WHAT DOES A COLLECTIONS SUPERVISOR DO?

Updated: Dec 02, 2024 - The Collections Supervisor develops department staff to ensure skills meet current and future needs, and establish controls for accurate billing submission. This role involves monitoring billing and collection performance, identifying trends, and supporting monthly analysis to improve processes. The supervisor also supervises Medicare Billing and Collection personnel, recommends personnel actions, and implements process improvements for cost efficiency and service enhancement.

A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Collections Supervisor

1. Collections Supervisor Responsibilities

  • Team Management: Manage collectors, customer service representatives, and payment posters
  • Financial Oversight: Approve financial adjustments for centers
  • Workflow Monitoring: Monitor the workflow and reassign as workload demands
  • Facility Collaboration: Work in conjunction with the Administrator and Business Office Managers at respective facilities
  • Report Analysis: Monitor and analyze reports for the Central Billing Office and oversee the operational success of the Central Billing Office
  • Staff Development: Conduct staff meetings and provide guidance and feedback to strengthen the team
  • Account Management: Actively monitor and manage accounts placed with outside collection agencies
  • Lien Management: Manage key mechanic's lien dates
  • Customer Service: Provide excellent customer service while resolving issues
  • Process Improvement: Initiate and help drive process improvements to the collections process

2. Collections Supervisor Job Summary

  • Process Optimization: Review and optimization of the effectiveness of each step in the collection process.
  • Team Management: Manage a team of agents to achieve daily and monthly collection targets.
  • Compliance: Ensure the team is working on contracts in a timely manner and in line with company policies and procedures.
  • Performance Review: Continuous review of staff performance, effectively maintaining an environment of high performance and continuous improvement.
  • SLAs and KPIs Management: Ensure the team's SLAs and KPIs are met consistently and devise treatment plans for any performance deviations.
  • Development Planning: Construct and implement meaningful development plans for each department employee.
  • Cost Management: Manage collections cost centers, optimize the cost-effectiveness of the collection process, and work within the business plan.
  • Reporting and Analysis: Report and analyze results effectively. Control delinquency levels.
  • Collaboration: Work collaboratively with other areas of the business.
  • Resource Utilization: Draw on skills and knowledge available outside the department.

3. Collections Supervisor Accountabilities

  • Team Leadership: Lead an internal team of 6 people.
  • Point of Contact: Be the first point of contact for his team and external providers like the call center, the collections agencies, bailiffs, etc.
  • Liaison: Be the relay between his team and the Collections and Recovery Director.
  • Procedure Compliance: Review all customers in the area of the internal team to ensure the application of the procedures to steer, coach and train the Collections team, clean credits.
  • Follow-Up: Follow up on the files in management with the external partners.
  • Task Distribution: Ensure distribution of customers with unpaid throughout the agents.
  • Performance Evaluation: Evaluate monthly the performance of his team and the external suppliers.
  • Team Meetings: Organize team meetings to discuss results, topics to be improved, and stimulate collaboration in the team.
  • Invoice Pre-Approval: Pre-approve the invoices of the external providers and ensure all checks required by Compliance.
  • Coordination: Be expected to coordinate calls with the sales team and customer to better understand situations or explain positions regarding accounts receivable processes.
  • Delegation: Delegate appropriate assignments, or pieces of same, to team members designed to challenge knowledge boundaries and improve associate engagement and skill set.

4. Collections Supervisor Functions

  • Leadership: Perform as a leader in developing and maintaining collections processes and policies.
  • Process Improvement: Challenge yourself and team to continually look for opportunities to improve on current processes.
  • Proposal Development: Providing ideas and proposals that either help meet objectives, save money, or improve customer experience.
  • Team Collaboration: Foster an environment of collaboration within the team where associates are empowered to verbalize customer, process, or personal challenges.
  • Recruitment and Training: Participate in recruiting, hiring, and training/development of individual contributors.
  • Performance Management: Be expected to set and maintain regular 1-on-1s with each team member to discuss performance and development.
  • Risk Management: Work closely with credit function to identify customers identified as high-risk or over-limit and either prioritize collections or seek credit limit reviews, as appropriate.
  • Team Coordination: Work closely with the Collection Support and Deductions Support teams to seamlessly handle task interfaces between both teams and collections staff.
  • Special Situations Reporting: Identify and report to the Collection Manager on special collection situations, including orders, holds, bankruptcy, and write-offs.
  • Reporting: Develop and maintain reporting regarding portfolio workload balance, monthly portfolio penetration, and individual contributor KPIs.
  • Stakeholder Meetings: Participate in meetings with stakeholders on the performance of accounts, and groups of accounts.
  • Cross-Functional Relations: Maintain close relations with sales, finance, customer service, IT, and accounting staff through regular contact verbally and through status reports.

5. Collections Supervisor Overview

  • Revenue Collection: Assist in collecting revenue in the form of student account receivables owed to the University.
  • Supervision: Supervise and coordinate the collection of outstanding student account receivables.
  • Guidance and Recommendations: Provide guidance and recommendations to Student Financial Services counselors regarding collections of outstanding debt.
  • Reporting: Generate and disseminate reports of outstanding receivables for monitoring and collecting the debt.
  • Budget Management: Responsible for ensuring outstanding student account receivables stay within a defined budget.
  • Delinquent Account Management: Review the status of delinquent accounts and initiate collection actions, including coordination of correspondence to students, former students, and agencies.
  • Payment Agreements: Create formal payment agreements with non-enrolled students.
  • Financial Counseling: Counsel students and families regarding financial matters.
  • Account Research: Research disputed accounts thoroughly and make recommendations to the appeals committee.
  • External Coordination: Serve as institutional contact for collection agencies, credit bureau agencies, and Statement Rendering Services.

6. Collections Supervisor Details and Accountabilities

  • Dispute Resolution: Resolve/research disputed charges, short paid or overpaid invoices.
  • Reporting: Report to the Controller with any issues regarding Key Accounts.
  • Account Review: Review accounts, credit holds, credit applications, and other documentation to obtain information to respond to customers.
  • Collaboration: Collaborate and communicate with other departments with a strong relationship between Business Development and the LC team.
  • Work Environment: Create and maintain a high-quality work environment so team members are motivated to perform at their highest level.
  • Process Improvement: Proactively identify root causes of issues and make recommendations for process improvements.
  • Project Assistance: Assist in special projects or assignments as needed by the business.
  • Call Management: Maintain quick and efficient flow of inbound and outbound calls.
  • Professional Interaction: Courteously and professionally interact with employees, prospects, residents, and vendors within established response times.
  • Opportunity Identification: Identify and report potential communication opportunities based on trends in conversations.
  • Escalation Management: Act as next-level point of escalation for Collections Team Leads.
  • Training and Resources: Ensure employees have appropriate training and other resources to perform their jobs.
  • Issue Resolution: Work with the Manager - Collections and Recovery to ensure all escalated issues are researched and resolved.

7. Collections Supervisor Roles

  • Credit and Collection Policy Supervision: Supervise the collections team's application of the company's credit and collection policies in a manner resulting in maximum sales, sound receivables, and their prompt conversion into cash.
  • Goal and Objective Setting: Assist in establishing goals, objectives, and timelines for the collections team, and report measurements to management regularly.
  • Collection Activity Review: Review and ensure that all collection activity is recorded accurately and appropriately in an easily accessible location, with sufficient clarity, while ensuring confidentiality of the collection history.
  • Delinquent Payment Resolution: Supervise the contacting of past-due customer accounts to resolve delinquent payment issues and ensure prompt payment is made by the customer.
  • Credit Issue Resolution: Work with collectors and customers to research and resolve credit issues or discrepancies, involving close collaboration with the sales and operations departments to ensure accuracy and contract compliance of disputed items.
  • Team Guidance and Development: Provide guidance, coaching, motivation, and development opportunities to team members.
  • Team Communication and Cooperation: Create a team that embraces open communication, cooperation, and a win-win attitude.
  • Service Suspension Management: Work with sales and operations personnel to suspend service of high-risk accounts.
  • Customer Inquiry Handling: Handle customer inquiries, disputes, or referrals to the proper approvers of exceptions to credit terms.
  • Payment Term Establishment: Work with BU Finance and Sales in establishing exception payment terms and schedules for past-due accounts.
  • Creditworthiness Determination: Generate and review new customer credit history reports to determine creditworthiness following company policy.
  • Invoice Compliance: Ensure invoices comply with customer contracts.
  • Contract Understanding: Be knowledgeable in reading and understanding customer contracts.

8. Collections Supervisor Essential Functions

  • Performance Management: Perform staff reviews and prepare performance documents for direct reports.
  • Compliance Adherence: Practice and adhere to the “Code of Conduct” philosophy and “Mission and Value Statement."
  • Service Delivery: Consistently meet or exceed relevant metrics established for the team, ensuring timely and reliable delivery of top-quality service.
  • Goal Setting: Aiming for Results - Setting high goals for accomplishment and tenaciously working to meet or exceed goals.
  • Leadership Communication: Sharing updates on goals (including plans to address any underperformance) with leadership.
  • Problem Identification: Guiding the identification of obstacles to timely collection setting of priorities for collections efforts.
  • Data Analysis: Conducting regular analysis of data to find opportunities and set priorities for collection efforts.
  • Mentorship and Coaching: Providing mentorship, coaching, and guidance.
  • Policy Development: Formulating, updating, and maintaining policy, process, and procedures drawing on your own and your team’s knowledge and experience to make improvements and address risk.
  • Reporting: Create weekly/daily reports on collections/cash metrics.
  • Team Collaboration: Work with the collection team weekly to ensure objectives are being met.
  • Customer Contact: Contact customers regarding overdue accounts.
  • System Navigation: Navigate Sage Intact, Collection System, Excel, and CMS.

9. Collections Supervisor General Responsibilities

  • Leadership: Manage the work of the Medicare billing and collections team members by empowering, coaching, answering questions, giving guidance, and leading by example
  • Operations Management: Manage COE operations, ensuring timeliness, accuracy, compliance, and standards fulfillment as defined in COE Service Level Agreements
  • Procedural Oversight: Ensure that adequate procedures exist for accurate and timely processing of Medicare, billing, and collections
  • Regulatory Compliance: Ensure compliance with state and federal laws and regulations for Medicaid, Medicare, non-government, and other third-party billings
  • Billing Knowledge: Maintain ongoing knowledge of UB-04, HFCA 1500, and other mandatory state billing forms and filing requirements
  • Claim Monitoring: Monitor online claim editing, submission, and reconciliation procedures
  • Coding Compliance: Ensure compliance with CPT, HCPCS, and ICD-9 coding regulations and guidelines
  • Follow-Up Coordination: Help coordinate follow-up within appropriate regulations of Medicare and Medi-Cal bills
  • Issue Resolution: Provide relevant guidance for assigned staff to resolve internal and external issues
  • Issue Reporting: Inform the director and managers of any significant issues in the Billing and Collections area (e.g., Billing and Collection backlogs, HIM bill drop delays, payer issues, vendor issues, etc.)
  • Regulatory Awareness: Stay abreast of regulatory requirements and company compliance policies, ensuring timely staff education
  • Personnel Management: Help ensure that appropriate personnel policies are adhered to and any personnel problems are addressed in an appropriate and timely manner

10. Collections Supervisor Roles and Details

  • Staff Development: Assist in developing department staff to ensure appropriate skills base is present in the staff
  • Future Skill Preparation: Ensure that skills needed for future needs are developed in advance of their need
  • Billing Controls: Assist in establishing and monitoring controls to ensure appropriate submission and acceptance of electronic and manual bills
  • Billing Trend Analysis: Monitor billed and rebilled summary reports and act on trends and/or root causes
  • Performance Monitoring: Monitor billing and collection performance according to quality and productivity standards developed internally and documented in SLAs
  • Trending Analysis: Support completion of monthly trending analysis of COE billing and collection performance
  • Standard Implementation: Help coordinate and promote implementation and monitoring of standard master files, processes, reporting, and education programs
  • Billing Nuances: Understand and communicate nuances of billing various payers such as Medicare, Medicaid, HMOs, PPOs, IPAs, employers, etc.
  • Supervision: Supervise Medicare Billing and Collection personnel
  • Personnel Recommendations: Provide recommendations for hiring, promotion, and personnel action where appropriate
  • Performance Standards: Develop specific objectives and performance standards for each area of responsibility
  • Process Improvement: Identify and implement process improvements to lower costs and improve service to facility customers
  • Innovation and Knowledge Sharing: Identify opportunities for innovation, knowledge sharing, and other leading practices within the COEs and among peer groups
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