Accounts Receivable Collections Specialist Summary **Title:** Accounts Receivable Collections Specialist **ID:** 2164838 **Location:** Houston, TX **Job Function :** Finance Description At BrandSafway, we know our employees are our greatest asset, which is why we give them the tools, training, and resources to be successful. Come join our growing team. We are looking for an **Accounts Receivable Collections Specialist.** **Key Responsibilities:** + Customer Relationship Management: + Build and maintain strong relationships with internal teams (e.g., project managers, sales, and finance) and external customers to facilitate timely collections. + Act as a liaison between the company and customers, providing excellent customer service and addressing inquiries related to billing and payments. + Understanding Construction Payment Cycles: + Monitor and manage collections in accordance with the unique payment cycles of the construction industry. + Understand key elements such as project timelines, retention, lien deadlines and payment terms to minimize payment delays. + Negotiation and Dispute Resolution: + Utilize strong negotiation skills to resolve disputes and obtain payment commitments from customers. + Work with customers to resolve payment discrepancies and find mutually agreeable payment solutions. + Escalation of Collection Issues: + Identify when collection issues need to be escalated due to customer non-compliance, disputes, or payment delays. + Know when to utilize credit holds to manage customer risk and prevent further exposure to non-payment situations. + Collaborate with the AR Manager and legal team when necessary to escalate collection problems to protect company assets. + Construction Billing Knowledge: + Understand the construction billing process, including steps in submitting AIA (American Institute of Architects) payment applications. + Familiarity with customer portals for billing submissions and track payment approvals and follow-ups. + Understand the Order-to-Cash (OTC) process, highlighting potential gaps in upstream billing processes, and work closely with the billing and operations teams to identify and improve inefficiencies in the billing process. + Lien Compliance: + In-depth knowledge of lien rights and processes, ensuring the company’s lien compliance procedures are followed to protect its financial interests. + Timely filing of preliminary notices, lien waivers, and mechanic’s liens in compliance with state laws. + Know when to leverage liens to mitigate risk by filing liens to prevent financial loss in cases of non-payment. + Utilizing Brandcash Collection Tool: + Effectively utilize the Brandcash collection tool by documenting daily customer interactions, tracking, and noting payment promises, and highlighting disputed invoices with the correct dispute codes. + Provide clear instructions to the cash application team for clearing unapplied credits to ensure accurate cash posting. + Meeting DSO and Cash Collection Goals: + Meet and exceed the company’s Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) and cash collection goals through effective collection strategies and initiative-taking customer management. + Ensure timely collections to improve company cash flow and reduce outstanding receivables. + Recommending Accounts for Legal or Third-Party Action: + Recommend delinquent accounts to third-party collections or legal action due to prolonged non-payment, ensuring that the company takes the necessary steps to protect its financial interests. + Work closely with the AR Manager and legal team to transition problematic accounts into legal or external collection processes. + Recommend bad debt reserves for non-performing accounts. + Fair Debt Collection Practices: + Ensure all collection efforts comply with state and federal fair debt collection practices and guidelines. + Stay updated on industry regulations and best practices to avoid legal risks. + Team Collaboration: + Work closely with other departments, including finance, project management, and legal, to support collection efforts and resolve outstanding payment issues. + Participate in team meetings, sharing insights and strategies for improving collection rates. **Qualifications:** + 3+ years of experience in accounts receivable collections, preferably in the industrial services industry or construction industry. + Strong knowledge of construction billing processes, including AIA documentation and customer portals. + Familiarity with lien rights, compliance, and state-specific regulations regarding preliminary notices and mechanic’s liens. + Ability to leverage liens and utilize credit holds to mitigate risk and protect company assets. + Knowledge of the Order-to-Cash (OTC) process and ability to collaborate with billing and operations teams to improve billing processes. + Proven ability to meet or exceed DSO and cash collection goals. + Knows when to recommending accounts for legal action or third-party collections due to non-payment. + Proficient in excel and customer AP portals – Ariba, Coupa, Tract, AIA etc. + Excellent negotiation and communication skills. + Ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a team environment. + Strong attention to detail and organizational skills. + Knowledge of fair debt collection practices and legal compliance. + Experience with AP Portals such as Ariba, Coupa, Track, Textura, and AIA/ Pay Applications, etc. + Previous experience in industrial services, construction, or a related industry. + Preferred: Associate’s degree or higher in Business, Accounting or Finance BrandSafway offers a competitive benefits package that includes medical, dental, vision, life and disability insurance along with a generous 401k plan. The salary range for this position is $65,000 - $75,000 annually. This range represents the anticipated low and high end of the salary for this position. **About Us:** BrandSafway is a leading global provider of access, specialized services, and forming and shoring solutions to the industrial, commercial and infrastructure markets. Through a network of ~340 strategic locations across 26 countries and ~40,000 employees, BrandSafway delivers a full range of industrial service solutions. BrandSafway supports maintenance and refurbishment projects as well as new construction and expansion plans with unmatched service from expert local labor and management. Today’s BrandSafway is At Work For You® — leveraging innovation and economies of scale to increase safety and productivity, while remaining nimble and responsive. BrandSafway, including its subsidiaries, is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, national origin, religion, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, age, disability, special disabled or veteran status.    **Notice to all potential job candidates: ** Please be advised that BrandSafway will never require or ask for any fee from you in exchange for being considered, hired, promoted, transferred or having ongoing employment with us. It is a violation of our Code of Conduct if any employee requests any money or fee from you in exchange for tentatively special treatment or consideration. If anyone, regardless of whether an existing employee, or anyone else, requests payment of any fee in exchange for being hired into our company, you may confidentially contact our HR Compliance department at hrcompliance@brandsafway.com and provide the name of the individual and any other documentation or proof of such an act.