Collections Webinar 8 - Collections: Why You Need to Do Something About It and Why You Need to Do It Now

Sep 16, 2026

Uploaded by Stanford

The webinar argues that delinquency, bankruptcies, and charge-offs demand immediate board and leadership attention because collections is often treated as secondary. It highlights 2005 peak indicators and explains how economic conditions are only part of the story, pointing to internal drivers like greed, poor decision-making, weak training investment, and inconsistent collection quality. Practical steps cover awareness, board education, staffing and incentives, collector attributes, and how indirect lending accelerates losses.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryPresentations

FormatPDF

Pages38

Reading Time13 min

AccessFree to download

Opening

Step #1 - Awareness

Highlights from the Following Newspaper Article

What are the Causes?

Step #1 - Conclusion

Step #2 - What Does Your Collection Department Look Like?

Attributes of a Good Collector

Staffing Requirements

Step #3 - Indirect Lending

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Rex Johnson’s
Collections-Webinar 8
Collections: Why You Need to Do Something About It and Why You Need to Do It Now!
| | --- | | Opening
• Collections is one of the very oldest professions around.
• True collectors do not want to be anything else.
• Collectors have never gotten the recognition they so richly deserved.
• Good collections is becoming a lost art.
• Credit unions with mediocre collection departments are paying big time with charge offs.
• A great collection department is like a Rembrandt or a fine wine. It’s a beauty to behold.
• Any credit union that embarks on an aggressive lending programs, such as Indirect Lending, without a great collection department should have its head examined.
• CEOs and Board of Directors need a new focus that says,“No longer will collections take a back seat but instead will lead the parade.” | | Step \#1 ~ Awareness
If you are not aware of what’s going on with delinquencies, bankruptcies and charge offs, you must not know how to read. Delinquencies and charge offs across the board hit a new high in 2005, largely fueled by bankruptcies. Make sure every Board Member and Senior Management employee in the credit union reads the following newspaper article that was printed before week 42 in 2005. Everything was in place for week 42 and hopefully we will learn and not soon forget. | | --- | | | | Note: Nowhere does it talk about:
-Greed
-Decision Making
-Quality of Collection Department |
Credit Unions on average finance 109% LTV up from 91% 3 years ago. No one talks about this. |
Personal Savings | | --- | --- | --- | | | | | | Highlights from the Following Newspaper Article:
• Credit card delinquency is the highest it’s ever been.
• 30 day delinquencies rose to 4.81% between April and June of 2005.
• The highest delinquencies since they started tracking in 1973.
• The previous quarter was also the highest, jumping from 4.2% to 4.76% .
• Automobile loan delinquencies rose from 1.87% to 2.08% in the 2nd quarter of 2005.
• Home equity delinquencies rose from 2.61% to 2.75% in the 2nd quarter of 2005.
• Bankruptcy filings have increased since 1984 from 291,000 filings to 1.56 million in 2004. In 2005, bankruptcies exceeded 2 million for the first time ever.
• Personal savings fell to a negative $59, they were +$404 in 2004.
You Must Educate Your Board of Directors and Staff. | | --- | | What are the Causes?
According to the newspaper article, they are:
• Rising interest rates.
• Rising credit card payments, now the minimum is 4%, up from 2% and members struggled to pay 2% .
• Decline in personal salaries.
• Stagnant salaries.
• Loss of jobs.
• Increased cost in basic necessities such as:
- Gasoline
- Healthcare
- Housing
- Education
The fact of the matter is many of our members have been living on inflated income for several years. This was caused by constantly refinancing their homes because home values sky rocketed and they were living off that equity. | | Notice everything they are talking about is external: the economy, the high fuel cost, etc…
No one is looking at the internal, such as:
• Greed (credit card companies, car dealers, payday lenders, credit union’s courtesy pay, etc…) .
• Decision making, credit unions are spending the money to train their employees.
• Quality of collection work, collections has been a necessary evil and has never gotten the attention it should.
Now the day of accountability is here, we’d better make sure we are ready. | | --- | | Step \#1 ~ Conclusion
Recognizing and admitting the problem is the first big step in finding solutions. So what can you do?
– Require your Board of Directors and Senior Management to view this webinar and act accordingly. You cannot let collections continue to sit in the back seat. Collections has to become your \#1 priority. (This webinar is archived for at least 90 days.) |

FAQs

Why should credit union CEOs and boards prioritize collections now?

Because delinquency, bankruptcies, and charge-offs have reached new highs, collections can no longer sit in the back seat. The webinar stresses leadership accountability and immediate action.

What does the webinar say are the main causes behind rising delinquencies and charge-offs?

It cites external factors like rising interest rates and higher essential costs, but emphasizes internal causes such as greed, decision-making issues, insufficient attention to training, and weak collection quality.

How should a collection department be evaluated and improved?

The webinar advises reviewing staffing levels, employee qualifications and training, compensation and incentives, recognition compared to lenders, and whether a Vice President of Collections exists and reports properly.

Sep 16, 2026

Uploaded by Stanford