So with Christmas around the corner and New Years in sight, I thought I would try to provide some predictions and what 2024 may look like for the Credit industry.
As we know, the future is never certain.. but trends and patterns in today’s industry provide us with insight into the direction that we will see the industry move next year..
So with a challenging 2023 behind many of us, what will the next 6 months look like - here are my thoughts and suggestions on where the credit management and collections industry will need to focus on for a successful start to 2024.
Technology
I predict the most important area of the industry will be the use of technology and increased software capability. This was a trend throughout 2023 and will likely continue in 2024, with more organisations relying on digital tools and automation to manage their credit operations. AI and machine learning advances will provide businesses to automate credit tasks, such as credit decision-making and collections.
Emphasis on Customer Experience
Modern credit control and management functions recognise the need to provide a positive customer experience is essential to building long-term relationships that will continue to drive revenue and business growth. It is likely that AI, mobile apps and chatbots will continue to evolve into this customer experience space, however we may see businesses return to the human touch, interacting more to ensure that a more positive, personalised and stress free experience is received.
Regulation Changes/Updates
Regulation of the industry will likely increase in 2024, particularly in data privacy and consumer protection areas. As governments take a closer look at the industry, businesses will have to demonstrate that they can be compliant with the new regulations and stay on top of regulatory changes. Companies that can adapt and follow these regulation changes will be better positioned to succeed in the coming year.
E-Commerce Growth
As more people shop online, businesses must adapt their processes to support this. For credit functions, this means managing credit risk online using new data resources and algorithms to assess creditworthiness and prevent fraud.
Risk/Insolvency
In 2024, businesses must be prepared to manage the increased risk of insolvency among their clients and customers. In addition to robust post-insolvent skills, credit managers need to develop earlier awareness of potential insolvency by considering the strength of their credit policies, the frequency of their clients/customer monitoring and the effectiveness of analytics to assess credit risk.
It may only be possible to predict some changes for 2024. But by keeping a close eye on the trends we experienced throughout 2023 and remaining agile for the year to come, credit and collections teams should be well placed and able to respond quickly and effectively to any changes that we experience enabling them to position themselves for success in 2024 and beyond.
For more information please contact Alex Smith at:
✉ alex.smith@savantrecruitment.com
📞 07497 839858