The COVID-19 pandemic has ushered in a remote working evolution. Companies, local councils and government agencies have been forced to examine and implement “home working” for the safety of their staff. Interestingly, studies show that remote workers are more productive. According to Tech Republic, France has seen total productivity increase by 113% this year, Italy by 100%, and the Netherlands by 52%. Staff get more work done. They perform better, and take fewer sick days. Cloud-based debt collection and debt recovery software are the perfect tool to boost the performance of your remote teams during these challenging times.
How to Manage Your Remote Workforce
So what are the best practices to adopt when managing a debt recovery team that is working remotely? Remote working has numerous benefits for both employers and employees, from increased productivity, improved results and a better work-life balance. However effective management is the key to getting the most from these new working arrangements. A common challenge of remote working relates to communication. So scheduling “face-to-face” meetings is important. Keep in touch with your employees often; check in with them and keep up communication channels. Secondly, access to information is vital. Debt recovery software can fill this gap impeccably. Serving as a unified location for a consistent, accurate and holistic view of debtors. Cloud-based debt collection software can be accessed from anywhere at any time. So the important information that is so vital to your debt recovery pursuits can be accessed, in real time, by all your employees.
Thirdly, focus on collaboration and collaborative tasks. This way your employees won’t feel isolated socially, and will continue to feel empowered and enthused about their work. Leading debt collection software can split collection teams by client or product type to concentrate maximum agent experience and knowledge. Also, instant messaging and chat is a great way to pursue your debtors. But it’s likely to be your employees favoured method of communication too.
Real Time Management
With your workers operating remotely it can be challenging to have an accurate assessment of how they’re operating and how productive they’re being. Cloud-based debt recovery software ensures agents follow a prescribed collections strategy, and meet all compliance regulations, which have increased considerably since the start of the pandemic. Importantly cloud-based debt collections software can monitor and resolve all client correspondence and improve customer service. Furthermore, having a single-view of debt system will allow councils and government agencies to have a holistic view of arrears for customers who owe multiple debts to a council. With remote working, agent to agent interaction is reduced, as is cross-departmental communication. So a single unified portal outlining an individuals’ total debt can be a vital resource.
The onset on the COVID-19 virus has compelled companies en masse to adopt a new way of working. If you’re looking for advanced debt recovery and debt collection software to empower your remote workforce, get in touch with LATERAL today and enjoy a free demo.