Job Description

Starke Ayres is the foremost African specialist and global supplier of premium vegetable, flower and lawn seed varieties - both for commercial and home garden planting. The following position has become available for a National Credit Manager, based in Kempton Park/Cape Town. The purpose of this role is to oversee efficient collection of debt and to assume overall responsibility for the company's credit granting process, including the consistent application of the credit policy, periodic credit reviews of existing customers, and the assessment of the creditworthiness of potential customers.
RESPONSIBLITIES:
Credit Risk Management

• Control the opening of all new accounts.
• Establish the credit rating/worthiness of new account applications.
• Impose limitations on credit facilities where required.
• Motivate granting of extended credit facilities where requested to the Financial Director.
• Monitor the status of all accounts on an ongoing basis.
• Adhere to company policies and procedures.

Credit Control Operations

• Authorise credit controllers' journal entries.
• Monitor reconciliations, including COD accounts, on a regular basis.
• Implement supply restrictions where accounts persist in being overdue for payment.
• Visit key/problem accounts to address issues and resolve outstanding debts.
• Address outstanding accounts with customers and solicit assistance from regions in collecting outstanding debts.
• Visit clients with Reps and managers

Collections & Legal

• Hand over outstanding accounts for collection where required and handle all legal matters and correspondence involved.
• Handle all legal matters and correspondence relating to liquidations and other bad debts.
• Make every effort to prevent any outstanding account from becoming a bad debt.
• Determine a bad debt provision for the financial year and submit a bad debt write-off list for year-end to the Financial Director.

Cash Flow & Reporting

• Produce a monthly cash flow forecast
• Generate due date monthly target goals for debt collection.
• Weekly report on target achieved to credit controllers
• Weekly report on COD to depots and monitoring of any irregularity in policy
• Monthly reporting on local and international results and ageing
• Daily monitoring of collections and bank allocations
• Monitor bank statements
• Release forex funds and request authorisation on next mandate level.

People Management & Leadership

• Appoint credit controllers and other staff within the debtors department.
• Determine the training needs of personnel within the department and implement suitable and approved training programmes.
• Evaluate the performance of departmental personnel on a regular basis.
• Motivate and support debtors personnel, always ensuring high morale and productivity.

REQUIREMENTS:
Education

• Credit Management Diploma (essential)
• B.Com Accounting (preferential)

Experience:

• 5 years as a credit controller
• 3 years as a senior credit controller
• Strong analytical, processes and procedures skills
• FMCGX/Retail experience advantageous (or systems experience)
• Time management and deadline driven

Other:

• Willing to travel