eNews Archive

A new customer is ready to place a big order, but they’re stuck waiting for credit approval. Behind the scenes, the credit team is buried in manual data entry, chasing trade references and waiting for a manager’s review. Time is lost, energy wasted and costs pile up—all without adding real value to the customer. Believe it or not, many credit departments operate this way without realizing how inefficient the process has become.   Why it matters: By applying Lean methodology, credit professionals can identify and eliminate waste to improve efficiency and focus on what truly matt…

No other department’s work impacts the day-to-day of the credit team quite like the sales department. As the credit team works to mitigate risk by carefully considering the possible ramifications of each transaction, they rely on the sales team to bring in customers. The work of each department is inextricably tied to the other, so it is only natural that sales would be credit’s closest ally when advocating for system upgrades.  Why it matters: The credit and sales departments both spend their days closely monitoring customers and transactions, albeit from different perspectives, ma…

NACM’s seasonally adjusted combined Credit Managers’ Index (CMI) for August 2025 improved 0.7 points to 55.0. “Overall, the CMI shows improvement as we hit midsummer,” said NACM Economist Amy Crews Cutts, Ph.D., CBE. “The index has not moved much over the past year but has followed a gently sloped upward trend.” The Index for Unfavorable Factors was unchanged, remaining at 50.9, marking its seventh month in expansion territory. Five of the six factors increased. Accounts Placed for Collection fell 2.2 points to 47.7, sliding further into contraction for a second month in a row. Th…

Benchmarking has long been a part of the credit management playbook. Tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) like days sales outstanding (DSO), bad debt to sales or average days delinquent (ADD) is standard practice in many credit departments.   However, in today’s fast-paced environment, simply stacking your numbers against company or industry averages isn’t enough. As one credit leader put it, “Every metric should lead to an action within the credit department—otherwise, it’s meaningless.”  Why it matters: The real value of benchmarking lies in how you use it—going…

Over the past 37 years, Robin Schauseil has witnessed tremendous growth and positive change within the NACM organization, and she is deeply grateful for the opportunity to have contributed to its success. In discussing her career, Robin said, “It has been an extraordinary privilege to serve as President of this association since 2002 and to have been part of the NACM National staff since May 1988. I am so proud of the national association we’ve built together and even more proud of how we’ve built it: with a strong sense of responsibility to each other and to the members we serve, with inte…

As technology continuously reshapes the business-to-business credit field, the risk landscape transforms as fraudsters manipulate newer technology to attack businesses. With artificial intelligence becoming more advanced, credit managers are raising their defenses against synthetic fraud as it takes on new forms each day.  Why it matters: Synthetic fraud is when fabricated credentials are used to mimic a person or business, employing a combination of AI-generated images, spoofed phone calls and falsified business information. Credit requests may come from seemingly legitimate busine…

Lien laws provide a means for subcontractors, general contractors and suppliers to protect their payment for the work they’ve furnished to job sites. Understanding each state’s unique laws for notice requirements and liens is the best way to secure payment and protect your business. The type of project dictates the procedures that must be followed, therefore the first step when working on a project is determining if you are working on a private or public project. A private job is controlled by private developers, private owners on buildings or even residential homes. A public job would b…

Extending credit is, in many ways, a calculated risk. You’re relying on your customer’s ability and willingness to pay on time, if at all. But smart credit professionals don’t move forward without clarity. By analyzing a customer’s financials, they get a clearer view of the hand they’re being dealt to make more informed credit decisions. But what happens if a customer refuses to share financials?  Why it matters: Granting credit without reviewing financials is a risky move. If financials are off the table, using alternative methods to assess a customer’s creditworthiness can help yo…