Debt Collection Finance Assistant
Fixed Term, Full Time
£23,344 Per Annum
Location: Chelmsford
Working Style: Anywhere worker
Closing Date: Sunday 19th January 2025 at 11.59pm
Please note this is a Fixed Term Contract opportunity for a period of 12 months.
This position is an Anywhere Worker role with the expectation the successful worker will attend County Hall, Chelmsford one day per week, with the set team day being a Tuesday.
Interviews will be undertaken remotely using Microsoft Teams.
Please note that this is a credit control and not an accountancy focused role. Customer interaction by phone/email is the primary function so good communication skills are essential.
The Role
Purchase to Pay (P2P) and Income aims to provide a comprehensive financial transactional and support service, maximising new and innovative technology to provide excellent customer service using a multi-skilled workforce.
Working within Income Collection to maximise the income generated for Services in Adult Social Care at Essex County Council, while ensuring effective recovery of aged debt. Finance Assistants will work with customers to ensure that their invoices for Adult Social Care services are paid promptly, with a view to arranging automated future payments including direct debits.
Experienced in working as a team member across a flexible and multi-skilled workforce, delivering excellent customer service. You will need to manage and respond to customer queries to seek resolution.
Knowledge of Income Collection processes is desirable but not essential as full training will be provided. The role requires good interpersonal and communication skills to deliver excellent customer service.
Responsibilities
* Ensure effective recovery of Adult Social Care Income.
* Work towards effectively building key stakeholder relationships and managing conversations to resolve debt issues.
* Contribute towards delivery of Key KPI’s in an effective, compassionate, and compliant manner.
* Manage queries and disputes to ensure effective resolutions.
* Negotiate payments and promote automated processes to service users to reduce the likelihood of repeated debts.
* Contribute to the delivery of the business plan for financial transactions, supporting the wider organisational vision.
* Process and manage financial transactions, following defined business processes, inputting, and interpreting data to ensure quality, consistency, accuracy, timeliness, and high performance.
* Deliver all activities to meet defined deadlines, proactively reporting any risks or issues for early resolution.
* Provide support and guidance to internal and external customers in a professional manner, ensuring adherence to financial processes, policy, and legislation.
* Carry out basic reporting, contributing to the management of organisational performance, maximising income and ensuring compliance with Financial Regulations and ECC Policies.
* Work flexibly and collaboratively across P2P and Income to deliver finance support.
* Recommend process improvements and redesign to achieve best practice and organisational efficiency.
* Maintain currency on legislation changes and translate these into local policy and procedure, identifying and reviewing potential changes in technology.
* Define specific individual and shared targets and objectives annually within the performance management framework.
The Experience You Will Bring
Essential:
* Excellent communication and interpersonal skills are essential, along with the ability to build and establish relationships.
* A good telephone manner is needed along with a firm, fair, and friendly approach.
* Ability to deliver effective administrative duties; well organised, reliable, and able to meet deadlines while appropriately handling confidential and sensitive information.
* Good competency using Microsoft Office packages including Outlook, Word, and Excel.
Desirable:
* Credit Control/Debt Collection experience.
* Some knowledge of P2P/Income systems and demonstrable accounts payable, accounts receivable, purchase to pay, and e-invoicing experience would be desirable.
* Negotiation skills.
To read more about us please visit: Corporate Services
Why Essex?
Essex County Council has a location to be proud of. Our 1,300 square miles stretch from Constable Country to the Thames Estuary, from the dynamic M11 corridor to the traditional seaside resorts of Clacton and Walton. England’s oldest town, Colchester, and two of its newest – Basildon and Harlow – are right here. Along with the City of Chelmsford, the county town, they form our major population centres, making Essex the ideal place for your career. Read more about us.
Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process.
We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.
As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC), should your role require a DBS check, you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service, please go to https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service
Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.
If you would like to be kept up to date on other relevant opportunities, blogs, news, events, and industry-related news at Essex County Council, please join The Essex Talent Community.
If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email daniel.warner@essex.gov.uk.
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