Credit Manager

The Credit Manager leads the Company's credit, collections, and accounts receivable risk management functions. This position is responsible for protecting company assets, optimizing cash flow, supporting profitable sales growth, and developing a high-performing Credit Department. The Credit Manager provides leadership and oversight for the Assistant Credit Manager and Credit Specialists/Coordinators, ensuring consistent application of company credit policies, effective collection practices, and sound credit decisions. The position requires a seasoned credit professional with strong financial acumen, exceptional communication and leadership skills, and the ability to influence decisions across all levels of the organization. The ideal candidate is a forward-thinking leader who continuously seeks opportunities to improve processes, reporting, controls, and systems while remaining effective in a highly manual operating environment utilizing AS400 and other legacy systems. This individual must demonstrate a hands‑on leadership style, balancing strategic vision with day‑to‑day operational execution. ESSENTIAL DUTIESAND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following. Other job‑related duties may be assigned. Leadership & Department Management Lead, develop, and manage the Credit Department, including the Assistant Credit Manager and three Credit Specialists/Coordinators. Establish departmental goals, performance metrics, and collection objectives aligned with company financial targets. Provide coaching, mentoring, training, and professional development opportunities for staff. Conduct performance evaluations and provide ongoing feedback to team members. Foster a culture of accountability, customer service, collaboration, and continuous improvement. Serve as the primary escalation point for significant customer, collection, and credit issues. Process Improvement & Systems Management Continuously evaluate departmental processes and identify opportunities to improve efficiency, reporting, controls, and decision‑making. Lead process improvement initiatives while recognizing and effectively operating within the constraints of a highly manual AS400‑based environment. Partner with Information Technology and Finance teams to prioritize system enhancements and workflow improvements. Develop and implement reporting tools that improve visibility into portfolio performance and collection effectiveness. Balance innovation with practical operational realities, ensuring improvements are sustainable and measurable. Credit Risk & Portfolio Management Maintain overall responsibility for the Company's customer credit portfolio and accounts receivable exposure. Review and approve significant credit limits, exceptions, and high‑risk account decisions. Evaluate customer financial statements, industry conditions, payment trends, and economic factors affecting customer creditworthiness. Establish appropriate risk mitigation strategies, including liens, letters of credit, guarantees, credit insurance, and payment security instruments. Monitor concentrations of risk and proactively identify emerging credit concerns. Collections & Cash Flow Management Direct collection strategies to improve cash flow and reduce delinquency. Review aging trends and collection metrics to identify opportunities for improvement. Lead efforts involving significant delinquent accounts, bankruptcies, workouts, and legal collections. Partner with outside attorneys, collection agencies, and financial institutions as necessary. Support business growth while maintaining disciplined credit and collection practices. Cross‑Functional Leadership & Communication Partner closely with Sales, Operations, Customer Service, Accounting, and Executive Management to balance business growth with risk management. Communicate credit decisions and risk assessments effectively to internal and external stakeholders. Present portfolio analyses, collection performance, and risk assessments to senior leadership. Build and maintain strong relationships with key customers and strategic accounts. Effectively handle difficult negotiations and sensitive customer situations. Audit & Compliance Support Serve as the primary Credit Department liaison for internal and external financial audits. Provide requested schedules, account analyses, supporting documentation, and explanations of credit and accounts receivable processes. Coordinate audit requests across the Credit Department to ensure timely and accurate responses. Review accounts receivable reconciliations, reserve analyses, customer balances, and supporting schedules provided to auditors. Assist Finance and Accounting management in responding to auditor inquiries related to customer accounts, collections, credit policies, bad debt reserves, and internal controls. SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES Directly supervises the Assistant Credit Manager and three Credit Specialists/Coordinators. Responsible for: Hiring, onboarding, training, and development. Performance management and evaluations. Work assignment and prioritization. Employee coaching and disciplinary actions when necessary. Building a collaborative and customer‑focused departmental culture. Provides leadership, direction, and accountability for all Credit Department activities. QUALIFICATIONS Must be comfortable operating in a highly manual environment and capable of driving results within legacy systems, including AS400. Extensive commercial credit, collections, and accounts receivable management experience. Demonstrated success leading credit organizations in manufacturing, industrial, distribution, or construction‑related industries. Strong leadership and people‑development capabilities. Excellent interpersonal, presentation, negotiation, and communication skills. Proven ability to build credibility and influence decisions across multiple departments and organizational levels. Strong knowledge of financial statement analysis, credit risk assessment, and commercial collections. Ability to balance customer relationships, sales support, and risk management objectives. Demonstrated experience leading process improvement initiatives. EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Business Administration, or related field preferred. 10+ years of progressive commercial credit, collections, and accounts receivable experience. 5+ years of people management experience. Experience leading teams in manufacturing, industrial, building products, or distribution environments strongly preferred. Experience managing large customer portfolios, national accounts, distributors, contractors, and retailers preferred. COMPUTER SKILLS Intermediate to advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. Previous experience with AS400 system preferred but not required. #J-18808-Ljbffr