Day in the life of an Operations Professional

In a freewheeling chat with Scott Morris, Managing Member at Tromberg, Morris & Poulin, PLLC, we discussed what a usual day looks like for an Operations Professional in a Collections Law Firm. For an Operations Professional, tracking the effectiveness of processes with the help of KPIs like placement volume, agent scorecards and attorney reviews etc. combined with full oversight of business performance is important. These are one of the major responsibilities of an Operations Professional – and, to fulfill them effectively using a BI solution is critical. A BI solution not only helps Operations professionals track the performance indicators of different processes – but also helps them use these indicators to identify gaps to improve their performance. With the help of a BI solution, an Operations Professional can focus on strategic planning using data driven insights. 

“We truly value our partnership with Provana. Whenever we go to them with a problem, they always have solution to that problem for us. We don’t have to do any kind of heavy lifting. They are ARM industry experts and know how to mold BI platform in a way that is relevant for us.” 

Scott Morris, Managing Member, Tromberg, Morris and Poulin, PLLC 

 

Question: What is the first thing you do as soon as you log into your computer? 

Answer: My day starts with looking into Provana’s BI solution – our collection placement volume, performance of our clients, daily trends, placement volume, monitor revenue drivers i.e., number of suits and judgements processed and how many of them are turning into payers, portfolio analysis using scorecards. I, then use these insights to identify specific issues and take actionable steps to correct them. 

The real beauty of Provana’s BI solution is its’ relevance across different levels of management. The top management uses BI to get a holistic view of business performance while the middle or junior level management is focused on monitoring account level information – identify exceptions, extract files and address any issues. 

 

Question: What are the major KPIs that you track? 

Answer: We track and monitor different KPIs –  

• daily and monthly collection volume 
• gross and net liquidation 
• monthly placements volume and average balance value 
• different scorecards – attorney review, collector performance, process scorecards etc. 

 

Question: How have you used these KPIs to improve your business performance? 

Answer: One instance where we applied KPIs is with our process servers. We were able to show a lower performing process server company their KPI’s against their champion challenger and let them know that they are not meeting the expectations. This helped us set clear expectations and benchmark performance standards. 

Provana’s BI solution also gives us the ability to track the number of garnishments and send an alert to our Enforcement team if there is any difference between accounted money v/s actual money received. With this insight, our Enforcement team has been able to track lost checks or a Sheriff’s failure to remit and plug other process loopholes resulting in revenue leakage. 

 

Question: What made you decide to partner with Provana? 

Answer: The one thing that impressed us about Provana is the top leadership that have worked in the ARM and receivables industry for decades and know exactly what we want in terms of BI to drive value to our business.  Provana has leadership who has experience standing in my shoes and is able to understand the needs and wants of our industry. 

 

Question: After using Provana’s BI solution, what are some of the benefits that you have experienced? 

Answer: With the BI solution, we get near real time automated reports that has resulted in time and cost savings. The biggest advantage of using BI is it gives total visibility and helps understand the pulse of your business. For example, if I see any red flags in the placement volume, I can immediately send it to the relevant team and ask about it. This helps me to understand problems and also find solutions on the fly rather than waiting for someone on my team to do manual data crunching, convert raw data into insights and then share the report with me.  

Identifying issues and their solution in time helps me take decisions faster linked to revenue and performance enhancement. 

 

Question: What do your clients think about using BI? 

Answer: All our clients understand the value of BI and its ability to make meaningful impact to their business. They have embraced data analytics in their daily operations and expect their partners to do the same. With the help of Provana’s BI platform, we have been able to help our clients keep track of compliance and liquidation metrics and identifying areas of opportunities and risks. 

 

Question: Do you have plans to apply insights from Provana’s BI solution in other areas including performance monitoring? 

Answer: Yes, absolutely. Apart from performance monitoring, we want to use BI for compliance and risk management. We are working with the Provana team to pivot the BI platform to help us in internal audits, identify gaps and take pro-active remedial actions, where applicable. 

 

Question: In terms of consumer data security, what has been your experience working with Provana? 

Answer: We don’t share NPI (Non-Public Personal Information) data with Provana. But having said that, Provana has been able to show us that they have a strong IT and data security infrastructure in place, especially in their outsourcing business. They have passed many rigorous industry certifications like the NCBA subcontractor assessment process  (NCBA Subcontractor Oversight Program), RMAI etc. which is a proof that they are a trusted partner using industry standard best practices to manage data. 

With Provana’s BI solution, I have data at my fingertips anytime, anywhere. My decision making has become faster and more informed as I have all the insights to identify the gaps and take corrective actions.” said Scott.