ACA International Certifies Agencies to Management System

Eight collection agencies have recently earned certification through the Professional Practices Management System (PPMS) program offered by ACA International, the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals.

?Since the implementation of the program in March 2000, 333 attendees representing 214 agencies have gone through training in the 12 sessions held across the country,? said Ted Smith, ACA International?s Vice President of Programs. ?In March 2002, ACA held its first international PPMS seminar in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, to an eager audience of collection professionals. We hope this enthusiasm will continue as more and more agencies learn about this beneficial program.?

PPMS is a management system for collection agencies based on developing, implementing and adhering to a set of industry-specific professional practices and policies. Designed to educate participants on the demands facing the collection industry, and in the long run, help them to become more profitable, PPMS is not a prescriptive program, but instead allows agencies the freedom to define its own procedures at its own pace.

?PPMS has provided our industry with a complete organizational solution,? said John Rockhill, Chair of ACA International?s PPMS Committee. ?By documenting our procedures and work instructions, we can both train new staff and perform our tasks much more uniformly. With our regular auditing program, we become aware of errors and potential major problems much sooner and before other people can bring them to our attention.?

Other agency benefits from earning PPMS certification include: improved client satisfaction, increased efficiency and profitability and stronger internal communication. The eight agencies to earn PPMS certification as of August 2002 include: AMCOL Systems, Inc., Columbia, S.C.; A.R. Systems, Inc., Phoenix, Ariz.; Collection Bureau of Lawrence, Inc., Lawrence, Kan.; Conserve, Fairport, N.Y.; FMA Alliance, Ltd, Houston, Texas; MCB Collection Services, Inc., with offices in Vero Beach and Clearwater, Fla.; State Collection Service, Inc., with offices in Madison and Belloit, Wis.; and Williams & Fudge, Inc., Rock Hill, S.C.

For more information on PPMS certification, contact the PPMS staff at (952) 926-6547 or .

ACA International, formerly known as the American Collectors Association Inc., is the association of credit and collection professionals. Founded in 1939, ACA International has approximately 5,300 members, including third-party collection agencies, attorneys, credit grantors and vendor affiliates. Headquartered in Minneapolis, ACA serves members in the United States, Canada and 58 other countries worldwide. For more information visit our Web site at www.acainternational.org.