existing services that NACM National currently offers and

exploring new programs that will support all members.”

Knox is aware he brings a different perspective to the board.

“It is a tremendous opportunity to have a small affiliate

representative serving in this leadership role. Often times we

don’t have a voice to point out how small affiliates add value

to all NACM members, and in my new role I plan to promote

discussions on what the board can do to make the local

affiliate more relevant.”

“Often our members don’t understand the difference between

the local affiliate and National,” he said. “From my perspective,

this is because as an organization we seem to have lost a level

FEB

2/3–2/7 CERTIFICATION COURSE: Financial Statement Analysis 1

2/4–2/6 NACM Heartland Ag Conference, Orlando, FL

2/6 WEBINAR: Goal Setting for the Credit Department

and Defining your Personal (Credit) Value

2/11 National Ag Retail-Ohio River Valley Region

Meeting, Evansville, IN

2/12 NACM Heartland Board Meeting, Johnston, IA

2/13 WEBINAR: LC Series—Roles and Responsibilities

of Banks in the Payment Process

2/17 NACM Heartland Steel Meeting, Kansas City, MO

2/19 National Ag Retail-Kansas Region Meeting, Hays, KS

2/24 WEBINAR: The Battle of the Forms and Contract

Issues for Credit Professionals

2/26 National Ag Retail-Minnesota Region Meeting,

Wilmar, MN

MAR

3/5 National Ag Retail—Iowa Ag Outlook 2020,

Ames, IA

3/5 WEBINAR: Credit Basics

3/9 CERTIFICATION EXAM

3/12 WEBINAR: LC Series—Letter of Credit

Documentation: How to Avoid Discrepancies

3/13 National Ag Retail-Great Lakes Region, Angola, IN

APR

4/7 WEBINAR: Managing a Credit Team

4/9 WEBINAR: LC Series—Choosing the Right INCOTERMS

for Letters of Credit: Why International Commercial

Terms Matter and the Role They Play

4/17 Paperwork Deadline for June 14 Certification Exam

PUBLISHED BY

Knox: Bringing Small Affiliate Passion to the National Board

ON JAN. 1, 2020, LONG-TIME NACM

HEARTLAND BOARD MEMBER TY KNOX

BECAME CHAIRMAN OF THE NACM

NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS.

FEBRUARY 2020

>> NEXT PAGE

CALENDAR

Knox is the first member of the NACM Heartland affiliate to

hold this position and only the second Heartland member to

serve on the national board, the first was our current COO

Kevin Quinn, CCE, who served from 2012-2015.

“This is a true honor,” Knox said of being elected as chairman.

“It’s an amazing opportunity to work with a board of credit

professionals who are focused on making enhancements to

HEARTLAND

HEAD LINER

NEW MEMBERS Ag Partners Coop

Legacy Seed Companies

Premier Companies

Central Farmers Co-Op, Inc.

DESIGNATIONS

Brent Pidgeon

Spencer Bakerink

Congratulations to our members who

received the Credit Business Associate

(CBA) designation!

Many of our NACM Heartland members are also members

of ICE Credit Exchange, a robust data analytics service

providing access to fresh payment data. The ICE team

recently rolled out a new public facing website, as well as

made some cosmetic changes to the actual database.

The public website now includes a weekly blog featuring

a variety of topics and includes “how to” posts that help

members better use the site and database. Recent blogs

include taking a closer look at the subtabs that make up

the Pulse (as in keep your finger on the pulse of your A/R

portfolio) tab.

The public site also makes it easier for prospective

members to learn more about the benefits and features of

the ICE database, as well as our credit exchange groups.

In keeping with the changes to the look of the new site,

the ICE team updated the logo to better reflect the

progressive nature of the ICE Credit Exchange. With the

logo came new colors as well, which where implemented

in the database.

All of these changes were to improve usability of both

sites. As always, the team continues to work towards

implementing features that add value to your ICE

membership.

If you have any questions or suggestions, the ICE team

can be reached at ICESupport@ICECreditExchange.com.

ICE Credit Exchange rolls out new siteICECREDITEXCHANGE.COM

QUESTIONS?

Luke Kramer

Kaitlin Killinger

What do you find effective collection practices?Collections are much easier when the

credit policy is clear and written down.

We find there are fewer debates and

discussions if everyone internally is on

the same page.

We use the date to leverage. Our credit

manager has the ability to negotiate.

The third party collector does not.

We find the 10-day demand letter to be

very effective.

Using a third-party collections agency

has helped.

We change voices. Whether it is male

versus female, or simply someone else

in the department. Often that is enough

to get a response and work towards

payment.

We’ve started notifying our customers

that we report our A/R data to the

credit bureaus. The clients that pay on

time appreciate it; the ones that don’t

are informally put on notice that their

poor payment history will be available

to other vendors.

After an account goes to collections, how do you handle sales going forward?As it is written in the credit policy, we

will only accept prepaid orders.

NACM HEARTLAND HEADLINER // FEBRUARY 2020

32

Best Practices Lunch + Learn Recap

Miss our popular lunch and learn where credit professionals share best practices and critical information? We took notes and provide the highlights.

of servicing. NACM Heartland members

know who Maggie Bessenbacher and

Kevin Quinn are. They know how to

reach them and know they are there

to assist. I can’t tell you the number of

times I hear how those two have gone

above and beyond to help a member.

I’d like to see every NACM member have

that same experience.”

Knox believes this type of service is a

significant reason why NACM Heartland

continues to see membership growth

year after year. “I believe the personal

touch is the difference between us and

some of the larger affiliates,” he said.

After leading the strategic planning

for Heartland for several years, Knox

hopes to add more structure around the

strategic planning process at the national

level. Not surprisingly, this includes

adding measurable objectives on how to

better serve members.

“As a board, we need to begin a

conversation that better defines the

roles of National and the affiliates, as

well as how do we serve today’s credit

professional. We need to find the answer

on how will NACM be successful into

the future. It’s been awhile since we’ve

had a product or service that has been

disruptive in a positive way.”

The certification process might be

one place to start. With continuing

advances in technology, Knox wonders

if the certification process needs to be

tweaked. He also discussed ways to

ensure the education being developed

addresses the needs of both the largest

and the smallest members.

“The credit department is not static, nor

is it one size-fits all. It’s always evolving

to meet the unique needs of the various

industries, size of company and where

they are located. We need to make sure

we are keeping up,” Knox said. “NACM

has the ability to add value on so many

levels. It’s really exciting.”

Knox was featured in the January issue of

Business Credit Magazine, which can be found

at nacm.org/business-credit-magazine.html.

+ Director of Credit and Risk, EFCO Corp. His

role goes beyond credit collections to risk

management for international business. He’s

responsible for invoicing and contracting

departments and anything that is associated

with risk including contract, product liability, etc.

+ Earned International Certified Credit Executive

(ICCE) in January 2019.

+ Has more than 22 years in the credit profession.

+ Long-time board member NACM Heartland.

Elected to National board of directors in 2017.

+ Graduated from Iowa State with a BA in

Communication and Business.

+ Graduated from William Penn University with a

Master’s in Business Leadership.

HEARTLAND BOARD AWARDS TWO

Credit Congress Scholarships

Two NACM Heartland members, SPENCER BAKERINK and LORI HILL, were awarded with full

delegate scholarships for the 2020 Credit Congress

in Las Vegas. These scholarships are made available

each year by the Heartland board of directors.

A full delegate scholarship includes access to the

keynote speakers, educational breakouts and expo.

Spencer is a credit analyst for Helena Agri-Enterprises, LLC. He

recently obtained his Credit Business Associate (CBA) designation

and plans on working towards his Credit Business Fellow (CBF)

and Certified Credit Executive (CCE) designations.

Lori is retail credit manager for MFA, Incorporated. While she

is new to trade credit, she has a background in banking and is

looking forward to the variety of educational opportunities.

>> CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

We’ve put together a different pricing

structure. Why should someone I have

had to spend time tracking down get

preferential treatment.

Often, we’ll shrink the line of credit.

They will have the opportunity to

expand it in the future, but they have

to show they will abide by our

payment policies.

The credit application process is getting lengthy and difficult to manage. What are you doing to make it easier?It is important to get the sales team

more involved. They are motivated to

get the customer on board, so they

can help run down the information,

especially filling in the bank and trade

narrative information filled out.

Is anyone using Docusign or electronic contracts?It’s a great solution. People can’t get

into the document unless authorized

and it is web-based, making it easier to

get the contracts signed quickly.

Does your company accept Venmo or Paypal?Editor’s note: There was quite a bit

of silence around the room, but as

one participant said, “I am open to

accepting payments if it will get the

customer to pay on-time. So, yes, I

use both but not often.”

FEBRUARY

lunch+learn

Des Moines Golf and Country Club1600 Jordan Creek Parkway West Des Moines, Iowa

COST: $45 members | $55 non-members

Join Stephen Tyler, an attorney from Whitfield and Eddy, as we discuss how and when to prepare a small claims case. We’ll cover:

Is Small Claims Court the right solution?> How much can I sue for?> Is there way to resolve my problem

without going to small claims court?

What you need to file a lawsuit> How to file > The timeline of a small claims case > Documents needed> Associated fees Judgment into Cash> Can you still settle after a judgment? > We just want our money. What are

the next steps?

The Ins and Outs of Small Claims Court

THURSDAY

FEB 1311:30 am – 1:30 pm

RSVP

RSVP online at www.nacmheartland.com/event-calendar.cfm

ABOUT TY KNOX