Collections Specialist

Job Description

Job Description

The Recovery Representative is responsible for resolving bank-returned payments associated with Paychex FSA, Health & Benefits, 401(k), debit card, and other ancillary products. This is a high-volume, client-facing role that combines collections, account research, problem resolution, and customer service.

The representative will work directly with clients to understand why a payment or debit was unsuccessful, recover outstanding funds, and educate clients on steps they can take to help prevent future bank returns. The role requires confidence handling challenging financial conversations while maintaining a professional, service-oriented approach.

Required Qualifications

• Previous collections experience.
• Associate degree or higher.
• Previous experience working directly with customers or clients.
• Experience handling inbound phone calls in a professional environment.
• Ability to confidently navigate difficult or potentially escalated client conversations.
• Ability to work effectively in a high-volume, fast-paced environment with limited downtime.
• Strong computer skills and ability to learn multiple systems and processes.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office, including Word and Excel.
• Professional verbal and written communication skills.

Nice to Have Qualifications

• Banking or financial services experience.
• Previous call center experience.
• Experience in finance, accounting, payroll, or payment processing.
• Sales experience, particularly experience overcoming objections or discussing payments with customers.
• Bachelor's degree.
• Experience researching payment failures, returned transactions, or banking issues.
• Familiarity with FSA, Health & Benefits, 401(k), payroll, or related financial products.
• Experience working in a metric-driven environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Handle inbound calls and resolve bank returns, failed debits, and outstanding balances.
• Research and process new and pending returned items across products such as FSA, Health & Benefits, 401(k), and debit card programs.
• Recover as much lost revenue as possible while providing quality service to internal and external customers.
• Handle client objections and work returns through completion using established guidelines.
• Educate clients on return reasons, prevention, and alternate service or resolution options when appropriate.
• Evaluate client status and available services while helping mitigate financial risk.
• Maintain required daily call activity and accurate account documentation.
• Develop working knowledge of applicable Paychex products and systems.
• Participate in ongoing training to strengthen product and process knowledge.
• Follow department procedures and applicable requirements, including FDCPA and NACHA guidelines.