Help me help you: Partnering with Sales and Credit

NACM Gateway’s Central Region Credit Conference and Exposition St. Charles Convention Center September 19, 2007

Dave Beckel CCE, Credit Manager MiTek Industries, Inc.

Larry Pfile International Treasury & Risk Management Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc.

Primary objective:

•

To build and maintain a strong working relationship between Credit and Sales in order to maximize revenue and company bottom-line income.

To attain this objective….

• Use key relationship building techniques • Identify how salespeople think and how they approach challenges • Build on the common goals • Implement actions to strengthen your relationship • Implement actions to strengthen your relationship • Communicate more effectively

Goals

• Sales: Sell!

• Credit: Collect!

(“A sale is not a sale until the money is in the bank”.)

Credit Research Foundation:

• Credit’s role and importance has grown • There is a heightened focus toward increasing sales and earnings • More emphasis placed on smooth management of the order to cash cycle

Credit Keys to Success

• Great people • Solid policies / procedures / processes • Excellent skills / shared knowledge • Ongoing support • Good systems • Strong credit and sales relationship

A focus on Credit’s efforts:

• Give the sales team more time to sell • Written overview of department’s role and responsibility to the company • Credit Department’s mission statement • Outline of the benefits credit provides to the sales team • Credit Directory • Department policies and procedures • Key forms the sales team uses to conduct business with credit

“Connect” with Sales:

• Invite sales to walk in

your

shoes • Visit customers together • View sales meetings as a unique opportunity to deliver a well-prepared presentation • The two greatest assets of a company are their Credit and Sales teams.

• Sales delivers revenue and credit delivers cash.

Use C.A.S.H. to strengthen your credit and sales relationship:

• • • •

C

….Communication

A

….Appreciation

S

…..Support

H

….Honesty

Summary

• Maximize cash flow and profitability • Focus on increase sales and earnings • Two greatest assets: Credit and Sales • Focus on the similarities: – Characteristics – Processes • Communicate!

• Go the extra mile….and succeed.

Contact information

David Beckel, CCE MiTek Industries, Inc P: (314) 851-8591 F: (314) 851-8529 [email protected]

Larry Pfile Anheuser-Busch Companies, Inc. P: (314) 577-2444 F: (314) 577-3675 [email protected]