Job Title
Accounts Receivable Manager
Job Summary
The Accounts Receivable Manager is responsible for the full accounts receivable function, encompassing cash application and billing operations as well as credit and collections. This position owns the A/R aging and is accountable for keeping balances current, forecasting cash collections, and providing Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) analysis. The Accounts Receivable Manager sets credit policy, directs collection strategy, and partners with Sales and the Commercial team to resolve payment issues and minimize bad debt. This role also leads accounts receivable process transformation, including ERP and system implementation support, automation of cash application and billing workflows, customer master data governance, and continuous improvements that strengthen controls, reporting accuracy, and working-capital performance. In addition, this role leads and develops the Accounts Receivable Specialist, providing direction, review, and coaching across daily receivable operations while ensuring compliance with established internal controls and company policies.
MAIN POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Leadership and Team Development
- Supervise, develop, and set daily priorities for the Accounts Receivable Specialist, providing direction, review of work, and coaching.
- Establish performance expectations, conduct regular check-ins, and support training, cross-training, and professional development.
- Serve as the primary escalation point for complex cash application, billing, credit, and collection issues.
- Collaborate with Information Technology and cross-functional teams to troubleshoot system errors, identify root causes, implement corrective actions, and support the testing and deployment of system enhancements.
- Accounts Receivable Oversight
- Oversee cash application, billing, and miscellaneous invoicing performed by the Accounts Receivable Specialist, ensuring accuracy and timely reflection in the A/R aging.
- Review and support month-end accounts receivable close activities, including A/R subledger reconciliations, account reconciliations, aging review, reserve support, and timely clearing of unapplied or offsetting balances.
- Oversee customer master data maintenance, including new customer setup, address book updates, payment terms, customer status, parent/customer hierarchy, pallet pricing setup, and related controls to ensure accurate billing and reporting with the goal of reducing redundancy.
- Oversee pallet-related customer activity, including pallet pricing setup, pallet statement review, pallet adjustments, and resolution of related customer or internal inquiries.
- Own AR data integrity, including recurring review of customer master data, invoice accuracy, cash receipt posting, dispute coding, credit status, customer hierarchy, terms, and aging classifications to support reliable reporting and collections execution.
- Lead the evaluation, testing, and implementation of technologies (including artificial intelligence) and automation solutions to reduce manual cash application, invoicing, and other accounts receivable processes.
- Serve as the functional accounts receivable subject matter expert for ERP, billing, cash application, customer portal, credit, collections, and reporting system implementations, upgrades, integrations, and user acceptance testing.
- Define business requirements, document current and future-state AR workflows, validate controls, and partner with Information Technology, Finance, Sales, Customer Service, and external vendors to ensure successful system deployment and adoption.
- Develop training materials, desktop procedures, adoption plans, and post-implementation stabilization processes to ensure AR team proficiency and consistent execution of new workflows.
- Preparing and presenting on the borrowing base consistent with the lending agreement.
- Credit and Collections Oversight
- Evaluate the financial stability and creditworthiness of potential and existing customers and set credit limits, with annual assessments, periodic reviews upon triggering events, and reviews upon contract negotiations.
- Direct collection strategy and lead escalated collection efforts, negotiate payment plans, and determine bad debt; owning the A/R aging and drive timely resolution of past-due balances to prevent accounts from aging.
- Establish measurable collection workflows, dispute escalation paths, payment follow-up cadence, and root-cause reporting to reduce aged receivables, improve cash conversion, and minimize write-offs.
- Partner with Sales and Customer Service to understand barriers to collection and resolve customer disputes, internally and externally including recurring touchpoints with commercial leads and presentation to the VP of Sales.
- Implementation of system enhancements to reduce manual statements and late fee invoices.
- Reporting and Analysis
- Forecast cash collections and prepare Days Sales Outstanding (DSO) analysis and other key performance indicators for management.
- Analyze credit, collections, and A/R aging data to track performance, identify trends, and inform reserve and revenue-related decisions.
- Build and maintain AR dashboards and reporting packages that track cash application accuracy, billing cycle times, dispute aging, collection effectiveness, DSO, bad debt exposure, and system adoption metrics.
- Work with senior management to assess required reserves.
- Develop, maintain, and continuously improve policies, procedures, desktop instructions, and internal controls related to accounts receivable operations.
EMPLOYEE QUALIFICATIONS:
- Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration, or related field required.
- Minimum of 7 years of accounts receivable experience, required
- Credit and collections, or related accounting experience, preferred
- At least 3 years of supervisory or team-lead experience.
- Proficient in Microsoft Office products, particularly Excel.
- JD Edwards (JDE) experience preferred.
- Experience supporting ERP or financial system implementations, upgrades, integrations, user acceptance testing, automation initiatives, or AR process transformation strongly preferred.
- Advanced Excel and reporting skills required; experience with ERP reporting, BI tools, workflow automation, customer portals, or cash application technology preferred.
- Strong analytical, communication, and negotiation skills, with demonstrated leadership ability and effective cross-functional collaboration with Sales and Commercial teams.
