Manager, Cash Application and Collections

Description

SUMMARY:

The Manager, Cash Application and Collections is responsible for oversight of cash-application and collections policies, procedures, and internal controls, and for providing leadership and performance management to both teams. The role owns the back half of the order-to-cash cycle: applying customer receipts accurately and on time, and converting outstanding receivables to cash. It is accountable for the health of the accounts receivable portfolio, including days sales outstanding, aged balances, credit exposure, and bad debt, and for working disputes back to their root cause rather than chasing invoices one at a time.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Oversee daily management of the Cash Application team, including the timely and accurate application of customer receipts, research of unapplied and unidentified cash, and resolution of remittance discrepancies.

• Own the Collections function and the performance of the accounts receivable portfolio, including days sales outstanding, aging, collection effectiveness, and bad debt expense.

• Establish and maintain credit and collections policy, including dunning cadence, escalation paths, credit holds, and approval thresholds, and ensure the policy is applied consistently.

• Direct collection activity on past-due accounts; negotiate payment plans within delegated authority and escalate accounts that warrant it.

• Manage customer credit review, including credit checks on new customers, periodic review of credit limits, and monitoring of concentration and exposure.

• Partner with Sales & Marketing, Real Estate and other groups, on at-risk accounts, billing disputes, and service-related non-payment, balancing recovery against the customer relationship.

• Analyze disputes and short-pays for systemic causes such as rate setup errors, billing defects, or contract mismatches, and drive corrective action upstream rather than absorbing the rework.

• Coordinate with Legal on demand letters, third-party placements, bankruptcies, and write-off recommendations.

• Own the bad debt reserve analysis and recommend reserves and write-offs for approval.

• Establish performance objectives and training plans and assist with strategic planning for both departments.

• Analyze and communicate business performance against key performance indicators and recommend specific actions to address variances.

• Review a variety of reports, documents, and online data systems to research problems.

• Reconcile monthly, quarterly, and yearly subsidiary general ledger accounts, including cash, accounts receivable, and allowance accounts.

• Partner with the Commercial team and senior management by quickly bringing issues to their attention, working to understand the root cause, and offering potential solutions.

• Serve as a consultant and subject matter expert on the financial system software supporting cash application, collections, and receivables.

• Be extensively involved in the interrelated functions of cash management, billing, and accounting.

• Support internal and external audit requests relating to receivables, cash application, and reserves.

• Manage other projects and perform other duties as assigned.

REQUIRED SKILLS AND/OR EXPERIENCE:

• Ability to prioritize and carry out daily duties in a timely and accurate manner with minimal supervision.

• Demonstrated experience in commercial collections and credit management, including negotiating payment arrangements and managing escalation.

• Sound judgment in balancing collection pressure against the commercial relationship, and in knowing when to escalate rather than persist.

• Ability to work under pressure and multitask to meet aggressive time schedules.

• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including the confidence to hold direct conversations with customers about money owed.

• Microsoft Office experience, with strong Excel skills (pivot tables, lookups, and similar functions).

• Familiarity with AI-assisted tools applied to receivables, including automated cash matching and remittance capture, payment-behavior and risk scoring, and dispute categorization, together with the judgment to validate machine-generated results before they reach a customer.

• Ability to think strategically and support business objectives.

• Proven ability to lead, coach, and develop a team across two related but distinct disciplines.

REQUIRED EDUCATION AND/OR CREDENTIALS:

• Bachelor's degree in business, finance, or accounting.

• Five to seven years of experience in cash application, collections, or credit management, including prior supervisory experience.

• Microsoft Dynamics GP (Great Plains), Microsoft Dynamics 365, and/or RMI software experience preferred.

• NACM certification (CBA, CBF, or CCE) a plus.

This position is employed by the specific entity set forth in the job posting.

Genesee & Wyoming Inc. and its subsidiary companies do not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or any other protected status under federal, state or local laws.

Equal Opportunity Employer

This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights (https://www.eeoc.gov/poster) notice from the Department of Labor.