues to be an
option for suppliers.
“Better protections for people who
have fallen behind on their energy bills
are also needed. This should include
the option for debt write-off or payment
matching.”
See our article on page 26-27.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 6

NEWS ROUNDUP
Corporate insolvencies soar
to highest level in three years
HIGH borrowing costs and inflation
are weighing heavily on businesses,
according to official figures.
Company insolvencies rose 16
percent in March compared to the
previous year as business owners
struggled to contend with soaring costs
and tougher economic conditions.
Experts predict that more will follow,
as the economy continues to stagnate.
In March, there were 2,457 insolvent
companies compared to 2,120 in March
2022, according to official figures.
When considered against March’s 2021
total of 999, corporate insolvencies
rose by 146 percent, highlighting
how Government pandemic support
measures kept thousands of
businesses afloat.
Companies are facing the highest
borrowing costs since 2008 after
the Bank of England raised interest
rates to 4.25 percent. Stubbornly high
inflation is also weighing heavily on
the economy, which is forecast to enter
recession at some point this year. The
rise in the latest figures were driven
mostly by 2,011 Creditors’ Voluntary
Liquidations (CVLs), nine percent
higher than in March 2022.
There were 288 compulsory
liquidations in March 2023, more than
twice the number in March 2022.
Numbers of compulsory liquidations
have increased from historical lows
seen during the coronavirus pandemic,
partly as a result of an increase in
winding-up petitions presented by
HMRC. Administrations and Company
Voluntary Arrangements (CVAs) were
also higher than the same period last
year.
During the pandemic, insolvency
figures were at a historical low for an
economic crisis – due to Government
support measures such as furlough and
the Bounce Back Loan scheme. Experts
suggest that the current rebound in
insolvencies indicates that the support
measures masked the real corporate
insolvency environment, and there is
the suggestion that many so-called
zombie companies were being kept
afloat artificially.
>NEWS
IN BRIEF
Shift patterns
MORE than 60 companies and almost
3,000 workers recently completed a
six-month trial of a four-day working
week, on full pay. Last year saw the
beginning of a pilot programme
trialling a four-day week on the
100:80:100 basis – that is, 100 percent
of pay for 80 percent of the time,
in exchange for a commitment to
maintain 100 percent productivity.
The aim of this, the world’s largest
such trial so far, was to demonstrate
the benefits of reduced-hour, outputfocused
working. Overall results
show that almost every participating
organisation will stick with the new
working practice, with 91 percent
definitely continuing or planning to
continue, and a further four percent
leaning towards continuing. Only
four percent of participants said they
would definitely not continue. Revenue
rose by 35 percent over the trial
periods when compared with similar
periods from the previous year and
hiring increased while absenteeism
decreased.
What a write-off
THE Department for Business and
Trade (DBT) appears prepared to write
off nearly £1bn paid out erroneously
by local authorities on its behalf in
pandemic support. Of an estimated
£2.2bn lost to fraud and error in
COVID-19 schemes, only about £10m
has so far been recovered. A report
published by the House of Commons
Public Accounts Committee (PAC) says
the Business Department continues
to make slow progress on its counter
fraud activities related to the Bounce
Back Loan scheme, and its apparent
‘lack of curiosity’ about lenders’
performance increases the risk of
losses for the taxpayer.
Brabners LLP awarded its first
CICMQ Accreditation
SUE Chapple FCICM, CEO of CICM, joined CICM Head of Accreditation,
Karen Tuffs FCICM(Grad) at Brabners’ Liverpool office at the beginning of May
to present the firm with its first CICMQ award. Lou Morris FCICM (Grad) and
the Credit & Collections team gathered with colleagues from both the Liverpool
and Manchester offices to celebrate their successful journey which started in
October 2021 and resulted in Brabners achieving the industry’s flagship best
practice award in February 2023. The focus and effort put in by Lou and the
team gives Brabners a well-deserved place in the exclusive group of CICMQ
organisations.
The full Pitcher
STEPCHANGE has appointed Alex
Pitcher as new Chief Risk Officer, who
will join the charity in June. Alex
previously led the credit reference
agency TransUnion’s global risk
management team and approach,
having previously managed the UK
risk function. Alex has over 15 years
of experience across the financial
services sector. Alongside his recent
work at TransUnion, Alex previously
worked for the Royal Bank of Scotland
Group in Edinburgh before moving to
Yorkshire where he held roles at PwC
and Yorkshire Building Society.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 7

NEWS SPECIAL
Building Confidence
The inter-dependency of the construction
sector is causing issues
AUTHOR – Sean Feast FCICM
THE construction sector
looks set for a difficult year,
and the problems may only
just be beginning. Macroeconomic
issues and
supply chain challenges
are likely to continue for some time,
and although a reduction in interest
rates may bring more positive news
within the housebuilding sector, it
remains one of the few bright lights on
an otherwise gloomy future landscape.
The construction sector was a key
topic in the May CICM Think Tank,
a gathering of credit professionals
from all areas and disciplines of the
credit industry, including leading
practitioners. They heard that pre-
COVID, many parts of the construction
industry had enjoyed significant
success. This success continued into
2022 but started to tail off in the latter
half of the year.
A resilient demand for housing,
complemented by significant spend on
roads and infrastructure, meant there
was plenty of cash, but then the cracks
started to show. Business failures
began to increase, which had a ripple
effect throughout the industry.
As one Think Tank member
explained, for every one business that
enters into administration, four or
five other failures are likely to follow
because of the inter-trading and interdependency
of the various contractors,
sub-contractors, manufacturers and
suppliers within the value chain.
Tolent Construction, the Gateheadbased
contractor, was cited as one
example. It entered into administration
in February 2023, taken down –
according to the administrator – by
‘spiralling costs, labour shortages, and
the loss of other companies within its
supply chain.’
Industry woes
Hyper-inflation added to the industry’s
woes as the cost of raw materials,
energy and transport increased,
alongside increased carbon trading
costs. Other challenges are already
present or have emerged, including the
increased tax on red diesel, the impact
of the VAT Domestic Reverse Charge,
and the ongoing issues surrounding
fixed-price contracts that leave little
or no room for adaptation or renegotiation.
The Think Tank heard anecdotal
evidence that some banks are actively
withdrawing from the construction
sector, maintaining secure debts
they may already have in place but
no longer offering business accounts
or day-to-day banking services. It’s
a situation last seen in 2008/2009.
It also heard of a rise in the use of
Invoice Finance in inappropriate
circumstances, when the quality of
invoices generated did not warrant
the advance given and, perhaps more
disturbingly, the actions of certain
credit card companies selling their
services as ‘business funding’ and even
offering cashback as an incentive to
join.
What was evident was that in
isolation, none of these issues – the
challenges of cashflow being squeezed,
prices increasing, inflationary
pressures etc. – had not been
experienced before, but rather they had
not been experienced all at the same
time.
Future advice
In terms of the future, the sector
was likely to be propped up by major
infrastructure projects, not least HS2
and Hinckley power station. But even
these won’t last forever.
In terms of credit management,
use the processes you have, trust
them, and abide by them. Choose the
right customer and focus on business
discipline – even if that means being
hard-nosed at the front end – and
don’t ignore problems when they
arise – it’s not a bad thing to say ‘no’.
It is also critical to maintain the right
insurance and the right support,
using data to better inform your risk
management decisions, but always
with the safety net of an insurance
policy in place. Evidence of long-term
fraud is already there, and incidences
of corporate identity fraud are also on
the rise.
When it comes to new business,
using a traditional ‘risk/return’ matrix
will enable you to better assess
the opportunity in front of you,
enabling a sale but not being bullied
into it. Adapting to a new business
environment is also key, looking out
for the common signals of possible
problems ahead, looking closely at
the structure of contracts, their length
of term, and whether there is any
flexibility in them to re-negotiate terms
and pricing at a later date, should
circumstances change.
The past is not necessarily an
indication of the future, and businesses
that are still trading on the same
behaviours as before and not adapting
to the new environment may find that
their future is already behind them.
❝
The CICM Think Tank heard anecdotal evidence
that some banks are actively withdrawing from the
construction sector, maintaining secure debts they may
already have in place but no longer offering business
accounts or day-to-day banking services.
❝
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 8

NEWS ROUNDUP
FSB report reveals struggles
of rural small businesses
THE Federation of Small Businesses
(FSB) has called for swift policy
reforms to bridge the £43bn rural-urban
productivity deficit in its latest report
into rural trade.
The Growth Belt: Supporting Rural
Small Businesses sheds light on the
hurdles faced by rural small businesses,
including inadequate transport,
unreliable broadband, and rising energy
costs.
It also highlights how the
Government’s 10-point-plan for rural
productivity, published in 2015, appears
to have made little progress - leading to
£43bn in lost economic contribution.
The report's findings show that in
2022, only 43 percent of rural firms
planned to grow, compared to 49 percent
in urban areas. Additionally, 37 percent
of rural businesses reported a 10 percent
increase in operating costs.
Poor broadband connectivity in rural
areas is also a significant issue, with 32
percent of rural firms reporting internet
reliability issues, compared to 17 percent
of urban businesses. Consequently, 14
percent of rural businesses say slow
internet speeds affect their ability to
contact customers, while 11 percent
❝
believe their competitiveness is
hindered by poor connectivity.
Meanwhile, five percent of these firms
report a loss in sales due to inadequate
internet connections. FSB is calling
on the Government to update the
Universal Service Obligation minimum
requirements for upload and download
speeds to combat this.
Other recommendations include
raising the basic VAT taxable turnover
threshold from £85,000 to £100,000,
increasing England's Small Business
Rate Relief threshold to £25,000 from
£12,000 and ensuring electric vehicle
charging points are available in rural UK
areas by 2030.
Local councils in England should also
appoint Local Business Champions for
better business engagement and funding
applications.
FSB National Chair Martin McTague
believes the report offers concrete,
feasible solutions to narrow the
productivity gap and unlock these
rural small firms’ full potential: “The
Government has the power to create
a sustainable, resilient economy that
benefits everyone, regardless of the size
of their rural community.”
The report's findings show that in 2022, only 43 percent of rural
firms planned to grow, compared to 49 percent in urban areas.
Interest rate hike hits
struggling households
A leading debt charity is warning that
the recent base rate rise from 4.25
percent to 4.5 percent is ‘another blow
for household finances’ that could be ‘a
further catalyst for problem debt’.
StepChange Debt Charity says the
Bank of England’s interest rate rise may
particularly impact those mortgage
holders nearing the end of fixed-rate
deals, or private renters whose landlords
have passed on higher debt servicing
costs.
At present, around one
in seven mortgage holders
(15 percent) who seek help
from StepChange are in
arrears on their mortgage,
while arrears on other
household bills such
as gas and electricity
remain alarmingly
high among all
StepChange clients.
Vikki Brownridge,
❝
Chief Executive of StepChange Debt
Charity, says the steep jump in interest
rates has been a shock to household
budgets, compounding financial
difficulty for people who are already
struggling to make ends meet: “As time
goes on, more mortgage holders will be
facing the prospect of a new fixed rate
deal or variable rate which will consume
a larger proportion of their income,
making it increasingly difficult to meet
other financial commitments.
“The situation is becoming
increasingly precarious for many
people and widespread problem
debt is a risk, particularly for
financially vulnerable households.
We would urge firms to be
proactive in identifying and
communicating with customers
who might be falling into
difficulty by offering tailored
support and signposting to
free debt advice.”
>NEWS
IN BRIEF
Rising confidence
ECONOMIC confidence is rising across
the globe as clear signs of business
improvement emerge. While the Q1
2023 Global Economic Conditions
Survey (GECS) shows confidence was
lower than a year ago, it rose for the
third consecutive quarter as fears fade
over the prospects of a recession in
2023. This better news is underlined
by the two GECS ‘fear’ indices which
reflect respondents’ concerns that
customers and/or suppliers may go
out of business. Both these series
improved on Q4 2022. Indeed, worries
about suppliers have fallen to the
lowest level since 2020. And although
new orders have flatlined this quarter,
the survey showed improvements
in both employment and capital
expenditure.
East Enders
CORPORATE insolvencies in Central
& Eastern Europe (CEE) increased in
2022 due to high prices when it comes
to energy, inputs a series of prompt
interest rate hikes, the highest inflation
in decades and the uncertainty
related to the war in Ukraine. Eight
countries experienced a higher
number of insolvencies (Bulgaria,
Croatia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania,
Poland, Romania and Serbia), and
four countries recorded a decrease
(Czech Republic, Estonia, Slovakia and
Slovenia). After a drop in insolvencies
in 2020, proceedings increased in 2021
and accelerated in 2022 according to
new data from Coface.
Shooting star
ARROW Global Group has appointed
Gabi Cohen as Managing Director,
Nordics, Client and Product Solutions
(‘CPS’). The CPS team is responsible
for setting Arrow’s capital formation
strategy and broadening the firm’s
investors set by enabling global capital
pools to access the opportunities
presented by a growing investor
landscape. Gabi joins Arrow Global
from ICG, where she worked for
10 years as part of their business
development function, including
leading their Nordic
investor activities. She
also spent two years at
ESO Capital, as well
as various banking
roles at UBS and
HSBC.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 9

INSOLVENCY
Duly Rewarded
Insolvency practitioners’ powers
to investigate can bring rewards.
AUTHOR – Alexandra Davies
❝
Any evidence of
misconduct may lead to
director disqualification
and the office holder
has extensive powers
to require directors or
third parties to disclose
documents and provide
information as well
as challenge certain
transactions and pursue
those involved under
insolvency legislation.
❝
THE first sign that a
business is struggling
could be as simple as a
late payment or a request
for longer payment terms:
but it could also indicate
that the company is about to enter an
insolvency process.
In this situation, credit managers may
have been left with an unpaid invoice
and feel powerless to do much about it.
However, help is at hand, and seeking
advice from an insolvency practitioner
could provide an insight into what has
happened, and potentially recover some
of the money owed to them.
When a company enters an insolvency
process – either an administration or
liquidation – an insolvency practitioner
is appointed as the ‘office holder’. One of
the roles of the office holder is to carry
out an investigation into the demise of
the company and the directors’ conduct.
Whilst the outcome of the investigation
is confidential, it could lead to further
avenues of investigation which could
give rise to potential claims and a
recovery for the insolvent estate.
It is not unusual for Insolvency
Practitioners to find some evidence of
misconduct by former directors of the
insolvent business. In the aftermath of
the COVID-19 pandemic, for example,
literally hundreds of directors have
faced sanctions for ‘COVID fraud’ for
abuse of the pandemic financial support
schemes. Other examples of misconduct
include deliberate attempts to ‘hide
or dispose of assets’ to avoid paying
creditors or to put certain creditors in a
better position than others.
Any evidence of misconduct may
lead to director disqualification and
the office holder has extensive powers
to require directors or third parties
to disclose documents and provide
information as well as challenge certain
transactions and pursue those involved
under insolvency legislation.
In the majority of cases, claims
are pursued through the civil courts.
There are a number of reasons for this,
including a lower burden of proof
that makes it more likely to achieve a
successful outcome. However, in certain
cases where evidence of criminal activity
is found, claims against the individual
involved can be brought through the
criminal justice system.
Office holders may be subject to time
constraints for pursuing these types
of claims. For example, the Limitation
Act 1980 sets out a time frame for
bringing claims, which usually starts
from the date the company entered
administration or liquidation. In cases
where there is evidence of fraud or
deliberate concealment, the limitation
period may be extended or removed
altogether.
When faced with a situation where a
customer is struggling to pay outstanding
invoices, it is important to be pro-active
and take prompt action to recover any
outstanding sums. It is always helpful to
seek professional advice as to the options
available.In summary, the investigations
carried out by insolvency practitioners
can bring rewards for creditors and
it can be fruitful to seek advice when
there is potential wrong-doing. In many
instances, businesses should err on the
side of taking action, rather than doing
nothing, as there is often an opportunity
to recover some of the monies owed.
If evidence of fraud or misconduct is
found, they will also be doing their bit to
bring those responsible for wrong-doing
to justice.
For more information on the areas
covered within this article, please
contact the business recovery team at
Menzies: www.menzies.co.uk/creditorservices
Alexandra Davies is a senior manager in
the business recovery team at Menzies LLP.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 10

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SECTOR FOCUS
ROOM WITH A VIEW
The demise of the hotel industry
has been somewhat overstated.
AUTHOR – Sean Feast FCICM
HOTELS, despite rumours to the contrary, are
not dying on their feet, neither has Brexit
nor the explosion of Airbnb and similar
enterprises had the catastrophic impact
that some had predicted.
And while COVID caused significant
disruption, with hotels being obliged to close and re-open as
the Government struggled to maintain control, the industry
appears to have recovered to volumes not previously seen
since 2020, and continues to make a critical contribution to
the UK’s Gross Domestic Product.
To give some idea of its size, hotels in the UK turnover
a little over £19bn every year, generating something in the
order of £3bn in profits. There are currently around 10,000
hotels listed, ranging from the small, limited bedroom
seaside boutiques to the huge, bustling five-star hotels in
our major cities. Between them all they employ around 3.5m
people, although the precise number is somewhat harder to
define.
COVID Challenges
Richard Grime has worked in the hotel industry for more
than 35 years, and for the last 16 years has been Managing
Director of the hotel chain Classic Lodges. He remembers
when COVID hit, and the chaos that ensued: “I had to call the
General Managers and tell them to phone dozens of brides
and their families to say ‘sorry’ but their weddings couldn’t
go ahead. The Government had closed us all down.”
The practical implications of closing down without warning
were substantial: “We had to tip 10,000 pints down the drain,
having first sought special dispensation from the water
authorities to do so as beer is officially classed as a chemical.
We then had to battle with the Government to get the duty
back that we had paid on every barrel.”
Hotels across the country faced similar challenges:
suppliers stopped supplying; contracts that had been in
place for years were torn up and literally not worth the paper
they were written on. While the initial action had been to
close all hotels, soon a number of them had to re-open, to
accommodate essential workers: “It seemed to take the
authorities a little while to work out if you needed to send
an essential engineer out to fix a wind turbine, for example,
because you had to give them somewhere to stay. What they
didn’t appreciate was that you can’t just turn on and turn
off the facilities in a hotel, or have the linen, the food and
the staff to serve it just there on standby, in case they were
needed.”
It was, in Richard’s words, something of a fiasco, that at
one point even required shopping at local grocery stores
and supermarkets, just to get the supplies they needed: “One
of our hotels is on an estate, and one part of the estate was
deemed Level 2, and another Level 3 – it was a farce,” he
adds.
Post-COVID changes
Now the doors have finally re-opened for good, Richard
says that consumer behaviours have undoubtedly changed.
Whereas previously all of his hotels would have taken
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 12

❝
“We had to tip 10,000 pints down the drain, having first
sought special dispensation from the water authorities to do so
as beer is officially classed as a chemical. We then had to battle
with the Government to get the duty back that we had paid on
every barrel.”
❝
considerable amounts of cash – running in the
millions – now this is down to a few hundred
thousand. Credit card receipts have risen
dramatically.
The workforce had also changed: “Because
of the closures, the industry workforce
disappeared virtually overnight, and when
it came to re-opening, many had decided to
retire, return home (for those workers from
overseas) or switch careers.”
The facts support Richard’s comments: prepandemic,
around 30% of the hotel workforce
comprised workers over 45. As lockdown
was enforced, 100,000 workers went back to
Europe, and since the end of COVID, around
500,000 have retired. This, Richard believes, is
the biggest industry challenge:
“Attracting and retaining staff will be the
biggest challenge we all face,” he explains, “but
to blame it all on Brexit is something of a red
herring. Yes, it is true that workers did return to
Europe, but since then we have had an influx of
workers from Asia and the Far East. Neither is
it true to characterise the industry as being low
paid. It isn’t.”
A numbers’ game
As a fixed cost business, the target for every
hotel is to ensure 100 percent occupancy at all
times. Some airport hotels, accommodating
pilots and cabin crew on stop overs, are
sometimes able to sell the same room twice in
a 24-hour period, though this is the exception
rather than the rule. Margins, however, are
constantly being squeezed: out of every £100
charged for a room, £38 is absorbed in payroll,
£20 goes in VAT, and up to £10 in a franchise
fee (many hotels are in fact run as a franchise).
The other significant cost is the fee paid to
Booking.com of 15 percent, which is actually 18
percent because the business is based overseas
and so the VAT cannot be reclaimed. With this,
and the costs of the management contracts,
the lease, rates, and utilities, it leaves a little
margin to be made, which is why it becomes
a numbers game, and occupancy levels are so
important.
Rising costs are a concern; by way of context,
in recent months, Richard’s energy bills have
gone up from c15p per unit to more than 100p,
and he has also had to accommodate increases
in staff pay, supplier costs, and price hikes in
food and beverage.
Potentially of similar concern is the rise
in the number of holiday homes: “Before the
pandemic, there were around 75,000 holiday
homes in the UK,” Richard continues. “Today
there are more than 250,000. Airbnb has
created a new industry, but there are still 1.5m
hotel rooms and the holiday rental space will
soon be facing a series of challenges as regards
future legislation and that will be good news
for our industry.”
Collection wins
In terms of credit and collections, Richard
believes the industry is comparatively robust.
Debtor days are important. Bad debts do, of
course, occur but tend to be the exception, since
the money for larger events such as weddings
and corporate events is often taken in advance.
Indeed, that is one area that Richard believes
may surprise some readers: “It’s extraordinary
to think that we are an unregulated industry,”
he says.
“By that I don’t mean that hotels don’t have
to have PAT tests or pass various hygiene
regulations, but when it comes to cash, the
industry holds onto other people’s money by
way of deposits. That means that like other
businesses in other sectors that take money
in advance, those deposits could be at risk if a
company goes into administration.”
In terms of the best/worst payers, the
public sector tends to be the worst offender:
“Despite the actions taken by Government to
accelerate payments, our biggest challenge is
always collecting what’s owed from the local
authorities, the NHS, and others in the public
sector,” Richard continues. “It’s not that they
don’t want to pay, or are trying to avoid it, but
more often that their processes can’t cope,” he
adds.
A brighter future
When it comes to the future, Richard is
confident that the hotel industry will stand
the test of time. It’s also one that embraces
innovation over time: “It’s funny to think that
when the first Formula 1 hotels opened and you
had to check in yourself, everyone associated
that with low cost and cheap. Today, we take it
for granted.
“It’s an industry that has been around for
more than 2,000 years and is likely to be around
2,000 years from now,” he laughs.
Whereas there are some in the media who
wish to paint a picture of an industry that is on
its knees, with low-paid, disenfranchised staff,
Richard says that is simply not his experience:
“Of course you have to work hard, and it doesn’t
suit everybody, but the rewards and the career
prospects are there.”
Richard Grime was taking part
in the CICM Think Tank.
❝
“It’s funny to
think that when
the first Formula
1 hotels opened
and you had
to check in
yourself, everyone
associated that
with low cost and
cheap. Today,
we take it for
granted.’’
❝
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 13 continues on page 14 >

SECTOR FOCUS
A RECIPE FOR SUCCESS?
Are things about to change for the better
for the UK hospitality sector?
AUTHOR – Steve Kiely
WHISPER it quietly, but the
word around the backroom
bar is that, at long
last, there may be some
genuine signs of optimism
in the hospitality sector.
After many hard years, where the industry has
been struck by repeated blows as fundamental
as the pandemic, high inflation rates, staff
shortages, and increasing trends towards social
isolation, it is possible that a corner has been
reached.
Speaking ahead of the Coronation and
Eurovision, analysis by UKHospitality found
that the month of May promised a £1bn boost for
hospitality. The King’s Coronation bank holiday
weekend alone was set to deliver an increase in
revenues of £350m to the sector.
A crucial time
The bumper month comes at a crucial time
for a sector that is contending with record
food and drink inflation and a fresh set of rail
strikes.
UKHospitality Chief Executive Kate Nicholls
says: “May has the potential to be a historic
month for the hospitality sector, which is set for
one of its busiest times in recent memory. We
know the British public turn out in their droves
for big events and we expect the Coronation and
Eurovision to be no different.
“Whether it is the traditional street party to
celebrate the King or a watch party in Liverpool
for Eurovision, hospitality will be at the centre
of both events and we anticipate this will
translate to a huge uplift in sales for the sector.”
From the depths
But, before we all dance off contentedly into
the night, we should appreciate the depths
to which the sector has sunk in recent years.
In December 2022, Mazars reported that
restaurant insolvencies were the highest in at
least four years. In total, 188 became insolvent
in December 2022, 71 percent more than in
December 2021, and the highest monthly
number since at least January 2019. This was
based on figures from the Insolvency Service.
The last quarter of 2022 was the worst on
record for restaurant closures: 504 restaurants
entered insolvency, an 11 percent rise compared
to the previous quarter. In fact, the previous
three quarters had all been the worst on record
for restaurant insolvencies, with 396, 453, and
504 respectively.
Mazars noted restaurants had been dealing
with the highest level of inflation since 1981
and a sharp slowdown in consumer spending,
❝
Whether it is the
traditional street
party to celebrate
the King or a watch
party in Liverpool
for Eurovision,
hospitality will be
at the centre of
both events and we
anticipate this will
translate to a huge
uplift in sales for the
sector.
❝
as well as strikes affecting pre-Christmas
bookings. In addition, restaurants had been hit
by shortages of labour, particularly for skilled
roles such as chefs, which push up staff costs.
Black Sheep
And, even this month, a significant blow was
felt with the news that the Black Sheep Brewery,
founded in 1991 by a member of the industry
stalwart Theakston family, had gone into
administration. This is only the most famous
example of the six brewers that fail every week
in the UK.
Looking forward
So, what can be done to turn the talk and hopes
into a sustainable future of increasing footfall
and longevity for businesses in the hospitality
sector? There are certainly issues to tackle.
The first of these is energy costs. In April,
three hospitality trade bodies – the British
Beer & Pub Association, UKHospitality, and
the British Institute of Innkeeping – wrote to
Amanda Solloway, the Minister for Energy
Consumers and Affordability, calling for urgent
Government support. They claimed that Ofgem
had investigated evidence from hundreds of
pubs and hospitality businesses, ‘showing the
unfair nature and length of contracts, skyhigh
standing charges and management fees,
and aggressive sales tactics by some energy
suppliers’, but the action taken so far had been
‘too little, and for many will be far too late’.
A spokesperson for the trade bodies said:
“Following any meaningful Government support
tailing off at the end of March, operators now
face bills between three and four times higher
than in 2021, locked into contracts that are
destroying their otherwise viable and vibrant
businesses.
“We have been engaging with Government
Ministers and officials, as well as Ofgem, for
over a year now, sharing the often-immoral
behaviour of energy suppliers, whose actions
have plunged pubs and hospitality businesses
into debt and uncertainty. Small businesses
supporting families and communities have been
left exposed to untenable costs and contracts,
threatening livelihoods the length and breadth
of the UK.”
They said that increasing energy costs far
outweighed any benefit from the Chancellor’s
decision to increase the draught duty rate
discount to 11p in this year’s Budget.
A second key issue is staffing. With vacancy
rates in the sector reaching seven percent,
more than double the national manufacturing
average, the Food and Drink Careers Passport
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 14

❝
“There are few things about
public life that stand the test
of time from one generation to
the next, and the welcoming of
a new monarch is undoubtedly
a time to reflect on this and
note how our much-loved
pubs remain at the heart of
their communities, just as
they have done for centuries.
In a critically difficult time
for our industry, one iconic
British institution is supporting
another.”
❝
has been introduced to speed up interview,
shortlisting, and induction, as well as demonstrating
jobseekers’ commitment to working in the industry.
Since the scheme was launched in May 2022, over
650 jobseekers have either started or completed
their studies, with a further 400 places still available.
More than 70 businesses have backed the scheme
with guaranteed interviews, but with demand
outweighing supply, more still needs to be done.
A third concern is licencing hours. Temporary
extensions were introduced during the pandemic,
and now the industry would like these to be made
permanent. Kate Nicholls from UKHospitality says:
“The extensions have enabled venues to generate
additional income, increase footfall in local areas
and support the growth of communities, so it should
be a no-brainer to make them permanent. It would
be a backwards step to return to previous licensing
arrangements.”
Time to reflect
So there is plenty of work to be done, but for the first
time in a long time there is also sense of optimism
for the future.
As Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the
British Beer and Pub Association concludes: “There
are few things about public life that stand the test
of time from one generation to the next, and the
welcoming of a new monarch is undoubtedly a time
to reflect on this and note how our much-loved
pubs remain at the heart of their communities, just
as they have done for centuries. In a critically
difficult time for our industry, one iconic British
institution is supporting another.” I am sure that we
can all drink to that!
Steve Kiely is a freelance business writer.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 15
continues on page 16 >

SECTOR FOCUS
FUNDING ON TAP
Invoice Finance is helping
two brewing businesses grow.
AUTHOR – Sean Feast FCICM
THE brewing industry can be a
challenge at the best of times.
Throw in a global pandemic,
and the strain on business and
cashflow increases significantly,
demanding different ways of
thinking.
For Todd Matteson, co-founder and Director of
the Mondo Brewing Company, it meant looking
beyond ‘traditional’ lending or an overdraft to
a cashflow funding tool that is better suited to
his needs. And now, thanks to the support of a
tailored Invoice Finance facility from Optimum
Finance, Mondo has not only weathered the
recent storm, but is also expanding steadily,
launching new craft beers, opening new tap
rooms, and forging new partnerships that are
taking it to an exciting future.
Todd discovered a passion for brewing and
began experimenting with his first brews while
employed in advertising sales in New York
and working part-time in a Manhattan-based
brewery. When his wife moved to the UK for
work, Todd followed. Working full-time on
nightshifts in an East End brewing company,
Todd met his future business partner, Tom
Palmer: “We bonded over a love of American
brews, and eventually decided to launch our
own business – inventing the world of beer
through our own, distinct lens.”
Capital intensive
Todd well understood the risk; brewing is a
capital-intensive industry, not only at the start,
but also the ongoing costs of raw materials
needed to maintain levels of production. It’s a
business model that in many ways doesn’t make
sense. Then in 2020 came the global pandemic:
Todd Matteson
❝
Navigating
the industry
through a tricky
macroeconomic and
trading environment
was a tall task, with
the business being
highly reliant on
energy and raw
materials to create
our product, it
was a testing time
for us all.
❝
“Navigating the industry through a tricky
macroeconomic and trading environment was
a tall task,” he admits. “With the business being
highly reliant on energy and raw materials to
create our product, it was a testing time for us
all.”
Although Todd took full advantage of
Government support by way of Furlough and
COVID-related loans, he also began exploring
Invoice Finance: “My first experience wasn’t
so good as we did not have control of our sale
ledger,” he explains. “and our customers didn’t
like it. Some are on non-standard terms and
that led to confusion, but the real issue was not
having a direct line with our own accounting
team.
“With Optimum Finance, however, it is
different. They not only advance us the cash
but leave us to collect payments from our
customers which is better for all concerned. It
gives us much greater flexibility and control in
our transactions with customers, suppliers and
distributors.”
Cashflow funding
Invoice Finance is a method of cashflow
funding that uses receivables (invoices) as the
principal asset against which money can be
raised. Optimum Finance pays Mondo an agreed
percentage of the invoice value as soon as it
is submitted, driving access to liquidity at the
point of invoice as opposed to needing to wait.
In this case, Mondo retains the management
of its sales ledger: “Mondo is crucially centred
around the customer experience and Optimum
Finance gives us the freedom and control
to chase late payments, rather than leaving
it to somebody our customer doesn’t know,”
The team at North Brewing Company
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 16

Todd continues. “Optimum advances 85
percent of the invoice value, with access
to up to £250,000 at any one time, and this
is a tremendous benefit in paying our own
suppliers and giving us greater flexibility
in our purchasing decisions.”
Mondo buys hundreds of kilograms
of hops and many tons of malt weekly,
along with the chemicals necessary to
the brewing process. It creates something
in the order of 45,000 litres of craft beers
every month to a total of approximately
5,000 hectolitres a year. Its beers can not
only be found in London, but also across
mainland Europe, Scandinavia, Australia,
and the East Coast of America.
With the pandemic now behind them,
business volumes have recovered. London
people, Todd knows, like to go out,
and any impact was always going to be
temporary. Mondo’s performance in 2022
was 60 percent up on the previous year,
and with a supportive finance provider in
place, Todd is excited about the future.
“We have plans to open a number of
additional tap rooms around London,”
Todd continues, “to add to the partnership
we’ve had in place since 2015 with
London’s Dishoom Indian Restaurant to
supply their beers. We’re also partnering
with Joe Public pizzas in Clapham and
most recently opened a food stand in
Borough Market to offer Mondo beer and
pizza so there is plenty on the horizon.”
The end goal is for Mondo to open a
bigger retail unit in the coming years,
and with Optimum Finance’s continued
support, anything is possible.
Northern powerhouse
Mondo is not the only brewing business
on a fast trajectory of growth. Leeds based
brewer and bar chain, North Brewing Co,
recently received a £375,0000 Confidential
Invoicing Discounting (CID) package from
Bibby Financial Services (BFS) to help it
strengthen cashflow and fuel national
and international expansion.
The business started its life as North
Bar on New Briggate high street, which
was founded in 1997 by John Gyngell and
Christian Townsley. After opening several
more bars, the pair’s passion for great
beer led them to found North Brewing Co
in 2015, brewing their own range of local
craft beers which continues to expand.
North now operates 10 bars across
Yorkshire, Birmingham and Manchester
and produces around 20 thousand
hectolitres of beer every year which is
sold into supermarkets, restaurants, and
bars all over the world.
As the business continues to grow and
supply an ever-increasing number of
domestic and international customers,
the new funding line from BFS will allow
North’s co-founders to manage cashflow,
so they can focus on planning ahead and
growing the business.
To facilitate the transaction, the
business was introduced to BFS’s
commercial team by Conor Smyth at TFS
Finance Ltd, an independent commercial
finance brokerage focused on the SME
market. BFS was chosen, according
to Smyth, due to its speed, agility and
understanding of the business’s needs.
Community support
John Gyngell, Director and Co-founder
of North Brewing Co, says he is proud of
where his business is today: “It is in large
part thanks to our great staff and a lot of
love from our customers and community,”
he explains.
“But, as a business owner, cashflow
❝
The mid-sized brewery has
also been expanding its
footprint, with beers now
stocked in leading supermarkets
and restaurants across the UK,
and sold abroad, including in
markets such as Japan, China
and Australia.
❝
is a daily concern, especially over the
past 12 months. It’s been a really tough
year for the brewing industry, due to a
combination of challenges, such as the
rising cost of grain, energy, shipping,
and the impact of Brexit on international
business operations.”
“In order to grow the business, we need
to be able to focus on the future, rather
than just respond to the day to day. We
really appreciated BFS’s commitment to
understanding our business, and quickly
coming back to us with a solution.
BFS’s funding and support gives us the
breathing space to concentrate on what
we’re best at, plan ahead for business
growth over the next few years and have
more time to enjoy the day job.”
North has been growing its business
and operations over the past few years.
In 2020, the business signed a lease for
a larger, 21,000 sq ft former Victorian
Tannery in Springwell, Leeds, which
they converted into a modern brewery,
taproom and workspace during the
pandemic – and which now serves as the
business’s HQ.
The mid-sized brewery has also been
expanding its footprint, with beers now
stocked in leading supermarkets and
restaurants across the UK, and sold
abroad, including in markets such as
Japan, China and Australia. Within the
past year, North has opened its first two
bars outside of Yorkshire, in Birmingham
and Manchester, and has launched its
own beer festival, Springwell Sessions at
its brewery site – with the second iteration
due to take place at the end of April 2023.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 17

DATA & INSIGHTS
Calculated Risks
Trade data is a powerful weapon to have in your arsenal.
AUTHOR – Tim Vine
THE term ‘cashflow
problems’ is an everpopular
search on Google.
Unfortunately, this comes
as no surprise. Businesses
are battling a plethora
of economic challenges and global
disruption, and in Dun & Bradstreet’s
new Data Driven Resilience report, data
shows that energy prices (43 percent),
overall increasing cost of doing business
(37 percent) and weakening consumer
demand (25 percent) were the top three
biggest threats that businesses will face
this year.
Even with potential economic green
shoots such as inflation now beginning
to slowly ease, businesses are still likely
to feel financial strain. What’s more, one
business cannot control the financial
circumstances or preparedness of
another.
And although a business may appear
financially strong, if its main customer,
for instance, collapses and fails to pay,
this can have a dire impact. The same
applies if a main supplier collapses,
which can have a knock-on effect on a
business.
With so many external factors
influencing a business’ future out of its
control, businesses need to focus on the
factors they can influence to get ahead.
Embracing multiple sources of data
Insolvencies in the UK have hit an all-time
high according to UK Government figures.
Elsewhere, data from Barclays found that
three in five (58 percent) small or medium
enterprises across the UK are currently
waiting on late payments. The stakes are
high, meaning businesses need to truly
understand their ecosystem.
It’s here where data can drive critical
smart decisions that build resilience
against the many external factors
businesses face today.
Using both internal and external data
sources empowers businesses to make
informed credit decisions. Combining
data, including financial data, credit
reports, news and media coverage,
industry benchmarks, along with other
sources of information, such as social
media and online reviews is what creates
the bigger picture. And businesses already
feel that data is supporting their financial
decisions. Dun & Bradstreet’s recent
report found that 79 percent of business
leaders cite data as essential for the
business’s financial planning. A similar
proportion (80 percent) of business
leaders also feel that having accurate data
is what enables their business to make
agile decisions in response to changing
market conditions. Recognising potential
malfeasance and fraud (17 percent) and
using data to understand disruption in
their ecosystem (15 percent), however, is
a lot less common.
But if businesses can learn to bring
trade data into the equation, then these
figures might look very different.
A predictive asset
For businesses wanting to ensure
resilience, trade data is the ingredient
that allows them to analyse, and thus act
with integrity on the creditworthiness
of a potential customer, partner or
even supplier. Looking to the variety of
information that trade credit has to offer,
such as payment history, trade references
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 18

❝
Data from Barclays found that three in five (58 percent)
small or medium enterprises across the UK are currently waiting on
late payments. The stakes are high, meaning businesses need to truly
understand their ecosystem. – Tim Vine, Dun & Bradstreet.
❝
and public records, businesses can assess
their financial health, which in turn
determines the risk profile of another
company.
Trade data is one of the most predictive
datasets as it reveals if a business is
paying on time, now and in the recent
past, compared to financial statements
that are over 18 months old when filed.
Even better, it’s unbiased when sourced
as the data is part of an independent
trade data collection program, rather
than asking for three trade references.
In turn, trade data is what can inform
substantiated, smart credit decisions.
Businesses, however, are struggling to
tap into the value that data has to offer.
Almost a third (32 percent) of leaders
report finding it challenging to realise the
full potential of their data and 23 percent
are uncertain about how to extract
maximum value from their business
data. Not being able to effectively use
the data can lead to blind spots in your
knowledge of the organisation which will
hamper decision-making ability.
Data can’t be used in isolation
Blind spots can come in multiple forms.
When businesses want to accurately
assess the level of risk associated with
their trading partners, even if they gather
information from multiple sources, there
may still be difficulties or obstacles they
must overcome.
A company’s financial liabilities may
not be publicly visible, such as debts
owed to private lenders or undisclosed
financial obligations. Then there
are insider threats, such as fraud or
embezzlement, which may not be
apparent through external data sources.
Operational and geopolitical risks can
slip through the gaps and supply chain
disruptions or product quality issues may
not be reflected in the data. And political
instability, natural disasters, reputational
risks and other external factors can have
a significant impact on a company's
ability to operate yet may not be present
in the data.
That’s why when using trade data and
other sources of data, it is important that
a business combines multiple sources of
information to get the entire picture.
Regularity matters too. Businesses
should look to stay on top of, and
regularly monitor the credit profiles,
risk profile, due diligence of their
customers and partners to stay informed
of any changes that could impact their
creditworthiness or financial stability.
By staying up-to-date on trade data and
other relevant information, businesses
can establish clear communication
channels to address any concerns as they
arise.
That said, data is just data unless you
can derive insight from it. For decisions
to happen, businesses need to look at past
performance to predict future behaviour.
And this is where analytics makes data
truly actionable.
Volume, variety and velocity
Although businesses can seek out
analytics to ensure they have a firm
hold on the risks surrounding them, it
still doesn’t change that businesses are
struggling to initially manage and extract
value from their data. In fact, Dun &
Bradstreet’s report also shows that 80
percent of organisations are currently
struggling to manage the volume, variety
and velocity of their data.
Digital transformation has strengthened
the offerings of so many businesses,
but the ‘more and faster’ culture we
live in means that organisations have
seen immense growth in the amount of
data collected. Collecting, processing
and then applying vast and increasing
amounts of data in a timely and meaningful
way is certainly a challenge to the
majority of businesses. Coupled with that
the fact that, in many cases, the manual
data management processes organisations
historically deployed are becoming
increasingly outdated.
This isn’t a problem that can just
be patched up and data shouldn’t be
an afterthought. Implementing a new
Customer Relationship Management or
Enterprise Resource Planning system can
drive huge commercial and operational
benefit, but only if the data flowing
through it is properly managed.
This is a big job to tackle alone. It
requires better data processes, the right
skill set and collaboration. Part of this
means business should look beyond their
own ecosystem.
Businesses today do not exist in
isolation and are part of a wide-reaching
ecosystem that can offer support
and guidance, as well as expertise,
data and tools to help all businesses
simultaneously excel. When a business
forms trusted partnerships that prioritise
the sharing and utilisation of data, it can
have a significant impact not only on the
resilience of the business but also on its
potential for future growth. To enable
data to be a positive driving force for
commercial decision-making, data must
be cared for with the right processes for
sourcing, managing, maintaining and
actioning the data.
Tim Vine is the Head of International
Finance & Risk Solutions at Dun &
Bradstreet.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 19

OPINION
Rescued by AI
Artificial Intelligence is guiding finance teams
to success despite economic uncertainty.
AUTHOR – Karim Ben Jafar
AS the Bank of England continues
to warn of a ‘very challenging’
economic outlook, it’s vital
that organisations realise the
importance of a resilient, thriving
finance function in weathering
this storm. This is where Artificial Intelligence (AI)
can come to the rescue. Far beyond the headlinegrabbing
abilities of ChatGPT and other tools,
AI that enables maximised efficiency, reduced
costs and long-term financial stability will help
enterprises succeed despite the current economic
turmoil.
No need for alarm!
Whilst adopting AI may seem like it’s going to cost
jobs, there’s no need to panic. Much of the fear
around removing the need for human employees
is unwarranted, even if clickbait articles often
suggest otherwise.
Recent news has actually shown a real need for
human talent alongside AI tools. Google’s Bard AI
bot cost the company $100 billion in share value
after a mistake it made was used and amplified
in a Twitter promotion. Google’s ultimate fix
was having human employees rewrite all Bard’s
responses. There’s also the example of ScaleFactor
which claimed its AI technology negated the need
for a human finance team. But that was proven
wrong, after the glitch-prone tool couldn’t reliably
sort transactions and needed a human accounting
team to do most of the work behind the scenes.
Finance, and accounts payable in particular,
requires the human aspect to operate successfully.
Instead of replacing talent, AI will instead give
staff the time and freedom to focus on more
rewarding tasks.
Saving time and money
One area AI will have the biggest impact in accounts
payable is data entry, where the margin for human
error is huge. Mistakes in AP can cause a business’s
projected spending to be wildly inaccurate and
adversely affect supplier relationships. This can’t
be tolerated during the current economic climate.
Gartner research shows that on average data
entry errors can cost small businesses roughly 30
percent of an employee’s overall time to fix – or,
for an organisation with a 40-strong accounting
team, 25,000 person-hours a year. Regular errors
or missing information can soon add up as it
can take hours, sometimes days, to locate and
sort mistakes. This causes serious issues. First,
companies won’t have an accurate picture of their
finances, leading to badly informed decision
making. Second, late and inaccurate payments
can damage the business’s reputation and lead to
❝
Mistakes in
AP can cause a
business’s projected
spending to be
wildly inaccurate
and adversely
affect supplier
relationships. This
can’t be tolerated
during the current
economic climate.
❝
late payment fees, less favourable payment terms,
and the risk of legal action.
As an enterprise grows there’s an ever-increasing
number of invoices that need processing – further
compounding the issues above. More invoices
mean more time spent processing and a greater
chance of human error. That’s worrying, given a
recent survey found that finance teams already
spend around a quarter of their working week
handling this chore.
Automated AI can save organisations all this
trouble. Not only will it save time and money, but
more importantly reputation and sleepless nights.
For instance, by automatically recording invoice
details, keeping track of payment deadlines, and
moving invoices along the payment process, supplier
relationships won’t be impacted by incorrect
or late payments.
With their time freed up, employees can focus
their energies on activities that help generate
profit, such as seeking discounts and rewards for
early payment, or ensuring that all payment terms
are fully complied with. Similarly, they could
concentrate on strategically planning payments,
so suppliers aren’t paid earlier than needed and
the business maintains a stable cashflow.
Eliminating threats
Another aspect AI helps to tackle is fraud. If there’s
one thing organisations can’t have during this
economic uncertainty and reduced revenues, it’s
the risk of losing even more money.
Statistics from Barclays show that invoice fraud
accounted for over half of all money lost by SMEs
in the first quarter of last year, with an average
loss of £2,100. That means fraud prevention is
another vital priority finance teams should have
when it comes to the accounts payable process –
especially given the frequency of fraud tends to
rise in periods of economic turmoil.
Regardless of recession fears, it’s essential that
AI is harnessed to lessen the risk of fraud. Simply
by helping automatically detect any duplicate
or doctored invoices, and extra charges with no
apparent source, AI will help ensure all payments
are genuine.
Let AI aid you
AI makes it possible to lessen some of the burden on
finance teams and help organisations proactively
focus on planning beyond economic downturns.
Quite literally, AI will be the difference between
winners and losers in 2023.
Karim Ben Jafar is the Senior Vice President,
Financial Automation Growth Centre of Excellence
at Quadient Finance.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 20

❝
One area AI will have the
biggest impact in accounts
payable is data entry, where
the margin for human
error is huge.
❝
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 21

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Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 22
Rated as Excellent

HIGH COURT ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS ASSOCIATION
Prevent Strategy
How best practice can help prevent enforcement fraud.
AUTHOR – Alan J. Smith FCICM
SADLY, fraudsters can and will
prey on anyone – in particular
those they deem vulnerable – in
order to get access to personal
information and banking details.
In the most common instances
of fraud relating to the enforcement world,
scammers will contact individuals or
businesses claiming to be a High Court
Enforcement Officer (HCEO), Certificated
Enforcement Agent (CEA) or HMCTS County
Court bailiff chasing debt from a County
Court or High Court judgment. While this
usually takes the form of a phone call, text
message or email, it’s not unheard of for
some of the more brash fraudsters to make a
visit to a home or premises.
More often than not, this will involve a
demand for the immediate transfer of funds
into their bank account, asking for banking
details to facilitate payment.
Unfortunately, these scams are becoming
more sophisticated and can be very
convincing, especially if they already have a
name and address.
How to detect enforcement fraud
While it is an impossible task for us to wipe
out fraud completely, knowing what to expect
from an Enforcement Agent and remaining
vigilant when contacted is the most effective
way to protect yourself and others from
fraudulent activity.
HCEOs abide by strict regulations and
the HCEOA’s Code of Best Practice, which
sets out the levels of professionalism
and responsibility that the Association
expects from HCEOs and their appointed
Enforcement Agents.
Our Code of Best Practice outlines,
among other things, how an HCEO, or any
Enforcement Agent acting on behalf of the
HCEO, is expected to behave. These include
requirements that HCEOs, or their agents:
• Produce relevant identification on request
• Act within the law
• Respect confidentiality
• Do not exaggerate the powers they have
• Are professional, calm, dignified and
appropriately dressed
• Are firm but fair
• Do not discriminate.
Supporting debtors
We also give out advice to debtors and the
general public on how they should respond if
they receive a call from someone claiming to
be a HCEO and feel it is suspicious, covering
the points below:
• If you owe a debt, you would have received
contact from the creditor (or their collections
team), as well as the County and/or High Court
before a HCEO will contact you. If you are
unaware of the debt in question you can ask
the HCEO for copies of the judgment and Writ
of Control which they should be able to produce
easily. They should clearly be able to quote the
court action number, the date of judgment and
the court that sealed the writ.
• HCEOs will always carry identification, and
they must show it to you if you ask for it. This
should show their name and the enforcement
business they work for. You can use the ‘find a
member’ section of the HCEOA’s website to verify
the HCEO in question and find details of the
business they work for and contact them directly.
• If you receive a visit from a HCEO or enforcement
agent, you should have received seven clear days’
notice (not including Sundays or bank holidays)
that they intend to visit your property and take
control of your goods. If someone claiming to
be a HCEO visits you without this notice, then
they are going against the Taking Control of
Goods Regulations 2013 and the visit is likely
not genuine.
• HCEOAs may try to call you if they have your
contact details to discuss payment, however
they will never ask for your bank details over
the phone. Most enforcement businesses have
invested considerably into customer service tools
such as online payment portals which you can
access using their respective websites.
• Fraudsters can be well informed and very
convincing. If you think someone has contacted
you pretending to be an Enforcement Agent you
should report this to your local police station,
and/or the National Fraud and Cyber Crime
Reporting Centre on their website, or by calling
0300 123 2040.
It’s an ongoing battle, and one we’re
committed to playing our part in fighting
alongside the police and fraud prevention
experts.
Alan J. Smith FCICM is Chairman
of the High Court Enforcement Officers
Association (HCEOA).
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 23

CICM TRAINING
Training courses that offer high-quality approaches
to credit-related topics and practical skills
Now, more than ever, the Credit Management and Collections industry
is seeing drastic changes and impacts that affect the day-to-day roles of
Credit and Collections teams.
CICM Training offers high-quality approaches to credit-related topics.
Granting you the practical skills and necessary tools to use in your
workplace and the ever-changing industry. A highly qualified trainer, with
an array of credit management experience, will grant you the knowledge,
improved results, and greater confidence you need for your teams to
succeed in the Credit Management profession.
Get trained with your
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Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 24

On-Demand | Online | Face-to-Face
METHODS OF DELIVERY
CICM Training courses can be delivered through a variety
of options, ensuring a range of opportunities for your
teams to be trained on the most up-to-date methods in
CICM On-Demand
Training
CICM Online
Training
CICM Face-to-Face
Training
On-Demand training can be viewed anytime, anywhere with our downloadable
training videos.
Online training will be for those who find it easy to learn from the space
of their home or office.
Face-to-face training It’s been a long time coming but now you can mingle and
learn together in the same room as your colleagues and peers.
TRAINING COURSES
CICM have a collection of training courses to meet the needs of your Credit and
Collections’ teams. Take a look at the courses below and start training towards
the CICM Professional Standard.
Advanced Skills in Collections • Best Practice Approach to Collections
Best Practice Skills to Assess Credit Risk • Collect that Cash • Credit Bootcamp
Effective Communication in the Credit Role • Emergency Guide to Credit
Harness your leadership Style • Know Your Customer • Managing Insolvency
Reflect and Develop • Set Targets that Work
For more details, visit our website, scan the
barcode or contact us at info@cicm.com
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 25

CONSUMER CREDIT
PERSONAL SERVICE
Using data is key for lenders to make informed
decisions and navigate a perfect storm.
AUTHOR – Craig Wilson
CONTINUED inflation, rising interest rates
and the ensuing cost-of-living crisis will
inevitably lead to increasing numbers of
customers falling into arrears. Lenders
will face the dual pressures of increasing
provisions on the balance sheet and the
rising operational expense of supporting their customers
through this period.
This tough macro-economic environment, unfortunately,
coincides with a challenging period in terms of
compliance and regulation. The introduction of Consumer
Duty in July 2023 means that lenders of all types and
sizes need to examine the way they operate and they may
need to adapt. This new and enhanced set of standards
aims to increase the quality of outcomes for customers.
Organisations must act now to protect and support all
customers, particularly those who are vulnerable – to
identify those at risk of falling into arrears and supporting
those already in arrears.
Attitudes to debt
Our recent research shows that a fifth of UK consumers
(19 percent) aren’t confident in their ability to pay all
their bills, and 30 percent fear they won’t be able to
pay an unexpected bill. These figures show a real lack
of confidence in the personal finances of a significant
proportion of the UK’s population.
When asked what they would do if they found
themselves unable to pay a bill, nearly 60 percent say they
would seek support from friends or family members,
but 15 percent would do nothing, which is extremely
worrying.
The lack of reliable and robust data throughout the
consumer lifecycle prevents many organisations from
effectively communicating with customers or making
informed decisions. They cannot form a 360-degree view
of their customers, which hampers their ability to adopt
a consumer-centric approach to identify and support ‘at
risk’ people. Over a third of consumers (36 percent) say
they never get a personalised service from their main
bank.
Leveraging data
With the impact of the cost-of-living crisis reaching
far and wide, there’s a real need to fully understand
customers and their attitudes to debt. Its particularly
critical to identify consumers who can’t repay the money
they owe lenders in order to effectively manage and
protect them.
Lenders must take the time to fully understand the
different data sources available. Making good use of
behavioural data, showing how a customer interacts with
the organisation at different touchpoints, will give lenders
insight and knowledge into how they are likely to behave
in future and will allow them to offer more personalised
services. Such insight can help lenders provide valuable
financial advice and ensure their services suit each
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 26

❝
As the cost-of-living crisis continues and Consumer Duty
increases scrutiny and pressure on the sector, creating a solid
foundation of customer-centric data and analytics will help
teams deliver compliant, personalised and supportive services
through the crisis and beyond. – Craig Wilson.
❝
customer. It’s their role to guide customers through
difficult times – educating and signposting them
to third parties if needed to ensure they receive the
appropriate amount of support.
Informed decisions
Investing in data analytics is key to ensuring the
information is properly used to build different customer
personas and segments, allowing for insight-driven
decision-making and creating personalised services.
For example, predictive modelling of customer
behaviour enables a forward-thinking and proactive
view of the customer, helping to identify who is likely
to default on a debt, and when. Using such insight will
enable lenders to create successful contact strategies.
Likewise, with a Systems Integrator, companies can
use sophisticated technologies such as Big Data, AI and
Internet of Things (IoT) to provide real-time insights
into consumer behaviour and preferences. Financial
services providers can use that insight to prevent bad
debt, reduce operational costs, and ensure customers
are cared for throughout their financial lifecycles.
Customer preferences
Debt can be a highly sensitive and embarrassing topic for
many, and debtors may not admit they are in difficulty
and need support. The type of communication people
prefer reflects those needs. Our findings show that 18
percent of consumers prefer the lender to get in touch
by post if they are falling behind in their payments for
a loan or mortgage, 15 percent by telephone, 16 percent
via a text message, 12 percent by email, and 9 percent
prefer to be contacted via a mobile app.
Banks and other lenders must adapt their
communication strategies to reflect the spread of
preferences across various channels. There is a real
need for omni-channel services within the sector to
make successful debt collections a reality. Customer
journeys need to be designed with integrated
touchpoints, offering customers the opportunity to
pay on their terms via the channels they use and are
comfortable with.
Many people choose to ignore their financial worries
rather than reach out for available support. Lenders
must be proactive in their approach. By revisiting
their existing vulnerability and customer engagement
methods, financial services providers can better
handle customers’ increasing demand for support.
As the cost-of-living crisis continues and Consumer
Duty increases scrutiny and pressure on the sector,
creating a solid foundation of customer-centric data
and analytics will help teams deliver compliant,
personalised and supportive services through the crisis
and beyond.
Craig Wilson is Managing Director of Private Sector at
Sopra Steria UK.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 27

Towering
above the
competition
At Wilson & Roe, our USP is our people. We are proud to have
the strongest leaders in the industry.
Our team of highly trained and passionate
enforcement professionals work on
behalf of law firms, businesses, lenders,
local authorities and landlords to collect
outstanding debt and regain control
of property.
We are driven by results and
client service.
Contact us today to discuss how we can
help you with:
• Enforcement of High Court & County
Court Judgments
• Residential & Commercial Evictions
• Commercial Rent Arrears Recovery
w
Wilson
eric.roe@wilsonandroe.com 0161 925 1800
Wilson & Roe | 26 Missouri Avenue, Salford, Manchester M50 2NP wilsonandroe.com
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 28

LEADING THE HIGH COURT ENFORCEMENT INDUSTRY
Wilson & Roe are one of the longest established High Court Enforcement Offices in England and Wales. We
have experienced significant growth since our inception over 20 years ago, but remain a company that is
owned by its operational directors, who firmly believe continuity is key. We are proud to uphold the same
values and commitment to our clients that have been at the heart of our business since the beginning.
A winning team
Strong leadership is at the core of every successful business. We are excited to announce we are
strengthening our senior leadership team with the appointment of Eric Roe as Managing Director.
r@wilsonandroe.com 0161 925 180
& Roe. 26 Missouri Avenue, Salford, Manchester M50 2NP
Andrew (FCICM) is our cofounder,
solicitor and High Court
Enforcement Officer, and has
been with us since inception.
Introducing: Andrew Wilson, Sarah Roscoe and Eric Roe.
Sarah Roscoe, brought on board
by co-founder Andrew Roe almost
15 years ago takes a step up from
Managing Director to Chair.
Eric Roe (MCICM), solicitor and
High Court Enforcement Officer,
who first joined the family
business at the age of 15, has been
appointed Managing Director.
Ready for the future
Sarah Roscoe commented “Exciting times are ahead at Wilson & Roe as Eric steps up. Together we are
committed to maintaining our leading position in the High Court Enforcement industry and we will continue
to work hard to deliver outstanding service and achieve market leading results for all our clients”.
eric.roe@wilsonandroe.com 0161 925 1800
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 29
Wilson & Roe. 26 Missouri Avenue, Salford, Manchester M50 2NP

IN CREDIT
Climbing the career ladder
Three people at various stages of their
careers share their journeys.
AUTHOR – Melanie York
NAVIGATING a career in any industry
can be a difficult journey. For
an industry that remains often
misunderstood, the credit industry
offers many a truly satisfying career.
It has many opportunities for those
who love business and are filled with ambition and
empathy. In a recent webinar hosted by CICM, three
credit managers told their tales of success, what and
who helped them along the way, and the advice they
would give to aspiring credit controllers of the future.
Launching your career
The youngest panellist, Sam Johnson, began the
session by describing his route into the industry from
high school to his stratospheric rise to an awardwinning
credit controller in just a few short years.
As a youngster, Sam was always keen on sports.
He studied business in sports at A level but realised
he didn’t feel university was the right path for him;
he wanted to earn and learn at the same time: “So
I thought an apprenticeship would benefit me the
most and came across one at United Utilities.”
He feels he was quite naive when he started but,
within a couple of months, was ready to learn and
motivated to achieve. Following a few months of
training, apprentices were placed with different
teams in different departments to learn more about
what was happening in other parts of the company:
“I started in September 2021, and in February 2022,
I got put on my full-time team in cash collecting, and
my team leader was a massive support,” he says. He
also sought a mentor and found a willing colleague
in human resources who worked in UU’s progress
department.
In his day-to-day role, he focused on going above
and beyond: “I do set myself targets for each week
and each month, targets which are realistic, but
something I can work towards.”
In March 2022, his cash collection for an apprentice
was extraordinary, and he was also achieving above a
regular full-time employee.
Reviewing his achievements three months later,
this mentor suggested applying for Apprentice of the
Year. “I wasn't confident about putting the application
in”, he explains, “I just thought right I've got nothing
to lose.”
He won Apprentice of the Year for the Northwest,
then National Apprentice of the Year, “which was
massive,” Sam says, and then came the CICM Rising
Star Award: “That was something for myself because
it's not an apprentice award. I was new in the
industry and had an impact within the CICM. It was
something to be proud of again.
“For any school leaver, I would say three things
lead to success; doing something you are passionate
about, setting achievable targets, and finding a
mentor to guide you.”
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 30

❝
Reaching out to people I haven't spoken to for a while and getting them to
write such lovely glowing testimonials of my time working for them was really
quite special. Becoming a Fellow makes you part of that network of likeminded
people and a nice community. – John Kane FCICM.
❝
Reaching new heights
Laura Martin by contrast, studied
business at University in 2013 and then
became a project manager for Lego
but found she wanted something more
fulfilling: “The debt collection role was
advertised, and I thought the skills I've
got are very transferable, and this is
something new; it's an industry that I'm
really not aware of, so let's just do it.”
Laura was introduced to the CICM
fairly quickly: “I wanted to sit the exams
to enhance my knowledge and skills, my
credentials, and to be a part of a likeminded
community,” she explains. “I am
very determined, and wanted to achieve
MCICM status before I was 30.”
She got there by 28.
That was a remarkable achievement for
someone with three young boys, caring
for her late father and holding down
a full-time job: “Studying became my
escape, my coping mechanism in the
chaos that was my life,” she continues.
“I scheduled my nights into hour
blocks, chose study methods I could
commit to – such as evening classes –
and that would work with the children.
I believe that if you want something
so much, nothing will hold you back. I
worked hard and found the opportunities
since fully qualifying have genuinely
been amazing.
“I feel far more confident in making
decisions, heading up projects, handling
vulnerable situations,” she adds. “I
started in collections and still love the
rewards and challenges, but now I also
head up Compliance Vulnerability,
Business Development, and Sales. That
is thanks to the skills and the knowledge
I have learned.”
She recommends the courses to
anyone trying to progress within the
industry. Even if time is short, hurdles
can be overcome: “There will always be a
different path to take or a barrier in front
of you - so break it down step by step.”
And her advice is not to rush anything:
“Sit module by module. If you really
don't feel ready for an upcoming exam or
essay submission, sit the next one; you
just want to ensure that you are going
to succeed.” That’s precious advice for
anyone, but particularly for women who,
like her, have children.
Today Laura believes the CICM is
helping to change the misconception
that credit is a man's world: “A few years
back, at a conference in Newcastle, there
were two young girls, school leavers. I
spent time with them, and one, Rihanna,
passed her exams and became an ACICM
in February. It genuinely made me so
happy to see this Asian woman, who was
so young, thriving.
Her goal to be part of a community
has also been fulfilled: “In this industry,
everyone just wants everyone to succeed;
everyone is willing to help you. The
opportunities that have come from it
have just been incredible.”
Lifetime achievements
John Kane agrees with Laura: “There's a
genuine camaraderie around people in
credit - everyone's looking out for each
other, people are falling over each other
to help with advice and share experience,”
he says.
He realises relationships were invaluable
throughout his career. Whether
starting out as a junior post boy, through
15 years working for a venture capitalist,
to becoming a CICM Fellow, John has
found advice and collaboration helped
him succeed. Early on, while delivering
and collecting mail across a concrete
business, he was drawn to the credit department
because it had the most energy
coming out of it. He was curious, asked
questions, built relationships and found
his way into credit collections.
Later when another company John
worked for was taken over by an aggressive
venture capital firm, he suddenly found
himself responsible for a £15 million
ledger, tax and accounts payable: “I
basically had to grow up overnight. I
had no manager to hide behind. So, I
just went and spoke to lots of people,
asking how does this work, got the gist of
it and put some controls in place. I was
bouncing off all the people I studied with
at the college. It was unbelievably chaotic
and hard-working.” For John, however, it
reinforces the idea that the business is
all about collaboration and relationships
and advises staying in touch with people
you meet during an apprenticeship or
college: “It's a great little community,” he
says.
After more than 30 years in the industry,
John views credit as a great career for life:
“It's an industry that will always be here
because people don't like paying the bills.
I agree with Sam, however, that it's got to
be your passion, something that's going
to get you out of bed in the morning. If
you like an environment where you’ve
got targets to hit, where you've got to
come at things from a different angle,
where you’ve got to think outside the
box, be a bit of a detective at times, and
other times a bit of a counsellor, where
you've got to use leverage or charm and
be a good communicator - if you can tick
the majority of those boxes then credit
might just be for you.”
And a career in credit will ultimately be
rewarding. The experiences you pick up
on the way make you better and bigger
and stronger. During times of economic
crisis, it can be very challenging, but John
believes they're the best times because
you have to think a bit differently and
you have to think how do we get ahead
of our competitors: “During COVID,
shipping suffered massively. The cruise
companies weren’t paying, but I found a
way.
“I could take away their excuse of
not paying because they had billions
as reserves. The shipping company I
worked for at the time got all our debt
paid. It was tens and tens of millions.
Other shipping companies didn't.”
During economic downturns, when
companies weren’t paying anyone or
only paying out 50 percent, good credit
leaders really had to think on their feet:
“I think we learned overnight we've got to
develop relationships with these people,
to have our cheque at the top of the pile.
So the times that challenge you are the
times you have to step up, but they're the
best of times.”
For John, the best of times keep
coming as he was recently awarded a
CICM Fellowship: “I'm so proud of our
professional body, but to be a Fellow, to
have your contribution to the industry
recognised is massive.”
And typically, John enjoyed the
process: “Reaching out to people I haven't
spoken to for a while and getting them to
write such lovely glowing testimonials
of my time working for them was really
quite special. Becoming a Fellow makes
you part of that network of like-minded
people and a nice community. For me, it's
all about relationships and collaboration;
that's what credit's all about.”
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 31

International Trade
Monthly round-up of the latest stories
in global trade by Andrea Kirkby.
UK homes in on CPTPP
THE Government has announced
that the UK has signed up to
join the Comprehensive and
Progressive Agreement for
Trans-Pacific Partnership
(CPTPP) – a trade body covering Asia
and the Pacific that was established
in 2018. The bloc comprises Australia,
Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia,
Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and
Vietnam and covers a market of around
500m people.
While it’s hope that joining the
CPTPP will aid UK exports by cutting
tariffs on goods such as cheese, cars,
chocolate, machinery, gin and whisky, the
Government's own estimates show being
in the bloc will only add 0.08 percent to
the UK's economy.
Together, CPTPP members account for
about 13 percent of the world's income
and the UK has become the first European
country to join.
While membership of the CPTPP is not
to be sniffed at, it should be remembered
that the UK already has free trade deals
with all of the members except Brunei
and Malaysia.
It should also be said that other
‘benefits’ of being in the bloc – in the
Government’s eyes – include UK firms not
being required to establish a local office
or be a resident to supply a service,
meaning they will be on a par with local
firms. Also, membership will give the
UK influence over how the bloc might
develop in the future and greater access
to what is forecast to be some of the
world’s fastest growing economies over
the coming decades.
The direction of travel
WOULD you trust your exports to a
crewless container ship?
The BBC recently reported on the
Yara Birkeland that’s cruising around
southern Norway. It’s thought that by
the end of the year, the number of crew
on board will be reduced from five to
two and then, if there are no problems,
after two more years the vessel's bridge
will be removed and the ship will be
crewless.
The aim is to have the Yara Birkeland
navigate by sensors, including radar
and cameras, that will feed data to an
artificial intelligence to detect and
classify waterborne obstacles. Captains
will work remotely monitoring several
ships at once.
There's interest in using autonomous
navigation in fishing, passenger ferries
and military vessels. Other firms are
active in the area. In January 2022,
Mitsubishi had a 222m car ferry selfnavigate
and dock in Japan, and in
July 2022 a large ship navigated from
Texas to South Korea, half of the time
autonomously.
So, with Tesla testing self-drive cars
– and having the odd accident or two
– would you let a computer sail your
goods around the world?
ACCORDING to a report on Reuters, the
European Union has proposed rules that
would oblige producers to offer repairs
for products for between five and 10
years after they were sold – regardless
of whether or not the legal guarantee is
still valid.
The rules, as envisaged, would apply
to fridges, vacuum cleaners, televisions,
washing machines and other goods
that are considered ‘repairable’ under
EU law. The plan is to extend the rule to
EU to demand product repairs
smartphones and tablets.
The EU is concerned that consumers
and businesses throw away goods that
could be repaired leading to waste
and lost parts that could be recovered
and reused. The problem is that some
products are not designed to be easily
repaired and it is often cheaper to buy a
new product than repair an old one.
Under the proposed rules, firms
would have to repair a defective product
without cost within the two-year legal
guarantee period if the cost of repair
is cheaper or equal to replacing the
product. Thereafter, firms must still
offer repairs, either with or without
charge.
Another proposal would force
companies to verify claims that their
products are ‘green’ or ‘eco-friendly.’
The message for UK exporters is clear.
Start designing products that last, that
can be repaired, and be honest with
eco-claims.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 32

FIGURES from the Society of Motor
Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT)
reported that UK car production rose 13.1
percent year-on-year in February – partly
as a result of higher vehicle exports.
The SMMT said that of the 69,707 cars
made in February, 81.2 percent were for
overseas markets; nearly 60 percent of
the exports went to the EU which is still
THE Government announced mid-April that
it has signed its fourth trade deal with a US
state, via a memorandum of understanding
(MoU). This signing is with the mid-western
state of Oklahoma. The previous three were
Indiana, North Carolina and South Carolina.
The UK currently exports $174.4m
worth of goods to Oklahoma which the
Department for Business and Trade is
hoping will increase via this agreement.
In particular, it’s hoped that the MoU will
increase trade in green technologies such
as carbon capture, utilisation and storage.
MORE UKEF NEWS
– ON SOUTH KOREA
UK Export Finance has appointed
its first International Export Finance
Executive (IEFE) for South Korea.
It’s hoped that the IEFE ‘will help to
facilitate trade links between the two
countries, with £4bn of financing on
offer.’
The funding is on offer to buyers,
provided they source 20 percent from
the UK.
The IEFE will provide a dedicated, onthe-ground
specialist within the British
Embassy in Seoul, working closely with
major UK Government departments to
showcase the expertise, capability and
profile of UK businesses.’
South Korea is currently the UK’s 18th
largest export market, with £10.2bn of
exports sold to the country in the four
quarters to the end of Q2 2022.
UK car exports up
the biggest market for UK-made vehicles.
Other destinations included Japan,
Australia and Turkey and to a diminishing
level, China and the US.
These positive results follow as a result
of an easing of supply chain shortages –
especially semi-conductors – which
have impacted the sector for nearly two
years.
UK signs fourth US state-level trade pact
A separate Mutual Recognition
Agreement between UK and US architect
regulators, signed at the same time, should
make it easier for UK architects to work
in certain states by reducing testing
requirements and shortening the time it
takes to get a license. A similar agreement
recently signed between UK and Australian
and New Zealand architect bodies is due to
come into force on 25 May.
The Government is currently negotiating
similar MoU trade deals with Texas, Utah
and California.
DISSOLUTION OF
TRADE COMMITTEE
THE Institute of Export & International
Trade (IOE&IT) has expressed concern
about the dissolution of the International
Trade Committee, with trade issues to be
scrutinised via the reformulated Business
and Trade Committee instead.
The move follows the merger of the
Department for International Trade
and Department for Business, Energy
and Industrial Strategy into the new
Department for Business Trade, that took
place in the last cabinet reshuffle.
Marco Forgione, Director General of the
IOE&IT, is bothered that the “merger of the
two committees marks a downgrading for
the parliamentary profile of international
trade as well as watering down the
scrutiny of trade policy.” He refers to “the
lack of parliamentary scrutiny of the
Australia and New Zealand trade deals.”
UK exports fall in February
DATA from the Office for National
Statistics covering February 2023, but
released in April, shows that the value of
goods exported by the UK fell.
It appears that exports to the EU were
down by £1bn (6.2 percent), with £900m
of this fall due to decreased crude oil
exports to the Netherlands and France.
Also, exports of machinery and transport
equipment fell by £100m in February,
with non-EU exports down slightly by
£100m (0.7 percent).
The Office for Budget Responsibility
expects the weakness in the UK’s overall
trade to continue for the next two years,
with export volumes forecast to fall by
6.6 percent in 2023 and by 0.3 percent in
2024.
New EU entry system
delayed until 2024
THE EU’s entry/exit system (EES),
planned for November this year, has been
pushed back until 2024 at the earliest
according to reports. It appears that the
change is due to an issue with a database
on which the EES was reliant.
An official announcement is expected
later this year, in June, with the latest
deadline expected to be after the Paris
Olympics in 2024. The regime was
supposed to come into effect in 2022
originally; the latest delay means a fourth
launch date for EES.
The accompanying Electronic Travel
Information and Authorisation System
(ETIAS) is also expected to be delayed.
This would have seen travellers charged
a flat €7 fee for non-EU members to enter
the EU.
The EES seeks to remove the timeconsuming
need to stamp passports,
instead relying on biometric data, while
ETIAS was meant to electronically track
entrants into the Schengen area.
Both systems were built to reduce time
spent at the border. However, there were
also concerns over fraudulent websites
and worries that delays at borders could
harm tourism.
CURRENCY UK
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by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
HIGH LOW TREND
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This data was taken on 17th May and refers to the month
previous to/leading up to 16th May 2023.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 33

COUNTRY FOCUS
Finland is much
more than the land
of a thousand
lakes.
AUTHOR – Adam Bernstein
Crossing the Finnish line
FINLAND doesn’t appear on the radar
of many. Sure, it’s become more
prominent since the invasion of
Ukraine as anti-war Russians fleeing
Vladimir Putin sought safe haven. The
same prominence is also true after
Finland’s new membership of NATO, a move which
gave President Putin precisely what he didn’t want
– the west and NATO on his doorstep.
But what else is Finland known for?
In answer, there’s the Northern Lights that are a
function of Finland’s high latitude; half of the area
known as Lapland that sees countless families at
Christmas time want time with (a) Santa; plenty of
wildlife along with some particularly impressive
scenery – it’s not known as the ‘land of a thousand
lakes’ for nothing - there are, apparently, nearly
60,000 of them; and Finlandia, a well-known brand
of vodka. But as we’ll discover, Finland has plenty
to offer British exporters.
Finland defined
A Nordic country located west of Russia, Finland is
also bordered by Norway to the north and Sweden
to the west. It has a landmass of around 338,455 sq.
km and is ranked 65th in the world. In comparison,
the UK has an area of 242,495 sq.km and is placed
78th in the tables.
With a pre-history going back to around 9000 BC,
the story of Finland can be described by three eras.
Under Sweden until 1809, under Russia between
1809 and 1917, and independent since 1917.
Looking at the first, up to the mid-12th century,
the area of present-day Finland was tussled over
by Sweden and what was to become the founder
of Russia, Novgorod, with the former eventually
dominating. The east ultimately went to Novgorod
and the rest to Sweden as a group of provinces.
Sweden then extended its control around the Baltic
and managed to push the Finnish border further
east.
Uniform Swedish rule was extended to Finland
in the 17th century. However, the end of the
Finnish War of 1808-1809 saw the area ceded to
Russia to form the Grand Duchy of Finland –
the first time it became an autonomous entity.
A national movement subsequently grew based
on local traditions and with its own army from
1878, the Finnish parliament took advantage of
the first Russian Revolution in 1905 to reform the
country into a unicameral parliamentary system
❝
The Ministry of
Agriculture and
Forestry of Finland,
in a June 2022
document, says that
forests cover more
than 75 percent
of the country
and that 20.3m
hectares of land
are available for
wood production in
Finland.
❝
with universal suffrage. December 1917 saw the
parliament declare independence, albeit one that
led to a brief civil war. Finland fully declared itself
a republic in 1919 and by 1935 had officially tied its
future to Scandinavia.
Come World War Two, Finland fought the
Soviet Union twice – the Winter War to defend its
independence, and again – allied with Germany
– in the Continuation War to recover lost land.
However, it didn’t achieve its goal and had to cede
a large part of Karelia and other areas to the Soviet
Union.
Post war, Finland claimed to be neutral but was
caught between east and west and followed policies
that sought to avoid conflict with the Soviet Union.
With the collapse of the Soviet Union, Finland
turned westwards.
The people
Worldbank data (2021 estimate) reckons that
Finland has a population of 5.54m. Given its
area this makes Finland the third most sparsely
populated country in Europe after Iceland and
Norway.
85 percent of the population are urbanised and
live mostly in the southwest near the coast; the
northern interior has few occupants. 2019 data
from Statistics Finland states that 1.3m people live
around Helsinki. 341,696 live around Tampere,
277,677 around Turku, 205,137 around Oulu,
128,911 around Jyväskylä and 119,469 around
Lahti.
There are 25 other urban areas with more than
20,000 inhabitants, 18 more with greater than
10,000, and 50 further areas with a population over
5,000.
Finland is, according to the CIA World Factbook,
very homogenous with 91.5 percent of the
population having a Finnish background. 2021
estimates are that 86.5 percent speak Finnish,
5.2 percent Swedish, 1.6 percent Russian, and 6.7
percent ‘other’.
The country has a typical age structure albeit
with a bias towards females over the age of 55. The
CIA estimates that in 2022 the age demographics
were thus: 16.25 percent aged 0-14 years, 60.5 percent
aged 15-64, and 23.25 aged 65 and over. This
data is backed by more from Statista which suggests,
for 2021, figures of 15.65, 61.4 and 15.65 percent
respectively. As for education, various sources
suggest that Finland’s education system is to be envied.
Back in 2011, Smithsonian Magazine asked,
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 34

COUNTRY FOCUS
AUTHOR – Adam Bernstein
‘why are Finland’s schools successful?’ and
commented that ‘the country’s achievements
in education have other nations,
especially the United States, doing their
homework.’ It reported that ‘many schools
are small enough so that teachers know
every student. If one method fails, teachers
consult with colleagues to try something
else.’ The story continues with comment
from the World Economic Forum in
2018. It wrote that Finland, ‘a country rich
in intellectual and educational reform
has initiated over the years a number of
novel and simple changes that have completely
revolutionised their educational
system.’
Infofinland.fi under The Finnish education
system has plenty of detail on the
education system in the country for those
wanting to understand more on the subject.
Business
Finland’s economy, according to Statista,
has been stable but hasn’t experienced
huge or radical growth. Back in 2001 GDP
(in current euro prices) sat at €145bn. It
rose to €194bn in 2008 but was affected by
the 2007-8 financial crisis and slipped to
€182bn. In 2011 it stood at €198bn and has
steadily risen to €251bn in 2021.
Statista also notes that in 2021 exports
were a combined €68.76bn. Of this
€13.02bn came from forestry industry
products, €12.66bn from chemical
industry products, €11.43bn from metal
and metal products, €8.94bn from
machinery and equipment, €7.71bn from
electric and electronic products, and
€15.01bn from everything else. Exports
were sent, in order of importance, to
Germany, Sweden, the US, Netherlands,
China and Russia (the latter will no doubt
be removed from the latest dataset when
published).
On the matter of imports, the data
states that Finland imported goods to
the value of €72.71bn in 2021 of which
€13.19bn came from chemical industry
products, €10.38 from electric and
electronics products, €8.03bn products
from mining and quarrying, €7.96bn
from transport equipment, €6.48bn from
machinery and equipment, and €26.67bn
under the heading of ‘other’. Main trading
partners were, in order of priority,
Germany, Sweden, Russia, China and the
Netherlands.
MAIN ECONOMIC SECTORS
Like nations elsewhere, Finland has
sought to focus on a number of key
sectors, all of which have had a significant
impact on its economy.
Technology
The technology industry in Finland is one
of the country’s most important economic
drivers and it has seen dramatic changes
over the years. It is one of the world’s
most volatile areas of business, and it
is this volatility that has attributed to
Finland’s aggressiveness in the design and
production of various electronics.
The US Trade Department considers
Finland to be ‘the world’s telecommunications
test laboratory’ as many technologies
deployed around the world start in
the country. The Government incentivises
and funds research; it’s previously
prepared a digital infrastructure strategy
that has the goal of turning Finland into
the world leader in communications networks
by 2025.
It’s also believed that 76 percent of the
population has basic or above basic digital
skills; and a 67 percent 5G readiness. In
2019 there were 77,000 employees in the
telecoms sector that generated a revenue
of $16.5bn.
Cybersecurity is, not unsurprisingly,
important. Finnish industry association,
AlliedICT, estimates it to have been
worth €1bn in 2019 and growing each
year. It helps that the National Cyber
Security Centre Finland (NCSC-FI) uses a
certification process for its cybersecurity
label.
And then there’s AI which the US Trade
Department reckons will be worth €24bn
this year (2023) or 8 percent of GDP. Again,
this is partly incentivised and funded by
the Government. Indeed, the country has
a national AI strategy.
Overall, Bradford Jacobs, a business
expansion consultancy, thinks that the
Finnish technology industry contributes
around 50 percent of total exports, offers
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com /June 2023 / PAGE 35
some 317,000 people direct employment
(670,000 if indirect employment is
included), 65 percent of private sector
R&D investment, and 28 percent of total
GDP.
Motor and shipping
Finland differs from other automobile
manufacturing countries such as Germany
and Japan in that the focus is on industrial
machinery. Its motor industry is predominantly
composed of manufacturers
of forest machines, tractors, trucks, military
vehicles, and buses. Finland is also
well-known for having a solid shipbuilding
industry. Some of the world’s largest
and highly reputed cruise ships have been
built in Finland. Meriteollisuus Finnish
Marine Industries reports that, as of 2020,
there were 1,100 companies and 10 shipyards
that employ 25,000 people generating
around €7.7bn in revenue.
Similar to the growth of the electronics
industry, Finland’s motor industry (and
particularly shipbuilding) has seen
significant growth thanks to heavy
investment in R&D. Government support
also accounts for much of the growth.
Bradford Jacobs cites Valmet and Wartsila
as two of the most notable companies
in this industry. Wartsila alone holds
a 47 percent market share and is the
producer of the largest diesel engines
in the world. Autoalan Tiedotuskeskus
offers figures for 2018 that indicate that
the total turnover of the automotive sector
in 2018 was around €21.3bn comprising
car sales, manufacturing of vehicles and
parts, rental and leasing, and inspection.
The whole sector employs around 50,000.
Altogether, Bradford Jacobs thinks that
the manufacturing industry employs
about 400,000 workers.
Forestry
On forestry, Bradford Jacobs states that at
the moment it is responsible for around
a fifth of Finland’s exports. The Ministry
of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland, in
a June 2022 document, says that forests
cover more than 75 percent of the country
and that 20.3m hectares of land are
available for wood production in Finland.
Importantly, most is held privately and the
stock is growing each year by around 103m
cubic metres. The Government maintains
a number of strategies that cover the
sector – from forestry to bioeconomy and
climate change.
Despite the reduction in forest product
exports, pulp and paper still remain a
key industry with more than 50 sites
countrywide. Additionally, some of the
largest international corporations in
continues on page 22 continues on page 36 >

COUNTRY FOCUS
AUTHOR – Adam Bernstein
Finland
the business of pulp and paper are headquartered
in Finland. UPM and Stora Enso are examples
of such corporations. CEPI.org, in Key Statistics
2020, reckoned that Finland produces 28.6 percent
of European pulp or some 10.35m tonnes. The
ministry reckons that in 2021, production was
worth over €18bn and accounts for about 17
percent of export revenue. The forestry industry
is responsible for about 15 percent of jobs in
Finland.
Energy
Finland does not have its own fossil fuels – coal, oil,
or natural gas – but it does have rich reserves of peat
and extensive wood resources. The Government’s
objective is to make Finland carbon-neutral by 2035
and carbon-negative soon after that. It should be
said that, as the US Trade Department comments,
‘both energy production and usage in Finland are
efficient. Energy-intensive industries have long
played a large role in the Finnish economy, and this
has spurred the development of efficiency-driven
energy systems.’
Traditionally, Finland has been a massive importer
of energy due to its lack of indigenous fossil fuels.
However, this is changing as the country turns to
nuclear energy – and especially as it has sought to
reduce and remove its reliance on Russia for energy.
2021 figures show that of 376.6 TWh consumed,
29.7 percent came from wood, 19.1 percent from
oil, 18.2 percent from nuclear, 6.2 percent from
coal, 5.4 percent from natural gas, 2.7 percent from
peat and 6.3 percent from hydro and wind. Another
4.7 percent is imported and 7.7 percent is classed
as ‘other’.
Finland has five nuclear reactors at two plants
on the Baltic. The Government, according to the
US Trade Department thinks that Small Modular
Reactors (SMRs) are potential options for developing
clean energy production in the future.
On renewables, a National Energy and Climate
Strategy for 2030 seeks to increase its use to more
than 50 percent of capacity during the 2020s.
Given its biodiversity, wood-based fuels along with
hydropower, wind power, solar and ground heat are
all on the agenda. In recent years, energy derived
from wood fuels has accounted for around 25
percent of Finland’s total energy consumption.
And with regard to wind, construction is gathering
pace and at the end of 2021, there were 962 installed
wind turbine generators.
Mining
Bradford Jacobs states that mining in Finland has
been transformed in recent years. The discovery
of copper and nickel ores in the early part of the
20th century developed the industry with much
prospecting and exploration. While exploration has
practically ceased, Finland is still a major exporter
of copper, nickel, zinc, chromium, and steel. There
is also the export of finished products including
steel pipes, roofing materials, and cladding. Mining
Finland’s Mining Industry Statistics of Finland 2020
details that there are 45 mines in the country that
earn around €2bn in revenue a year. They employ
some 5,500 people directly and 24,600 indirectly, all
producing and processing 48.5m tonnes of ore.
Tourism
According to the Ministry of Economic Affairs
and Employment, tourism is a significant part
of the Finnish economy. Pre-pandemic it was
worth around 2.7 percent of GDP. That dropped
by 1 percent in 2020. Again, pre-pandemic,
tourism generated €16.3bn in revenue in 2019 of
which €5.3bn was from overseas visitors. Those
numbers dipped but are recovering. Some 154,000
people worked in tourism-related industries in
2019 - 5.8 percent of all employment in Finland.
The Government recognises that tourism has
significant multiplier effects on other sectors, such
as construction, transport, and commerce.
TAXATION CORPORATE
Resident companies are taxed on their worldwide
income. Permanent establishments of non-resident
firms are taxed on income attributable to the
establishment. The tax rate is set at 20 percent.
There are numerous social security contributions
that employers are liable for including employers’
health insurance, employers’ pension insurance,
employers’ unemployment insurance, group life
insurance premiums, and accident insurance
premiums.
VAT
The standard VAT rate is 24 percent with a reduced
rate of 14 percent applied to food and animal feed,
and restaurant and catering services. A reduced
VAT rate of 10 percent applies to certain goods and
services such as books, newspapers and magazines,
accommodation, and passenger transport. There’s
a zero rate for certain instances such as intra-community
supplies of goods and exports of goods, and
certain services – for example, financial services,
insurance services, and certain educational services
– are exempted from VAT.
Personal
PwC details that Finland taxes residents on their
worldwide income and that earned income is taxed
at progressive tax rates for national tax purposes
and at a flat tax rate for municipal (and church and
social security) tax purposes.
There are five bands. The rates for 2023 are
12.64 percent for income up to €19,900; 19 percent
on €19,900 to €29,700; 30.25 percent on €29,700 to
€49,000; 34 percent on €49,000 to €85,800; and 44
percent on income above €85,800.
Summary
It should be apparent to any observer that Finland,
like other countries in the region has much to offer
and similarly, isn’t too far away for distance to be an
obstacle. All that is needed is a good product and
service, effort spent in making contacts and some
gumption. At the time of writing £1 equated to €1.13
(27 April).
Adam Bernstein is a freelance finance writer.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 36

COUNTRY FOCUS
AUTHOR – Adam Bernstein
Finland is a Northern European nation
bordering Sweden, Norway and Russia. Its capital,
Helsinki, occupies a peninsula and surrounding
islands in the Baltic Sea. Helsinki is home to
the 18th-century sea fortress Suomenlinna,
the fashionable Design District and diverse
museums. The Northern Lights can be seen from
the country's Arctic Lapland province, a vast
wilderness with national parks and ski resorts
Business Area Mines conducts exploration,
mining and milling operations in Finland. Its
main products are zinc and copper concentrate,
with some lead, gold and silver content. The
goods produced are sold both to the Group's own
smelters and to external customers.
Helsinki, Finland’s southern capital,
sits on a peninsula in the Gulf of Finland.
Its central avenue, Mannerheimintie,
is flanked by institutions including
the National Museum, tracing Finnish
history from the Stone Age to the
present. Also on Mannerheimintie are
the imposing Parliament House and
Kiasma, a contemporary art museum.
Ornate red-brick Uspenski Cathedral
overlooks a harbor.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 37

ANNUAL
GENERAL MEETING
The ninth Annual General Meeting of the
Chartered Institute of Credit Management
will be held on Thursday, 22 June 2023 at The
British Psychological Society, 30 Tabernacle
Street, London, EC2A 4UE at 13:00 (or at the
rising of the Advisory Council from its preceding
meeting, whichever is later).
If you plan to attend, please advise via email to
governance@cicm.com as soon as you are able,
and no later than 13:00 on Wednesday, 21 June
2023.
By order of the Executive Board
Sue Chapple FCICM
Chief Executive
To read the Notice, visit:
http://www.cicm.com/about-cicm/governance/
The CICM Benevolent Fund
is here to support members
of the CICM in times of need.
Some examples of how CICM have helped our members are:
• Financed the purchase of a mobility scooter for a disabled
member.
• Helped finance the studies of the daughter of a member who
became unexpectedly ill.
• Financed the purchase of computer equipment to assist an
unemployed member set up a business.
• Contributed towards the purchase of an orthopaedic bed for one
member whose condition was thereby greatly eased.
• Helped with payment for a drug, not available on the NHS, for
medical treatment of another member.
If you or any dependants are in need or in distress, please apply today – we are here to
help. (Your application will then be reviewed by the CICM Benevolent Fund committee
and you will be advised of their decision as quickly as possible)
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 38

WORKING LIFE
SOFT POWER
Why soft skills are your superpower
throughout a career in credit.
AUTHOR – Natascha Whitehead
WHILST technical skills are
important to succeed in
the finance sector, soft
skills are a crucial tool
you can use to enhance
your entire career. Especially
with the rapid developments we are witnessing
in technology, namely artificial intelligence
(AI), developing the skills that we can
thrive in as humans is more crucial than ever.
I spoke to Kiera Howes and Nicole Carroll,
both credit controllers at Hays studying for
CICM qualifications, to hear their first-hand
experiences when it comes to starting a career
in credit today, and the skills they need under
their belt. Although there are a vast number of
soft skills that can be utilised to facilitate success
as a credit controller, the three key examples
that stand out are excellent communication
skills, managing your time effectively and the
ability to solve problems.
Communication
Being able to communicate effectively is
essential in credit control, Kiera states: “There
is so much emphasis on having to explain things
to people to solve issues, to show empathy and
to build a rapport with our colleagues, as well
as our clients.”
The ability to interact well with people
underpins success throughout a career in credit,
as it can improve efficiency and productivity,
and helps build a positive reputation for the
organisation.
Whether that be face-to-face, over the phone,
or on an email, professionals must ensure
they interact in a clear and concise way; plan
what you’ll say beforehand and be confident
about the purpose of each interaction, to avoid
confusion and misinterpretation, which can be
critical when dealing with credit. It’s also useful
to have a focused outcome in mind and stick to
the main point, to help you stay on track.
To an extent, all interactions are different,
so it’s crucial to have the skills to gauge the
situation and determine which communication
approach is appropriate. Ultimately, sharp
communication skills make a person more
employable, approachable, able to navigate
different scenarios, and likely to build strong
working relationships that enhance job
satisfaction and success.
Time-management
Exceptional time-management skills have the
power to transform your day-to-day professional
life and your career in the long term. Nicole
describes some of the benefits she found since
developing this particular skill: “By learning
how to manage my workload effectively in my
role, I am always on top of my follow-ups with
my clients and I know exactly when to chase so
that I don’t miss things anymore.”
Being organised in terms of deciding which
tasks are a priority and how to plan your day
or week based on this allows you to feel more
in control, keep calm under pressure and not
become overwhelmed. Regularly check your
sales ledger to keep up-to-date and stay on top
of payments.
If you have a personal work timetable that is
realistic, you can focus on completing the task
in front of you accurately and with confidence,
rather than having multiple responsibilities on
your mind and a lack of clarity about when to
face them.
Problem-solving
As a credit controller, you will inevitably come
across obstacles and developing the skills to
overcome them is imperative. For example,
you may need to recognise any issues with
payments or invoices and act accordingly to
achieve the best results.
Utilising analytical thinking to become aware
of the problems that could arise is another
invaluable skill, to enable you to make wellinformed
decisions and come up with solutions.
As Nicole describes: “You are effectively
managing accounts, making sure they don’t
go over their credit limit and double checking
that everything is allocated correctly; it is so
much more than just chasing when invoices are
overdue.”
These skills are not mastered overnight and
instead come with practice and self-belief; Kiera
shares her own experience with identifying
what areas she needed to improve in: “When
I first started, I was terrified of dealing with
difficult clients, but now it doesn’t faze me. I
overcame this by joining calls and listening in
for a while whilst my colleagues did the talking;
I heard what terms and phrases they used and
now they come naturally to me.”
No matter what point you are at in your credit
career, communication, time-management and
problem-solving expertise are key ingredients
for success. These soft skills, which are
transferable across a range of roles, will help
you to flourish in your current position, and
future-proof your career.
Natascha Whitehead is Business Director
at Hays specialising in Credit Management.
❝
Utilising
analytical thinking
to become aware
of the problems
that could arise is
another invaluable
skill, to enable
you to make wellinformed
decisions
and come up with
solutions.
❝
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 39

YOUNG MONEY
Working Advantage
The credit industry is teeming with
opportunity for young talent.
AUTHOR – Roshika Perera
DESPITE being a scholarly student,
with a keen interest in
maths and business, Chanelle
Coppinger believed that her
talents would be better nurtured
in the workplace rather
than further education. And so, she left school
last year, after finishing her GCSEs, to embark
on a career in finance.
It was in her search for the right job opportunity
that she was introduced to the world of
credit: “I found it quite difficult to find opportunities
within fields like accounting without the
right professional qualifications. But the credit
industry and CICM had many opportunities
to train and qualify young people like me who
were straight out of school.”
Now a Credit Control Apprentice at Winterhalter,
the provider of commercial warewashing
solutions, studying for her CICM Level 2 Apprenticeship
in Credit Control and Collection,
Chanelle is enjoying learning about the many
facets of an industry that, less than a year ago,
was completely unknown to her.
The draw of credit
Few young people are aware of the role of credit
controllers, who often operate in the background
of a business. But the more Chanelle
learnt about the industry, the more she was
drawn to it. While the financial complexities
of the job were, at first, alien to her, she was
attracted to its focus on customer relations. It
soon became clear that while analysing numbers
was a core part of the job, building strong
customer relationships were just as, if not more,
important.
“There’s a lot more customer communication
within credit management than in an area like
accounting,” she says. “And it’s a varied job – you
also have the analytical and administrative tasks
on top of building and maintaining customer
relationships. So, I thought I’d have a better
opportunity to build my own reputation within
credit control.” The support systems in place to
nurture young talent were yet another attraction
of the job. The CICM course, fully funded
by her firm, is one example of this: “The training
I’m receiving at CICM has definitely boosted
my confidence and improved my performance
at work. And I’m very lucky to have supportive
colleagues and work at a firm that are investing
in my professional development.”
The CICM Advantage
Her CICM course has been a remarkable success,
honing her skills in customer relations and
❝
“I found it quite
difficult to find
opportunities
within fields
like accounting
without the right
professional
qualifications. But
the credit industry
and CICM had
many opportunities
to train and qualify
young people like me
who were straight
out of school.”
❝
teaching her the art of building and maintaining
different stakeholder relationships within
a business, a crucial tool that helps keep cash
flowing into a business:
“One of the most important things I’ve learnt
in my credit career so far has been the importance
of stakeholder relationships. CICM has
taught me certain skills such as query resolution
to help foster those relationships, but it has also
been a character-building experience – it has
taught me the importance of being proactive
and looking for solutions, rather than giving up
in difficult situations.”
Beyond arming her with extensive knowledge
in credit, CICM has introduced Chanelle to a
community of credit managers that have been a
much-needed support system at the start of her
career:
“My tutor has significant knowledge of and
many connections within the industry that she’s
always willing to share with me. It’s also been
great to meet other credit apprentices like me
and learn about what their job entails and how
credit functions in different businesses.”
Knowing your customer
During her time at Winterhalter, Chanelle has
witnessed first-hand how credit acts as a lifeline
for businesses by sustaining cash flow: “At the
moment, most of the customers I deal with are
public sector accounts. For organisations such
as hospitals, without having terms and a credit
limit, it would cost them a fortune to pay every
invoice up front.”
And working at a company with a vast portfolio
of customers from different sectors and
different countries has taught her another invaluable
lesson: know your customer. “You need
to understand the individual needs of each customer
you’re dealing with when offering them
credit,” she says. “The way you chase the debt
will differ for each customer. For instance, the
NHS and schools usually pay through different
systems and portals in comparison to trade customers.”
As an Apprentice, she works on a rota that allows
her to gain experience in every aspect of
credit control, from collections and money allocations
to creating invoices and service reports.
Customer relations, however, has been by far
the most challenging and rewarding aspect of
her job:
“I have built good relationship with certain
customers. Whenever I see they have overdue
debt, I know that all I need to do is make a
phone call and we’re going to get paid, because
I’ve nurtured that relationship. Equally, it can be
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 40

challenging to resolve certain customer queries.
Although we have a service and sales department
that handle this for us, customers often
reach out to us directly and it’s important that
we remain involved in the process.”
❝
CICM has taught
me certain skills such
as query resolution
to help foster those
relationships, but
it has also been a
character-building
experience – it
has taught me the
importance of being
proactive and looking
for solutions, rather
than giving up in
difficult situations.
❝
Looking ahead
Having enjoyed her career in credit and her
experience with CICM thus far, she is already
planning and envisioning her future in the profession.
In addition to progressing onto a Level
3 qualification next year, she is also hoping to
build the experience and knowledge needed to
create credit accounts: “I’d like to, in the future,
specialise in creating credit accounts myself.
Currently, with the help and oversight of my
manager, I assess accounts, set credit limits,
and evaluate our trading history. But I’d like to
get to a point where I have the knowledge and
confidence to tell a new credit controller that
‘this customer comes under this classification,
this is what that means, and this is how we as
Winterhalter treat them’.”
Although working and studying for her qualifications
has been challenging, she has managed
to establish a good work-life balance and
enjoy a life outside of credit: “I’ve always been
a very organised person, so time-management
isn’t usually an issue for me. Outside of
work, one of my main passions is to travel
and explore different cultures. Cairo is currently
my dream destination – I’d love to see the pyramids.”
No regrets
Leaving the safety of school to get a head start
on her career was a risky move, one that she
has no regrets about: “I was quite academic at
school. But I knew that my talents would be put
to better use in a work environment, where I
can put my learning to the test in a real business
with real customers. You can write an answer on
paper but if you can’t put those skills into practice,
what does that mean?”
And for any young person considering a career
in credit, Chanelle has one piece of advice:
“Just go and do it,” she says. “You can research
all your options endlessly, but until you’ve tried
it, you won’t know.
“Most young people are unaware of the different
aspects that credit entails. There are so many
routes you can go down – from export credit,
or the legal side of the industry, to becoming a
bailiff – that you’re bound to find something you
enjoy. If there’s an opportunity that sounds interesting
to you, go try it,” she concludes.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 41

Introducing our
CORPORATE PARTNERS
For further information and to discuss the opportunities of entering into a
Corporate Partnership with the CICM, please contact luke.sculthorp@cicm.com
My DSO Manager is an intelligent SaaS AR and
credit management solution for SMEs to international
enterprises, helping AR analysts manage risk,
maximize cash collection and streamline the credit-tocash
cycle, by a real-time insight to KPIs.
Due to its inventive in-house IT teams and their tight
collaboration with support staff, many of whom were
credit managers at large firms, it can quickly integrate
any ERP data and customize as needed.
T: +33 (0)458003676
E: contact@mydsomanager.com
W: www.mydsomanager.com
Quadient AR by YayPay makes it easy for B2B
finance teams to stay ahead of accounts receivable
and get paid faster – from anywhere.
Integrating with your ERP, CRM, and billing
systems, YayPay presents your real-time data
through cloud-based dashboards. Automation
improves productivity by 3X and accelerates
collections by up to 34 percent. Predictive analytics
provide insight into payor behavior and an online
portal enables customers to access their accounts
and pay at any time.
T: +44 (0)7465 423 538
E: marketing@yaypay.com
W: www.quadient.com/en-gb/ar-automation
Esker’s Accounts Receivable (AR) solution removes
the all-too-common obstacles preventing today’s
businesses from collecting receivables in a
timely manner. From credit management to cash
allocation, Esker automates each step of the orderto-cash
cycle. Esker’s automated AR system helps
companies modernise without replacing their
core billing and collections processes. By simply
automating what should be automated, customers
get the post-sale experience they deserve and your
team gets the tools they need.
T: +44 (0)1332 548176
E: sam.townsend@esker.co.uk
W: www.esker.co.uk
Reduce or eliminate manual tasks, allowing AR
teams to focus on actions that drive results, and
strengthen decision intelligence to deliver significant
value to the organisation. Cash Application / Credit
& Risk Management / Collections Management /
Disputes and Deductions Management / Team & Task
Management and AR Intelligence.
Optimise working capital by driving world-class
order-to-cash processes and leveraging decision
intelligence to drive better business outcomes.
To learn more visit www.blackline.com/solutions/
accounts-receivable-automation/
T: +44(0) 203 318 5941
E: sales@blackline.com
W: www.blackline.com
Our Creditor Services team can advise on the best
way for you to protect your position when one of
your debtors enters, or is approaching, insolvency
proceedings. Our services include assisting with
retention of title claims, providing representation at
creditor meetings, forensic investigations, raising
finance, financial restructuring and removing the
administrative burden – this includes completing
and lodging claim forms, monitoring dividend
prospects and analysing all Insolvency Reports and
correspondence.
T: +44 (0)2073 875 868 - London
T: +44 (0)2920 495 444 - Cardiff
W: menzies.co.uk/creditor-services
ContactEngine is a proactive customer engagement
platform which connects organizations to its
customers through AI powered digital conversations.
ContactEngine enables collections treatment
automation using conversational AI, dynamic
engagement strategies, and easy-to-trigger payment
transactions that help organisations collect debt
faster. ContactEngine anticipates the need to interact
with customers and fully automates personalized,
multichannel, multi-day conversations to achieve
specific milestones and trigger next steps.
E: info@contactengine.com
W: www.contactengine.com
American Express® is a globally recognised
provider of business payment solutions, providing
flexible capabilities to help companies drive
growth. These solutions support buyers and
suppliers across the supply chain with working
capital and cashflow.
By creating an additional lever to help support
supplier/client relationships American Express is
proud to be an innovator in the business payments
space.
T: +44 (0)1273 696933
W: www.americanexpress.com
Tinubu Square is a trusted source of trade credit
intelligence for credit insurers and for corporate
customers. The company’s B2B Credit Risk
Intelligence solutions include the Tinubu Risk
Management Center, a cloud-based SaaS platform;
the Tinubu Credit Intelligence service and the
Tinubu Risk Analyst advisory service. Over 250
companies rely on Tinubu Square to protect their
greatest assets: customer receivables.
T: +44 (0)207 469 2577 /
E: uksales@tinubu.com
W: www.tinubu.com.
Building on our mature and hugely successful
product and world class support service, we are
re-imagining our risk awareness module in 2019 to
allow for hugely flexible automated worklists and
advanced visibility of areas of risk. Alongside full
integration with all credit scoring agencies (e.g.
Creditsafe), this makes Credica a single port-of-call
for analysis and automation. Impressive results
and ROI are inevitable for our customers that also
have an active input into our product development
and evolution.
T: 01235 856400
E: info@credica.co.uk
W: www.credica.co.uk
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 42

Each of our Corporate Partners is carefully selected for
their commitment to the profession, best practice in the
Credit Industry and the quality of services they provide.
We are delighted to showcase them here.
They're waiting to talk to you...
Hays Credit Management is a national specialist
division dedicated exclusively to the recruitment of
credit management and receivables professionals,
at all levels, in the public and private sectors. As
the CICM’s only Premium Corporate Partner, we
are best placed to help all clients’ and candidates’
recruitment needs as well providing guidance on
CV writing, career advice, salary bench-marking,
marketing of vacancies, advertising and campaign
led recruitment, competency-based interviewing,
career and recruitment trends.
T: 07834 260029
E: karen.young@hays.com
W: www.hays.co.uk/creditcontrol
Court Enforcement Services is the market
leading and fastest growing High Court Enforcement
company. Since forming in 2014, we have managed
over 100,000 High Court Writs and recovered more
than £187 million for our clients, all debt fairly
collected. We help lawyers and creditors across all
sectors to recover unpaid CCJ’s sooner rather than
later. We achieve 39 percent early engagement
resulting in market-leading recovery rates. Our
multi-award-winning technology provides real-time
reporting 24/7.
T: +44 (0)1992 367 092
E: a.whitehurst@courtenforcementservices.co.uk
W: www.courtenforcementservices.co.uk
Shoosmiths’ highly experienced team will work
closely with credit teams to recover commercial
debts as quickly and cost effectively as possible.
We have an in depth knowledge of all areas of debt
recovery, including:
• Pre-litigation services to effect early recovery and
keep costs down • Litigation service • Insolvency
• Post-litigation services including enforcement
As a client of Shoosmiths, you will find us quick to
relate to your goals, and adept at advising you on the
most effective way of achieving them.
T: 03700 86 3000
E: paula.swain@shoosmiths.co.uk
W: www.shoosmiths.co.uk
Forums International has been running Credit and
Industry Forums since 1991 covering a range of
industry sectors and international trading. Attendance
is for credit professionals of all levels. Our forums
are not just meetings but communities which
aim to prepare our members for the challenges
ahead. Attending for the first time is free for you to
gauge the benefits and meet the members and we
only have pre-approved Partners, so you will never
intentionally be sold to.
T: +44 (0)1246 555055
E: info@forumsinternational.co.uk
W: www.forumsinternational.co.uk
HighRadius provides a cloud-based Integrated
Receivable Platform, powered by machine learning
and AI. Our Technology empowers enterprise
organisations to reduce cycle time in the order-tocash
process and increase working capital availability
by automating receivables and payments processes
across credit, electronic billing and payment
processing, cash application, deductions, and
collections.
T: +44 (0) 203 997 9400
E: infoemea@highradius.com
W: www.highradius.com
FIS GETPAID solution is a fully integrated, webbased
order-to cash (O2C) solution that helps
companies improve operational efficiencies, lower
DSO, and increase cash flow. The solution suite
includes strategic risk-based collections, artificial
intelligence, process automation, credit risk
management, deduction and dispute resolution and
cash application. FIS is a global leader in financial
services technology, providing software, services
and outsourcing of the technology that empowers
the financial world.
T: +447730500085
E: getinfo@fisglobal.com.
W: www.fisglobal.com
Key IVR provide a suite of products to assist companies
across Europe with credit management. The
service gives the end-user the means to make a
payment when and how they choose. Key IVR also
provides a state-of-the-art outbound platform
delivering automated messages by voice and SMS.
In a credit management environment, these services
are used to cost-effectively contact debtors and
connect them back into a contact centre or
automated payment line.
T: +44 (0) 1302 513 000
E: sales@keyivr.com
W: www.keyivr.com
The UK’s No1 Insolvency Score, available as a
platform to help businesses manage risk and
achieve growth. The only independently owned
UK credit referencing agency for businesses. We
have modernised the way companies consume
data, to power businesses decisions with the most
important data taken in real-time feeds, ensuring
our customers are always the first to know. Enabling
them to deliver best in class sales, credit risk
management and compliance.
T: +44 (0)330 460 9877
E: sales@redflagalert.com
W: www.redflagalert.com
Our Corporate Partnerships
give organisations a unique
opportunity to work with us and
demonstrate their commitment
to professionalism and best
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We have combined a number of
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membership of over 7,000 credit
professionals, decision-makers
and key industry figures.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 43

BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE
FUTURE
creditorservices@menzies.co.uk
menzies.co.uk/creditor-services
WHAT’S ON
YOUR AGENDA
FOR 2023?
The most successful
and progressive
leaders are
embracing ESG or
Environmental, Social
and Governance
principles throughout
their businesses, but
how are they going
about this and is it
having a positive
effect on their overall
performance?
This was the theme for the latest
Brighter Thinking Roundtable,
hosted jointly by Menzies LLP and
the Chartered Institute of Credit
Management (CICM) in London.
Senior-level executives from ten
organisations attended the event
to share their experiences of
signing up to an ESG agenda and
the difference it has made to their
businesses.
Driven in part by changes affecting
tender requirements for public
sector contracts and corporate
reporting, ESG has become a
priority for Boards across the
UK, regardless of the size of
their organisations. Even though
many of the auditing requirements
related to ESG performance
currently apply only to larger
companies, the ‘trickle-down’ effect
is such that small and mediumsized
businesses realise that
demonstrating a commitment to
ESG will be critical to their longterm
success.
EMBRACING THE ESG
AGENDA
Whilst the business case for ESG
compliance has strengthened
significantly in recent years,
business leaders agree that a
‘tick-box’ approach to delivering
changes is unlikely to bring lasting
benefits. The push to embrace ESG
is more likely to prove beneficial
if it comes from a genuine desire
to make a positive difference to
the world and to connect with
customers and employees in a
more meaningful way.
Nikki Walker, CEO of Quality
Compliance Systems (QCS) Ltd,
said:
“For us, ESG is core to who we
are and a real business driver.
Our inclusive culture enables us to
maximise the diversity within QCS
to connect with our customers.
We have benefited massively
just by making ESG part of our
conversation with customers and
employees. One of the measurable
benefits has been a decreasing
attrition rate.”
Richard Singleton, Finance
Director and Head of ESG at
Menzies LLP, is responsible for
rolling out the firm’s ESG strategy
and developing a new service
line for clients. Whilst this work
began before the pandemic, it has
accelerated significantly in recent
years. Describing the firm’s ESG
journey, he said:
“As you might expect from a firm
of accountants, we started out by
looking at areas such as carbon
accounting. We calculated our own
carbon footprint and put in place a
plan to reduce energy consumption
and where possible, switch to
renewables. As a relatively low
energy user, we set a target to
achieve net zero emissions by
2027 and we are making good
progress.
“Whilst focusing on the
environment was our starting point,
more recently we have recognised
how important social value delivery
has become to stakeholders
internally and externally. Existing
employees and candidates have
high expectations in this area. They
want to know that their employer
or prospective employer is doing
the right thing – from its approach
to diversity and inclusion, to staff
remuneration, benefits and training,
and they are not afraid to ask
questions.
At a time when many
businesses are facing staff
shortages and competing for
talent, we recognised that
ESG was an opportunity to
differentiate our business
and wanted to support our
clients in achieving the same.
Richard Singleton,
Menzies LLP
Larger companies have tended
to lead the agenda on ESG,
sometimes initially focused on
the corporate agenda due to the
questions raised by investors, who
want to know they are investing
in responsible, sustainable
businesses.
Karen Young, Director of
Accountancy & Finance at Hays
UK&I, part of Hays PLC – a firm
that employs over 10,000 people
- described how looking after the
environment, whilst supporting
communities and charities, is ‘part
of the DNA’ of the Hays business.

She said: “Doing the right thing
is not a new concept. Charity
partnerships are a longstanding
focus at Hays; one of the first
things I was asked to do when I
joined the business as a trainee
over 25 years ago was to run the
London Marathon to raise funds
for the Hays’ corporate charity that
year, which was Macmillan Cancer
Support, a cause close to my heart.
This initiative of building strong
charity fundraising partnerships has
continued to this day.
“However, Hays now has a global
programme called ‘Helping for your
tomorrow’ that is about us using our
core skills and expertise to help lift
the employability of those who may
not have the same opportunities
as others. The programme focuses
on both fundraising and corporate
volunteering into local communities.
We have a clear key strategic
priority around social value in our
UK&I business and our activity is
communicated regularly across the
organisation and externally too.
“One workstream is the
development of a strategic
collaboration with the charity,
EveryYouth, which sets out to
help disadvantaged young people
succeed in life – homelessness
being perhaps the most striking
indicator of disadvantage. Project
Flourish is dedicated to the
improving the social mobility of
some of the most disadvantaged
young people in the UK, through
an employability programme. The
initiative is designed to help young
people gain employment and, just
as importantly, develop and flourish
once in their new role.”
Karen also emphasised the
importance of strong leadership.
She said:
A couple of years ago, one of
our Executive Board addressed
a meeting and asked us ‘Is the
world a better place because
Hays is in it? If not, we need to
do better’. We took inspiration
from this and haven’t looked
back.
APPOINTING AN ESG
LEADER
For most small and medium-sized
businesses, and some larger ones,
it may not be possible to recruit a
dedicated ESG leader. Boards are
more likely to appoint someone
within the business to take on
the role. Finance teams are the
obvious place to look due to their
focus on managing and reporting
business data, which is a natural fit
for carbon footprint assessments
and setting performancelinked
targets. Sometimes a
representative from the HR team
is pulled in to provide a ‘people
perspective’ and to support the
cascade of information internally.
However, there is no hard and fast
rule and other businesses might
choose to appoint the head of
investor relations or sales director
as their new ESG leader.
For some businesses, the nature
of their activities can be difficult
to reconcile with a socially
responsible agenda. For example,
ESG:
HOW WILL IT MAKE A
DIFFERENCE TO MY BUSINESS?
If you’d like to understand more about the benefits for your business,
the planet and ultimately your bottom line, please contact Richard
Singleton, or view more information on our website.
debt collection can be perceived
as having a negative impact on
society, but some businesses are
trying to change this by adopting an
ESG-led approach.
David Sheridan, Operations
Director at ARC (Europe) Ltd, a
consumer-focused debt collection
agency based in Walton-on-
Thames, explained:
“Employee wellbeing and mental
health awareness is an important
area for us. Some of our customers
have mental health problems, so
our employees are trained to deal
with this in an empathetic way,
providing signposting to health
services and other support where
needed.
“Alongside our Employee
Assistance Programme, we have
dedicated St John’s ambulance
mental health first aiders within our
business to provide our teams with
the training and support to deal
with challenging conversations with
customers who are really struggling
with serious mental health issues.
In an industry with a high attrition
rate, we also recognise that
handling challenging calls can
affect employee wellbeing. We take
this seriously by really listening to
what they want and ensuring that
our pay and benefits packages are
aligned.”
Rebecca Williams, Coface’s Head
of Direct Products UK & Ireland,
echoed the importance of focusing
on real needs, saying:
“When implementing ESG
strategies, as employers we
must take care not to overlook
the basics: this is when it could
become a tick-box exercise. We
should start by really making sure
we know what our stakeholders
need from us and develop work
streams that make a tangible
difference.”
RICHARD SINGLETON
FINANCE & SUSTAINABILITY DIRECTOR
rsingleton@menzies.co.uk
+44 (0)1483 881792
www.menzies.co.uk/ESG
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 45
Finding the right ideas that will
engage employees and sit well
with customers can be a challenge
for employers, particularly when
budgets are tight and teams are

stretched due to worker shortages.
Nevertheless, business leaders
had plenty of ideas to share.
Menzies LLP hosts ‘Make a
Difference Week’ in July each year,
offering a menu of fund-raising and
community engagement activities
for employees to get involved in,
some close to local offices and
others on a national scale. Hays
is partnering with an organisation
called Neighbourly this summer to
deliver a volunteering programme
to people in local communities
called ‘Hays gets Neighbourly’.
Richard Singleton added: “Some
of the best feedback we have had
from employees was around Earth
Day (22 April, 2023), when we gave
each employee a voucher to buy a
plant. They felt good about working
for Menzies and caring for the plant
reminded them of the importance
of nurturing the environment. Some
employees said the initiative had
a positive effect on their families
too, as their children were able to
help with the planting and watch it
grow.”
Greening up supply chains is a
problem area for some businesses,
and it can be time consuming
initially. Putting in place processes
to help the business make
greener choices will lead to better
decisions in the future. Running
‘blind testing’ workshops to get
employee feedback on proposed
switches for pens, paper and coffee
can increase engagement and
encourage individuals to offer their
own ideas.
For small and medium-sized
businesses, embarking on an
ESG journey can be daunting and
knowing where to start is important.
Understanding stakeholders’ needs
is critical, but if employers get it
right there can be tangible business
benefits – from increased employee
and customer engagement through
to reduced attrition rates and a
better-motivated, more productive
workforce.
Summing up the main message
from the roundtable, Sue Chapple,
Chief Executive of the Chartered
Institute of Credit Management
(CICM), said:
“For those that are wondering
whether now is the right time
to embark on an ESG journey,
or take it to the next level, the
question should not be ‘do we
want to do this?’ but ‘when shall
we start?’”
This report is based on a
roundtable event for employers
and credit management
professionals, chaired by
the CICM and hosted by
accountancy firm, Menzies
LLP.
Menzies LLP’s Creditor
Services team offers
complimentary support and
advice to credit managers
and businesses of all sizes,
across industry sectors. Where
possible, the firm’s experts
provide practical solutions for
improving cash management
and operational resilience and
early engagement is key to
improving outcomes.
For further information on
our complimentary creditor
services offering, please get in
touch.
BETHAN EVANS
PARTNER
bevans@menzies.co.uk
+44 (0)29 2044 7512
OUR SERVICES TO CREDITORS: MAXIMISE YOUR RECOVERIES
The Menzies Creditor Services team can advise on the best way for you to protect your
position when one of your debtors enters, or is approaching, insolvency proceedings.
Utilising our extensive experience and expert insights, we work in collaboration with you,
drawing upon our industry and insolvency sector knowledge, to improve your financial
outcome.
Our award winning team can help you to remove the administrative burden and can assist with
the following:
Reviewing and analysing all Insolvency
Reports and correspondence
Fully explaining the process, your
rights and likely outcomes in user
friendly terms
Completing and lodging your claim
forms and proxy forms
Representing you at Creditor
Meetings and on Creditors’
Committees
Assisting you with any Retention of
Title Claims
Monitoring dividend prospects
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 46
creditorservices@menzies.co.uk
menzies.co.uk/creditor-services

PAYMENT TRENDS
SWINGS AND
ROUNDABOUTS
More late payment ups and downs across the board.
THE latest late payment
figures for the UK and
Ireland show a mix of
some good and some not so
good performances across
regions and sectors. The
average Days Beyond Terms (DBT) across
regions and sectors reduced by 1.6 days
and 0.4 days respectively. In Ireland, the
average DBT figures across regions and
sectors increased by 1.1 days and 4.6 days
respectively. Average DBT across the four
Irish provinces rose by 3.1 days.
SECTOR SPOTLIGHT
For the second consecutive month, the
UK sector figures are a 50:50 split, with
11 sectors getting better and 11 getting
worse. Among those going backwards
was the Real Estate sector, which saw
the biggest slide, with an increase of
7.7 days to its DBT. A rise of 6.4 days for
the International Bodies sector takes
its overall DBT to 15.5 days, and it also
hurtles down the standings. While
Mining and Quarrying remains the worst
performing sector, it did make the biggest
improvement, reducing its DBT by a much
needed 14.6 days. The Entertainment
sector is also on the up and moves into
top spot with a reduction of 6.7 days
taking its overall DBT to 6.2 days.
In Ireland, while eight sectors made
improvements to late payments, and one
saw no change at all, 11 sectors are moving
in the wrong direction, and some at real
pace. The Wholesale and Retail trade;
Repair of Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles
sector saw a huge increase of 40.0 days,
taking its overall DBT to 57.1 days. There
were also significant increases for the
Transportation and Storage (+30.1 days),
Mining and Quarrying (+21.7 days),
Entertainment (+19.7 days) and Financial
and Insurance (+18.6 days) sectors. At
the other end of the scale, a number
of sectors made significant cuts to late
payments. The Energy Supply sector
made the biggest leap, reducing its DBT
by 26.0 days, and taking its overall DBT
to zero days. Meanwhile, the Hospitality
(-17.2 days), Manufacturing (-14 days)
and Water & Waste (-12.1 days) sectors
also made positive strides in the right
direction.
REGIONAL SPOTLIGHT
The UK regional standings are mostly
positive, with eight of the 11 regions
making reductions to DBT. East Anglia
saw the biggest improvement, with a drop
of 6.7 days taking its overall DBT to 11.4
days. Northern Ireland remains at the
bottom of the table but is moving in the
right direction thanks to a reduction of
4.7 days to its DBT, meanwhile a reduction
of 2.8 days means that Yorkshire and
Humberside is now the best performing
region with an overall DBT of 9.7 days.
Of those going backwards, Wales saw the
biggest increase (+3.0 days), taking its
overall DBT to 13.3 days.
Over in Ireland, the outlook is more
mixed, with 10 regions on the up, three
seeing no change and 13 regions on the
slide. Looking at the positives, although
Westmeath remains the worst performing
region with an overall DBT of 62.1 days,
it did make the biggest improvement,
reducing its DBT by 25.8 days. Kildare is
also moving forward thanks to a reduction
of 18.4 days to its DBT. Louth saw the
biggest increase to its DBT, and moves
towards the bottom of the standings, with
a jump of 29.3 days taking its overall DBT
to 42.3 days.
It’s one-way traffic across the Irish
provinces, with all four going backwards
with increases to late payments. Despite
a rise of 1.0 day to its DBT, Connacht
remains the best performing province
with an overall DBT of 8.5 days. Ulster saw
the biggest increase (+7.8 days) to its DBT
meaning it is now closer to the bottom of
the standings than the top.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 47

STATISTICS
Data supplied by the Creditsafe Group
Top Five Prompter Payers
Region April 23 Change from March 23
Yorkshire and Humberside 9.7 -2.8
South West 9.9 -0.6
West Midlands 11 -2.1
East Anglia 11.4 -6.4
North West 11.4 -0.2
Bottom Five Poorest Payers
Region April 23 Change from March 23
Northern Ireland 14.8 -4.7
Wales 13.3 3
London 13.1 -0.9
Scotland 12.8 -2.9
East Midlands 11.8 -0.3
Top Five Prompter Payers
Sector April 23 Change from March 23
Mining and Quarrying 15.6 -14.6
International Bodies 15.5 6.4
Other Service 15.1 2.3
IT and Comms 14.4 3.4
Business Admin & Support 14 -2.4
Bottom Five Poorest Payers
Sector April 23 Change from March 23
Mining and Quarrying 15.6 -14.6
International Bodies 15.5 6.4
Other Service 15.1 2.3
IT and Comms 14.4 3.4
Business Admin & Support 14 -2.4
Getting worse
Real Estate 7.7
International Bodies 6.4
Energy Supply 5.7
Business from Home 4.1
IT and Comms 3.4
Other Service 2.3
Wholesale and retail trade 2.2
Financial and Insurance 1.5
Hospitality 0.9
Education 0.6
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 0.1
Getting better
Mining and Quarrying -14.6
Entertainment -6.7
Manufacturing -3.8
Health & Social -3.6
Public Administration -3.6
Water & Waste -3.1
Construction -3
Professional and Scientific -3
Business Admin & Support -2.4
SCOTLAND
-2.9 DBT
Transportation and Storage -2
Dormant -1.6
NORTHERN
IRELAND
-4.7 DBT
SOUTH
WEST
-0.6 DBT
WALES
3 DBT
NORTH
WEST
-0.2 DBT
WEST
MIDLANDS
-2.1 DBT
YORKSHIRE &
HUMBERSIDE
-2.8 DBT
EAST
MIDLANDS
0.3 DBT
LONDON
-0.9 DBT
SOUTH
EAST
0.1 DBT
EAST
ANGLIA
-6.4 DBT
Region
Getting Better – Getting Worse
-6.4
-4.7
-2.9
-2.8
-2.1
-0.9
-0.6
-0.2
3
0.3
0.1
East Anglia
Northern Ireland
Scotland
Yorkshire and Humberside
West Midlands
London
South West
North West
Wales
East Midlands
South East
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 48

PAYMENT TRENDS
ULSTER
18.7 DBT
CONNACHT
8.5 DBT
Getting worse
MUNSTER
12.4 DBT
KERRY
xx DBT
LIMERICK
21.8 DBT
LONGFORD
34.9 DBT
TIPPERARY
6.6DBT
WESTMEATH
62.1 DBT
LEINSTER
25.7 DBT
LOUTH
42.3 DBT
Wholesale and retail trade 40
Transportation and Storage 30.1
Mining and Quarrying 21.7
Entertainment 19.4
Financial and Insurance 18.6
Public Administration 16.1
International Bodies 11.9
Business Admin & Support 11.6
Top Five Prompter Payers – Ireland
Region April 23 Change from March 23
Leitrim 0 -11
Meath 3 -5.5
Clare 3.3 -2.7
Galway 3.8 -4.6
Tipperary 6.6 3
Bottom Five Poorest Payers – Ireland
Region April 23 Change from March 23
Westmeath 62.1 -25.8
Louth 42.3 29.3
Wexford 35.4 -7.1
Longford 34.9 -1.7
Limerick 21.8 21.8
Top Four Prompter Payers – Northern Ireland
Region April 23 Change from March 23
Connacht 8.5 1
Munster 12.4 3.3
Ulster 18.7 7.8
Leinster 25.7 0.4
Professional and Scientific 7.7
Health & Social 5.7
Getting better
Energy Supply -26
Hospitality -17.2
Manufacturing -14
Water & Waste -12.1
Other Service -7.3
IT and Comms -7.1
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing -5.5
Real Estate -2.3
Top Five Prompter Payers – Ireland
Sector April 23 Change from March 23
Education 0 0
Energy Supply 0 -26
IT and Comms 0 -7.1
Other Service 0 -7.3
Hospitality 5 -17.2
Bottom Five Poorest Payers – Ireland
Sector April 23 Change from March 23
Wholesale and retail trade 57.1 40
Transportation and Storage 34.3 30.1
Business Admin & Support 27.7 11.6
Entertainment 26 19.4
Mining and Quarrying 21.7 21.7
It’s one-way traffic across
the Irish provinces, with
all four going backwards
with increases to late
payments. Despite a
rise of 1.0 day to its DBT,
Connacht remains the
best performing province
with an overall DBT of 8.5
days.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 49

LOOKING FOR
YOUR NEXT
CAREER MOVE?
REINSURANCE ACCOUNTING
CREDIT CONTROL MANAGER
The City of London, up to £90k
One of the world’s leading specialist insurers is searching
for a senior professional to join their team, overseeing the
credit control and cash allocation teams. You’ll demonstrate
a proven track record within credit and people management.
As a credit control specialist, you’ll take ownership of brokers
and reinsurers to ensure portfolio performance. Ref: 4397179
Contact Robert Johnson on 020 3465 0020
or robert.johnson@hays.com
REGIONAL CREDIT MANAGER
Brentwood and London, £55k-£75k DOE
This an exciting opportunity for a commercial credit manager
to join a leading distribution business. You’ll oversee an
established credit control team in partnership with regional
managers to support and influence commercial operations.
This role is office-based, and you’ll be required to either be at
the head office or onsite at one of 35 branches. You’ll be highly
organised, comfortable making decisions under pressure and
able to work autonomously and run the credit process from
start to finish as you see fit. Ref: 4341838
Contact William Plom on 01603 760141
or william.plom@hays.com
SALES LEDGER TEAM LEADER
Greenford (Onsite), £35k-£40k
The role involves creating procedures and policies while
facilitating high customer retention. You’ll monitor and
manage customer credit limits, taking appropriate action
where necessary. You’ll also be responsible for reviewing
invoices to ensure correct information and monitoring
debtor balances, supporting a reduction in debtor DSO.
FMCG experience is highly desirable. Ref: 4398641
Contact Emily Thompson on 0333 010 7249
or emily.thompson1@hays.com
CREDIT CONTROLLER
Battersea, £28k-£32k
A well-known party accessories and games company seeks
a Credit Controller with accounts receivable experience.
The manufacturing firm work with global retailers and
experience with similar customers would be advantageous.
You’ll work in a small finance team reporting to the financial
controller. You’ll manage the business’s key accounts and act
as the main point of contact for anything relevant to credit
control. Prior exposure to EDI portals for managing invoices
is desired. Ref: 4400858
Contact Hussain Ahmed on 0333 010 7453
or hussain.ahmed@hays.com
hays.co.uk/credit-control-jobs
© Copyright Hays plc 2023. The HAYS word, the H devices, HAYS WORKING Brave FOR | Curious YOUR | TOMORROW Resilient / and www.cicm.com Powering the world / June of 2023 work / and PAGE associated 50 logos and artwork are trademarks of Hays plc.
The H devices are original designs protected by registration in many countries. All rights are reserved. CM-1192684916

SALES LEDGER
Aylesbury, up to £27k DOE
This thriving business is looking for an experienced sales ledger
to join a successful accounts receivable team. You’ll ensure
accurate and timely invoicing and cash allocation with a small
amount of query resolution. You’ll have proven experience in
a similar role, great attention to detail and strong Excel skills.
Sage experience is advantageous. This role will initially be
onsite and later move to a hybrid set-up. Ref: 4391405
Contact Caroline Evans on 01494 419 740
or caroline.evans@hays.com
CREDIT CONTROLLER
Manchester City Centre, up to £35k DOE
An established firm based in Manchester city centre is
keen to recruit an experienced credit controller. This role is
ideal for someone who comes from a property background.
You’ll work in a hybrid setup and have access to a range of
company benefits. Ref: 4354265
Contact Luke Lontton on 0161 236 7272
or luke.Iontton@hays.com
This is just a small selection of the many opportunities
we have available for credit professionals. To find out
more, visit our website or contact Natascha Whitehead,
Credit Management UK Lead at Hays on 07770 786433.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 51

HR MATTERS
Striking Out
Disabilities cannot excuse inexcusable behaviour,
new guidelines on remote observation of EAT hearings,
and a review of the whistleblowing framework.
AUTHOR – Gareth Edwards
IN McQueen v General Optical
Council (GOC), the Employment
Appeal Tribunal upheld an
Employment Tribunal decision
that an employee's disruptive
conduct at work was not
attributable to his disabilities.
As reported, Mr McQueen had various
disabilities, including some symptoms
of Asperger’s Syndrome, hearing loss
and dyslexia. The GOC knew about
McQueen's disabilities and sought to
support him. Nevertheless, over a period
of several years, he had various difficult
interactions at work. He could interact in
a confrontational and aggressive manner
towards colleagues. He also stood up to
speak in a loud voice in the office and was
told this was disruptive.
McQueen was disciplined on more than
one occasion in relation to his interactions
with colleagues. He brought a claim for
discrimination arising from disability
under the Equality Act, arguing that all
of his disruptive workplace behaviour
was attributable to his disabilities. In
response, the GOC acknowledged his
conditions and set out the support it
had put in place. However, the GOC also
argued that McQueen's habit of standing
up to talk, and also the way he interacted
with colleagues in certain situations did
not arise from his disabilities.
The Tribunal rejected the claim and
McQueen appealed to the Employment
Appeal Tribunal (EAT).
The EAT upheld the Tribunal's decision.
McQueen's need to stand up in order to
talk was a result of habit. Regarding the
way he responded to colleagues when
being given certain instructions, he had
a short temper. His disabilities had no
effect on his conduct during the incidents
in question. The GOC, despite taking
formal action against McQueen had not
treated him unfavourably in relation to
his disability.
The case is a reminder to consider
each incident on its own merits. As the
employer did here, it may be necessary
to seek occupational health advice in
order to determine the extent to which an
employee's disability might be impacting
them at work.
EMPLOYMENT Tribunal hearings are
generally conducted in public and in
some circumstances, it is also possible
to observe a hearing remotely. The
Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has
the power to grant members of the public
and reporters access to remote hearings
for observation purposes. The Courts and
Tribunals Judiciary (CTJ) has now issued
guidance on the subject.
Non-participants who want to observe
a hearing remotely must submit an
application. The guidance encourages
applications to be made as soon as possible,
ideally at least five days before the hearing
date and, in any event, by no later than
4pm on the Friday before. Applications
can be made without knowing the
Remote observation of hearings
specific hearing date. Applications made
outside of the prescribed timeframes
will generally not be considered, unless
there are compelling reasons why the
application is late.
The EAT must be satisfied that the
remote observation must be in the
interests of justice; there is capacity
and technological capability to enable
transmission; and remote observation
would not create an unreasonable
administrative burden.
The guidance sets out standard
directions for remote observers, including
muting microphones and turning off
cameras. Observers will be asked to
identify themselves to the EAT prior to
the hearing, by giving their full name and
email address. Any attempt to record or
transmit the hearing by any means will
result in a contempt of court.
Employers may be concerned about
observers joining a hearing remotely.
The CTJ recognises that in certain
circumstances, remote observation can
jeopardise the administration of justice.
The guidance sets out standard
directions including the obligation on
remote observers to identify any other
individuals who are present at the
observer's location, and to comply with
other requirements in order to preserve
the integrity of the hearing. The guidance
also highlights the maximum penalty
of up to two years’ imprisonment for
contempt of court.
Review of whistleblowing framework
THE Government has announced a
review of the current whistleblowing
framework to assess the regime and
inform policy on how to improve it.
The current framework aims to protect
employees who disclose information
about a wrongdoing at work from
reprisal, and therefore to encourage
them to speak out where appropriate.
The review is being led by the
Department for Business and Trade. It
will consider how the framework
currently operates, including how it
has facilitated disclosures; how it has
protected workers; the accessibility
of information on whistleblowing to
workers, employers, prescribed persons
and others; the wider benefits and
impacts of the framework on employers,
prescribed persons and others; and what
best practice looks like in responding to
disclosures.
The review is expected to run until
autumn 2023.
Gareth Edwards is a partner in the
employment team at VWV.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 52

IN
ASSOCIATION
WITH
UKCCC
2023
RADISSON BLU
MANCHESTER AIRPORT
#ukccc2023
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 53
AWARDS
2023

THIS informative online webinar was
presented by CICM East of England
Branch Secretary William Plom, a Senior
Manager at Hays Recruitment specialising
in credit management.
He talked through the results of the latest
Hays UK Salary and Recruitment survey,
giving an overview of the employment
market, detailed information about
average salary growth by sector since
2020, the comparison between credit
management and the rest of finance,
and between the private and public
sectors. Recent changes in the levels
of redundancies and unemployment
(including the age group with the highest
level of unemployment) were also spelled
out.
BRANCH NEWS
Recruitment and salary trends
An East of England branch webinar
Factors that employees said that they
consider important when assessing a
new role were particularly interesting,
differing from previous surveys, and
containing a few surprises.
Will shared insightful comments,
observations and tips for both employers
and job applicants in the current situation
where the growing skill shortage meant
that the number of vacancies were higher
than the number of people available to fill
them.
In a competitive market, he emphasised
the need for employers to devise a ‘winning
strategy’ to consider the opposition in
order to sell their organisation, the role
and factors such as rising inflation and
salary creep on pay and pay increases.
NEW AND UPGRADED MEMBERS
Flexibility was also required on hybrid
working, job sharing, part time working,
and other conditions. In the current
climate, it is essential for employers to
move at pace when making a decision
whether to offer a job.
Will welcomed questions throughout,
and views and experiences of delegates
were shared and discussed.
The recording of this interesting and
informative webinar can be seen at https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyoeBxN_oYc
Copies of the Hays survey report can
be obtained from https://www.hays.co.uk/
salary-guide
Liam Hastings is the CICM East of England
Deputy HQ & Social Media Liaison Officer.
Do you know someone who would benefit from CICM membership? Or have
you considered applying to upgrade your membership? See our website
www.cicm.com/membership-types for more details, or call us on 01780 722903
UPGRADED
Karl Smith FCICM
Sandrine Wakefield MCICM
FCICM
Paul Caddy Honorary Fellow
Matthew Perry MCICM
Stephen Watson MCICM
Hayley Leach MCICM
Savita Sharma MCICM
MCICM
Ian Jones MCICM
AWARDING BODY
Congratulations to the following, who successfully achieved Diplomas
Level 3 Diploma in Credit Management (ACICM)
Gibson Harawa
Level 3 Diploma in Credit & Collections (ACICM)
Christopher Holden Rachael Blackshaw Lynn Stewart Jade Owen
Level 3 Diploma in Credit & Collections (not ACICM)
Aaron Bisset
WE WANT YOUR BRANCH NEWS!
Get in touch with the CICM by emailing branches@cicm.com with your branch news and event reports.
Please only send up to 400 words and any images need to be high resolution to be printable, so 1MB plus.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 54

Another benefit
for CICM Members
Download and view your digital
membership card via the Folio app today!
Download the app for your iOS or Android operating system

Cr£ditWho?
CICM Directory of Services
COLLECTIONS
CREDIT DATA AND ANALYTICS
CREDIT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
Controlaccount
Address: Compass House, Waterside, Hanbury Road,
Bromsgrove, Worcestershire B60 4FD
T: 01527 386 610
E: sales@controlaccount.com
W: www.controlaccount.com
Controlaccount has been providing efficient, effective and
ethical pre-legal debt recovery for over forty years. We help our
clients to improve internal processes and increase cashflow,
whilst protecting customer relationships and established
reputations. We have long-standing partnerships with leading,
global brand names, SMEs and not for profits. We recover
over 30,000 overdue invoices each month, domestically and
internationally, on a no collect, no fee arrangement. Other
services include credit control and dunning services, international
and domestic trace and legal recoveries. All our clients have
full transparency on any accounts placed with us through our
market leading cloud-based management portal, ClientWeb.
Guildways
T: +44 3333 409000
E: info@guildways.com
W: www.guildways.com
Guildways is a UK & International debt collection specialist with over
25 years experience. Guildways prides itself on operating to the
highest ethical standards and professional service levels. We are
experienced in collecting B2B and B2C debts. Our service includes:
• A complete No collection, No Fee commission based service
• 10% plus VAT commission for UK debts
• Commission from 22% plus VAT for International debts
• 24/7 online access to your cases through our CaseManager portal
• Direct online account-to-account payments, to speed up
collections and minimise costs
If you are unable to locate your customer, we also offer a no trace, no
fee, trace and collect service.
For more information, visit: www.guildways.com
COLLECTIONS LEGAL
CoCredo
Missenden Abbey, Great Missenden, Bucks, HP16 0BD
T: 01494 790600
E: customerservice@cocredo.com
W: www.cocredo.co.uk
For over 20 years, CoCredo, as one of the UK's leading Credit
Report companies, has helped protect thousands of customers
from bad debt. Our data is compiled and constantly updated from a
variety of prominent UK and international suppliers, encompassing
230 countries, so that our clients can access the latest available
information in an easy-to-read report. We offer tailored products
and service solutions, from market-leading Dual Reports and
integrated XML solutions, monitoring and delivering flexible 'data
on the go' package options that reduce costs and boost cash flow.
Our clients feel valued that we are a part of their customer journey
and we have consistently been finalists and winners of numerous
Small Business and Credit Awards since 2014.
We provide award-winning customer service which is reflected in
our client retention rate of 99%.
CREDIT DATA AND ANALYTICS
identeco – Business Support Toolkit
Compass House, Waterside, Hanbury Road, Bromsgrove,
Worcestershire B60 4FD
Telephone: 01527 386 607
Email: info@identeco.co.uk
Web: www.identeco.co.uk
identeco Business Support Toolkit provides company details
and financial reporting for over 4m UK companies and
business. Subscribers can view company financial health and
payment behaviour, credit ratings, shareholder and director
structures, detrimental data. In addition, subscribers can also
download unlimited B2B marketing and acquisition reports.
Annual subscription is only £79.95. Other services available
to subscribers include AML and KYC reports, pre-litigation
screening, trace services and data appending, as well as many
others.
CREDIT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
HighRadius
T: +44 (0) 203 997 9400
E: infoemea@highradius.com
W: www.highradius.com
HighRadius provides a cloud-based Integrated Receivable
Platform, powered by machine learning and AI. Our Technology
empowers enterprise organisations to reduce cycle time in the
order-to-cash process and increase working capital availability by
automating receivables and payments processes across credit,
electronic billing and payment processing, cash application,
deductions, and collections.
Tinubu Square UK
Holland House, 4 Bury Street,
London EC3A 5AW
T: +44 (0)207 469 2577 /
E: uksales@tinubu.com
W: www.tinubu.com
Founded in 2000, Tinubu Square is a software vendor, enabler
of the Credit Insurance, Surety and Trade Finance digital
transformation.
Tinubu Square enables organizations across the world to
significantly reduce their exposure to risk and their financial,
operational and technical costs with best-in-class technology
solutions and services. Tinubu Square provides SaaS solutions
and services to different businesses including credit insurers,
receivables financing organizations and multinational corporations.
Tinubu Square has built an ecosystem of customers in over 20
countries worldwide and has a global presence with offices in
Paris, London, New York, Montreal and Singapore.
Credica Ltd
Building 168, Maxell Avenue, Harwell Oxford, Oxon. OX11 0QT
T: 01235 856400E: info@credica.co.uk W: www.credica.co.uk
Our highly configurable and extremely cost effective Collections
and Query Management System has been designed with 3 goals
in mind:
•To improve your cashflow • To reduce your cost to collect
• To provide meaningful analysis of your business
Evolving over 15 years and driven by the input of 1000s of
Credit Professionals across the UK and Europe, our system is
successfully providing significant and measurable benefits for our
diverse portfolio of clients.
We would love to hear from you if you feel you would benefit from
our ‘no nonsense’ and human approach to computer software.
Lovetts Solicitors
Lovetts, Bramley House, The Guildway,
Old Portsmouth Road,
Guildford, Surrey, GU3 1LR
T: 01483 347001
E: info@lovetts.co.uk
W: www.lovetts.co.uk
With more than 25yrs experience in UK & international business
debt collection and recovery, Lovetts Solicitors collects £40m+
every year on behalf of our clients. Services include:
• Letters Before Action (LBA) from £1.50 + VAT (successful in 86%
of cases)
• Advice and dispute resolution
• Legal proceedings and enforcement
• 24/7 access to your cases via our in-house software solution,
CaseManager
Don’t just take our word for it, here’s some recent customer
feedback: “All our service expectations have been exceeded.
The online system is particularly useful and extremely easy to
use. Lovetts has a recognisable brand that generates successful
results.”
Blackline
33 Charlotte St, London W1T 1RR
T: +44 (0) 203 318 5941
E: sales@blackline.com
W:www.blackline.com/solutions/accounts-receivableautomation/
Transform and modernize your accounts receivable processes.
Release cash from customers using next-generation intelligent
AR automation. Optimize working capital by driving world-class
order-to-cash processes and leverage 'decision intelligence' to
drive better business outcomes.
Cash Application AR Intelligence
Credit & Risk Management
Collections Management
Disputes & Deductions Management
Team & Task Management
Reduce or eliminate manual tasks, and enable AR teams to
focus on actions that drive results. Strengthen decision
intelligence to deliver significant value to the organization
by harnessing BlackLine’s ground-breaking AR Intelligence
module - unlock hidden data in Accounts Receivable processes
and understand customer behaviours in real time.
For more information and a free instant ROI calculation for AR
visit https://www.blackline.com/solutions/accounts-receivableautomation/
ContactEngine
A NICE Company
Email: info@contactengine.com
Website: www.contactengine.com
ContactEngine is a proactive customer engagement platform,
which connects organizations to its customers through AI
powered digital conversations, ​enabling fully automated
customer journeys. The game changer for collections?
Companies can now talk directly with tens of thousands of
people simultaneously. This enables collections treatment
automation using intelligent, natural language conversations,
dynamic engagement strategies, and easy-to-trigger payment
transactions that move the needle and help organisations collect
outstanding debt faster. ContactEngine anticipates the need
to interact with customers and fully automates personalized,
multichannel conversations that engage customers over days,
weeks, months and years to achieve specific milestones or
trigger next steps based on customer responses.
For more information, visit www.contactengine.com/solutions/
collections or email info@contactengine.com
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 56

FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION OPTIONS
AND PRICING CONTACT
paul@centuryone.uk 01727 739 196
CREDIT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
CREDIT MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
FORUMS
Data Interconnect Ltd
45-50 Shrivenham Hundred Business Park,
Majors Road, Watchfield. Swindon, SN6 8TZ
T: +44 (0)1367 245777
E: sales@datainterconnect.co.uk
W: www.datainterconnect.com
We are dedicated to helping finance teams take the cost,
complexity and compliance issues out of Accounts Receivable
processes. Corrivo is our reliable, easy-to-use SaaS platform
for the continuous improvement of AR metrics and KPIs in a
user-friendly interface. Credit Controllers can manage more
accounts with better results and customers can self-serve on
mobile-responsive portals where they can query, pay, download
and view invoices and related documentation e.g. Proofs of
Delivery Corrivo is the only AR platform with integrated invoice
finance options for both buyer and supplier that flexes credit
terms without degrading DSO. Call for a demo.
SERRALA
Serrala UK Ltd, 125 Wharfdale Road
Winnersh Triangle, Wokingham
Berkshire RG41 5RB
E: r.hammons@serrala.com W: www.serrala.com
T +44 118 207 0450 M +44 7788 564722
Serrala optimizes the Universe of Payments for organisations
seeking efficient cash visibility and secure financial processes.
As an SAP Partner, Serrala supports over 3,500 companies
worldwide. With more than 30 years of experience and
thousands of successful customer projects, including solutions
for the entire order-to-cash process, Serrala provides credit
managers and receivables professionals with the solutions they
need to successfully protect their business against credit risk
exposure and bad debt loss.
ENFORCEMENT
FORUMS INTERNATIONAL
T: +44 (0)1260 275716
E: info@forumsinternational.co.uk
W: www.forumsinternational.co.uk
Forums International Ltd have been running Credit and Industry
Forums since 1991. We cover a range of industry sectors and
International trading, attendance is for Credit Professionals of all
levels. Our forums are not just meetings but communities which
aim to prepare our members for the challenges ahead. Attending
for the first time is free for you to gauge the benefits and meet the
members and we only have pre-approved Partners, so you will
never intentionally be sold to.
INSOLVENCY
ESKER
Sam Townsend Head of Marketing
Northern Europe Esker Ltd.
T: +44 (0)1332 548176 M: +44 (0)791 2772 302
W: www.esker.co.uk LinkedIn: Esker – Northern Europe
Twitter: @EskerNEurope blog.esker.co.uk
Esker’s Accounts Receivable (AR) solution removes the all-toocommon
obstacles preventing today’s businesses from collecting
receivables in a timely manner. From credit management to cash
allocation, Esker automates each step of the order-to-cash cycle.
Esker’s automated AR system helps companies modernise
without replacing their core billing and collections processes. By
simply automating what should be automated, customers get the
post-sale experience they deserve and your team gets the tools
they need.
My DSO Manager
22, Chemin du Vieux Chêne,
Bâtiment D, Meylan, FRANCE
T: +33 (0)458003676
E: contact@mydsomanager.com
W: www.mydsomanager.com
My DSO Manager is an all-in-one intelligent SaaS accounts
receivable and credit management system that provides realtime
insight and scalability from SMEs to international multientity
companies. It helps AR analysts, accounting or finance
managers, and any client-facing employee, manage risk and
maximize cash collection.
It can swiftly integrate any kind of data from any ERP and
implement any customization due to its creative, competent IT
teams that are headquartered inside the firm and collaborate
closely with support employees, many of whom were formerly
credit managers at big corporations.
The feature-rich functions, automated reminders, alerts, and
numerous services connected to the solution, such as EDM/
CRMs/insurance/e-payment/BI platforms etc., along with a
reasonable pricing system, have simplified the credit-to-cash
cycle by monitoring daily KPIs like DSO, aging balance, overdues/
past-dues, customer behavior, and cash forecast.
My DSO Manager's worldwide clientele are its real ambassadors,
who assist the company in expanding on an ongoing basis.
Cr£ditWho?
CICM Directory of Services
FOR ADVERTISING
INFORMATION OPTIONS
AND PRICING CONTACT
paul@centuryone.uk 01727 739 196
Court Enforcement Services
Adele Whitehurst – Client Relationship Manager
M: +44 (0)7525 119 711 T: +44 (0)1992 367 092
E : a.whitehurst@courtenforcementservices.co.uk
W: www.courtenforcementservices.co.uk
Court Enforcement Services is the market leading and fastest
growing High Court Enforcement company. Since forming in 2014,
we have managed over 100,000 High Court Writs and recovered
more than £187 million for our clients, all debt fairly collected. We
help lawyers and creditors across all sectors to recover unpaid
CCJ’s sooner rather than later. We achieve 39% early engagement
resulting in market-leading recovery rates. Our multi-awardwinning
technology provides real-time reporting 24/7. We work in
close partnership to expertly resolve matters with a fast, fair and
personable approach. We work hard to achieve the best results
and protect your reputation.
High Court Enforcement Group Limited
Client Services, Helix, 1st Floor
Edmund Street, Liverpool, L3 9NY
T: 08450 999 666
E: clientservices@hcegroup.co.uk
W: hcegroup.co.uk
Putting creditors first
We are the largest independent High Court enforcement company,
with more authorised officers than anyone else. We are privately
owned, which allows us to manage our business in a way that
puts our clients first. Clients trust us to deliver and service is
paramount. We cover all aspects of enforcement – writs of control,
possessions, process serving and landlord issues – and are
committed to meeting and exceeding clients’ expectations.
FINANCIAL PR
Gravity Global
Floor 6/7, Gravity Global, 69 Wilson St, London, EC2A 2BB
T: +44(0)207 330 8888. E: sfeast@gravityglobal.com
W: www.gravityglobal.com
Gravity is an award winning full service PR and advertising
business that is regularly benchmarked as being one of the
best in its field. It has a particular expertise in the credit sector,
building long-term relationships with some of the industry’s bestknown
brands working on often challenging briefs. As the partner
agency for the Credit Services Association (CSA) for the past 22
years, and the Chartered Institute of Credit Management since
2006, it understands the key issues affecting the credit industry
and what works and what doesn’t in supporting its clients in the
media and beyond.
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 57
Menzies
T: +44 (0)2073 875 868 - London
T: +44 (0)2920 495 444 - Cardiff
W: menzies.co.uk/creditor-services
Our Creditor Services team can advise on the best way for you
to protect your position when one of your debtors enters, or
is approaching, insolvency proceedings. Our services include
assisting with retention of title claims, providing representation
at creditor meetings, forensic investigations, raising finance,
financial restructuring and removing the administrative burden
– this includes completing and lodging claim forms, monitoring
dividend prospects and analysing all Insolvency Reports and
correspondence.
For more information on how the Menzies Creditor Services
team can assist, please contact Bethan Evans, Licensed
Insolvency Practitioner, at bevans@menzies.co.uk or call
+44 (0)2920 447 512.
Red Flag Alert Technology Group Limited
49 Peter Street, Manchester, M2 3NG
T: 0330 460 9877
E: sales@redflagalert.com
W: www.redflagalert.com
The UK’s No1 Insolvency Score is available as platform
designed to help businesses manage risk and achieve growth
using real-time data. The only independently owned UK credit
referencing agency for businesses. We have modernised the
way companies consume data, via Graph QL API and apps for
many CRM / ERP systems to power businesses decisions with
the most important data taken in real-time feeds, ensuring our
customers are always the first to know.
Red Flag Alert has a powerful portfolio management tool
enabling you to monitor all your customers and suppliers so
you and your teams can receive email alerts on data events
i.e. CCJ, Petitions, Accounts, Directors, amongst 84 alerts
produced and tailored to your business.
Red Flag Alert works towards growing and protecting
businesses using advanced machine learning and AI technology
data to provide businesses with information to deliver best in
class sales, credit risk management and compliance.
LEGAL
Shoosmiths
Email: paula.swain@shoosmiths.co.uk
Tel: 03700 86 3000 W: www.shoosmiths.co.uk
Shoosmiths’ highly experienced team will work closely with credit
teams to recover commercial debts as quickly and cost effectively
as possible. We have an in depth knowledge of all areas of debt
recovery, including:
•Pre-litigation services to effect early recovery and keep costs
down
•Litigation service
•Post-litigation services including enforcement
•Insolvency
As a client of Shoosmiths, you will find us quick to relate to your
goals, and adept at advising you on the most effective way of
achieving them.

Cr£ditWho?
CICM Directory of Services
FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION
OPTIONS AND PRICING CONTACT
paul@centuryone.uk 01727 739 196
PAYMENT SOLUTIONS
RECRUITMENT
American Express
76 Buckingham Palace Road,
London. SW1W 9TQ
T: +44 (0)1273 696933
W: www.americanexpress.com
American Express is working in partnership with the CICM and is a
globally recognised provider of payment solutions to businesses.
Specialising in providing flexible collection capabilities to drive a
number of company objectives including:
• Accelerate cashflow • Improved DSO • Reduce risk
• Offer extended terms to customers
• Provide an additional line of bank independent credit to drive
growth • Create competitive advantage with your customers
As experts in the field of payments and with a global reach,
American Express is working with credit managers to drive
growth within businesses of all sectors. By creating an additional
lever to help support supplier/client relationships American
Express is proud to be an innovator in the business payments
space.
Key IVR
T: +44 (0) 1302 513 000 E: sales@keyivr.com
W: www.keyivr.com
Key IVR are proud to have joined the Chartered Institute of
Credit Management’s Corporate partnership scheme. The
CICM is a recognised and trusted professional entity within
credit management and a perfect partner for Key IVR. We are
delighted to be providing our services to the CICM to assist with
their membership collection activities. Key IVR provides a suite
of products to assist companies across the globe with credit
management. Our service is based around giving the end-user
the means to make a payment when and how they choose. Using
automated collection methods, such as a secure telephone
payment line (IVR), web and SMS allows companies to free up
valuable staff time away from typical debt collection.
Quadient AR by YayPay
T: +44 20 8502 8476
E: r.harash@quadient.com
W: www.quadient.com/en-gb/ar-automation
Quadient AR by YayPay makes it easy for B2B finance teams
to stay ahead of accounts receivable and get paid faster – from
anywhere. Integrating with your existing ERP, CRM, accounting
and billing systems, YayPay organizes and presents real-time data
through meaningful, cloud-based dashboards. These increase
visibility across your AR portfolio and provide your team with a
single source of truth, so they can access the information they
need to work productively, no matter where they are based.
Automated capabilities improve team efficiency by 3X and
accelerate the collections process by making communications
customizable and consistent. This enables you to collect cash
up to 34 percent faster and removes the need to add additional
resources as your business grows.
Predictive analytics provide insight into future payer behavior to
improve cash flow management and a secure, online payment
portal enables customers to access their accounts and pay at any
time, from anywhere.
FIS GETPAID
25 Canada Square
London, GB E14 5LQ
T: +447730500085
E: getinfo@fisglobal.com.
W: www.fisglobal.com
The award-winning FIS GETPAID solution is a fully integrated,
web-based order-to cash (O2C) solution that helps companies
improve operational efficiencies, lower DSO, and increase cash
flow. GETPAID provides process automation, artificial intelligence,
and workflow across the O2C cycle, with detailed analysis and
reporting for accurate cash forecasting. FIS is a global leader in
financial services technology that empowers the financial world.
For more information visit https://www.fisglobal.com/en/cashflowand-capital/credit-and-collections
or email getinfo@fisglobal.com.
Hays Credit Management
107 Cheapside, London, EC2V 6DN
T: 07834 260029
E: karen.young@hays.com
W: www.hays.co.uk/creditcontrol
Hays Credit Management is working in partnership with the CICM
and specialise in placing experts into credit control jobs and
credit management jobs. Hays understands the demands of this
challenging environment and the skills required to thrive within
it. Whatever your needs, we have temporary, permanent and
contract based opportunities to find your ideal role. Our candidate
registration process is unrivalled, including face-to-face screening
interviews and a credit control skills test developed exclusively for
Hays by the CICM. We offer CICM members a priority service and
can provide advice across a wide spectrum of job search and
recruitment issues.
PORTFOLIO
CREDIT CONTROL
Portfolio Credit Control
1 Finsbury Square, London. EC2A 1AE
T: 0207 650 3199
E: recruitment@portfoliocreditcontrol.com
W: www.portfoliocreditcontrol.com
Portfolio Credit Control, a 5* Trustpilot rated agency, solely
specialises in the recruitment of Permanent, Temporary & Contract
Credit Control, Accounts Receivable and Collections staff
including remote workers. Part of The Portfolio Group, an awardwinning
Recruiter, we speak to Credit Controllers every day and
understand their skills meaning we are perfectly placed to provide
your business with talented Credit Control professionals. Offering
a highly tailored approach to recruitment, we use a hybrid of faceto-face
and remote briefings, interviews and feedback options.
We provide both candidates & clients with a commitment to deliver
that will exceed your expectations every single time.
CM
CREDIT MANAGEMENT
THE CICM'S HIGHLY ACCLAIMED MAGAZINE
Credit Management, the magazine of the Chartered Institute of Credit
Management (CICM), is the leading publication in its field. The magazine
includes full coverage of consumer and trade credit, export and company
news, as well as in-depth features, profiles and opinions. To receive the free
magazine you must be a member of the CICM or subscribe.
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THE LEADING JOURNAL FOR CONSUMER AND COMMERCIAL CREDIT PROFESSIONALS
TO SUBSCRIBE CONTACT: T: 01780 722903
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 58

View our digital version online at www.cicm.com
Log on to the Members’ area, and click on the tab labelled
‘Credit Management magazine’
Just another great reason to be a member
Credit Management is distributed to the entire UK and international
CICM membership, as well as additional subscribers
Brave | Curious | Resilient
www.cicm.com | +44 (0)1780 722900 | editorial@cicm.com
Brave | Curious | Resilient / www.cicm.com / June 2023 / PAGE 59

99% satisfaction
and 9.3 net
promoter score
Our clients rate our service extremely highly on our
annual survey covering 80% of our caseload -you
can rely on us, the largest independent High Court
enforcement company.
More Authorised HCEOs than any other with over
400 years combined experience
Excellent client service and agents covering all
of England and Wales
Multiple industry awards for our technology
and training
To find out more or instruct us
08450 999 666
www.hcegroup.co.uk