Overcoming the late payment culture – SQ Computer Personnel
One of the most apparent and problematic repercussions of the recession is the late payment culture that has affected businesses of all sizes, with firms delaying payment to suppliers in order to preserve their own cash flow – often as a result of not being paid on time themselves.
Whilst there is a lot of press surrounding the impact of this on small businesses, larger firms are also feeling the effects of delayed customer payments. It was for this reason that Hilton-Baird Collection Services was engaged to assist £40million turnover recruitment agency for the IT sector, SQ Computer Personnel, with its debt recovery earlier this year.
Managing Director, Bernie Potton, was becoming increasingly concerned with the proportion of debts that were creeping beyond the 120 day mark, which meant that they were then becoming more and more difficult and time-consuming to collect.
In addition to placing a strain on SQ’s cash flow, it was also proving a barrier to obtaining the funding facility the business required to counter the impact of trading on credit terms – an ongoing challenge in the recruitment sector where wages for placements must be made before payments are received from customers.
A key challenge for the business was that the resource being allocated to recovering the outstanding debts was consuming valuable time and money that would have been better employed on winning new contracts. This led to Bernie calling on the help of proven debt recovery specialist, Hilton-Baird Collection Services.
Bernie explained: “The problem with the older debts is the amount of care, time and expertise that must be dedicated to their collection. Fortunately, Alan and his team were able to provide all three to significantly improve our end column and give our cash flow the boost it required.”
Hilton-Baird devised the most suitable strategy for the successful recovery of the older debts, adopting a hardline approach in a bid to put SQ at the front of the queue for payment. In the current climate, it is often the case that those who shout loudest and are most persistent get paid, and this is where a dedicated resource comes into its own.
Responding quickly and using its vast experience in the commercial debt recovery arena, the Hilton-Baird team worked around the clock to maximise the recovery of the debts and ultimately avoid the need to write off more than £1million of outstanding debt.
“I was absolutely thrilled with the team’s hard work” Bernie continued.
“I cannot speak highly enough of the professionalism they demonstrate through all their debt collection activity and would recommend Hilton-Baird’s services to any business faced with the ongoing challenge of late payments in the current climate.
“Having this focused collections resource in place has provided peace of mind that the money is coming in, whilst allowing us to focus on what we do best to ensure we are well placed for continued success.”
To find out how our expert team could help you get paid faster, contact us on 0800 9774848 or collections@hiltonbaird.co.uk. Alternatively get a quick quote to find out what we’d charge should we successfully recover your unpaid invoices.
