In today’s global marketplace, competitive pressure and industry practice
mandate that products and services be sold on a credit vs. cash-ondelivery
basis. This practice often produces a receivables asset that is
one of the largest tangible assets on a company’s balance sheet. A review
of the 2004 Fortune 500 certainly reveals this truth. Receivables
ranked among the top three tangible assets for 75% of the top 100 companies.
Surprisingly, management of this multi-million (or multi-billion)
dollar asset rarely receives much senior management attention,
except when a serious problem develops. The custodians of the receivables
asset are similar to umpires of a baseball game; they are not noticed
unless they do a bad job.
This book discusses the importance of managing accounts receivable,
and provides proven principles for achieving benefits such as increased
cash flow, higher margins, and a reduction in bad debt loss. The
focus is primarily on commercial (business to business) receivables
management. It excludes the specifics of managing retail (business to
consumer), healthcare provider (third party reimbursement), and intercompany
receivables. The principles described apply to all businessto-
business commerce, but will often need to be tailored to industryspecific
practices.
The Best Practices in this book are real-world, field-tested practices.
They were developed, refined, and improved by the author over a 16
year period while working with over 100 companies in a wide range of
industries to generate tangible, measurable improvements in the management
of customer receivables. Examples drawn from those engagements
will be used throughout the book to illustrate real-world
problems and solutions that drive measurable results.
This book is designed for all managers who are responsible for managing
the receivables asset, either directly, such as directors of customerfinancial services and credit managers or indirectly, such as controllers,
treasurers, and CFOs. Reading this book will enable readers to better
understand how to manage this important asset while learning numerous
practical techniques that can be implemented immediately to drive
improvement.