Managing Customer Deductions - Take Control of Deductions

Seattle – Courtyard by Marriott, Downtown Seattle, WA
September 17, 2008

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The Credit Research Foundation is pleased to present this “can’t miss” workshop on deduction management strategies and best practices in association with well known deductions experts, Jessica Butler of Attain Consulting Group and Ken Green of IAB Solutions.  This interactive workshop will provide attendees with practical tips and advice in the following areas:

 

Take Control of Deductions

 

The Credit Research Foundation in collaboration with Jessica Butler of Attain Consulting Group is pleased to offer this one-day workshop on Managing Customer Deduction to help companies Increase Profitability by Reducing & Controlling Deductions.

 

This interactive program is designed to provide attendees with tips, strategies, insights and best practices in many areas of deduction management so that they can raise the level of deduction management within their company, and improve trading partner relationships.  Incorporating case studies, practical advice, role play and group exercises, Jessica Butler will share her proven deduction management solutions and provide attendees with a Roadmap to Recovery.

 

The following provides a brief overview of the deduction topics which will be addressed during the workshop.  To provide individual attendees with as much value as possible, there will be numerous opportunities during the workshop for attendees to discuss specific deduction issues and challenges facing their organization.

 

Deduction Basics

§         The difference between chargebacks & deductions

§         Different types of deductions

§         Overview of the deduction process

§         Best practice snapshots

§         Keys to deduction management success

Negotiation Tips & Strategies

§         Negotiation as joint problem solving

§         Negotiation checklists

§         Nonverbal communication

§         Words to use and words to avoid

§         Open & closed ended questions

§         What to do when people say “no”

Attendee Role-Playing to practice negotiation strategies

Successful Customer Settlement Strategies

§         Different types of settlements

§         The 7 steps to successful settlements

§         Tips & strategies for each step in the settlement process

§         Relevant case studies

Building Effective Cross Functional Teams

§         Group survey regarding cross-functional teams

§         Structuring cross-functional teams to manage deductions

§         Common challenges in cross-functional success

§         4 critical components of successful cross-functional teams

§         Template to use for your teams

Measuring Performance & Managing Vendor Scorecards

§         Balanced scorecard approach to measuring deduction performance

§         Review of numerous deduction report formats

§         Managing multiple vendor scorecards

§         Creating a scorecard snapshot

Deduction Benchmarks – Results of the 2006 CRF Customer Deduction Survey

§         Summary of responding companies – over 420 companies across 29 different industries

§         Effect of Sarbanes-Oxley on deductions

§         Deduction metrics

§         Deduction processes

§         Deduction policies

§         Actions taken by companies to prevent/recover deductions

§         Managing post audit claims

 

Jessica Butler, Principal, Attain Consulting Group

Jessica Butler is the founder of Attain Consulting Group, a deduction and chargeback management advisory firm. Creating Attain in 2004 after discovering her passion and talent for helping companies reduce chargebacks & deductions, Attain provides practical, experience-based solutions to companies looking to minimize dilution due to compliance violations and at the same time, work towards improving trading partner relationships.  Helping companies “Take Control of Deductions”, Attain Consulting Group offers a wide variety of services covering all areas of the deduction management process. 

 

Jessica recently started providing online deduction education through Attain Academy, an innovative web-based learning tool providing companies with the knowledge and training they need to take control of deductions.  Known throughout the industry as a expert and thought leader in the area of deduction management as well as negotiation, Jessica is frequently published and is a highly sought after speaker at conferences and seminars 

 

A former partner with the International Accounting & Management Advisory firm of Grant Thornton, LLP, Jessica has over 22 years of consulting experience and has dedicated most of the past decade focusing exclusively in the area of deduction and chargeback management.  Jessica is a CPA and received her MBA from New York University. 

Jessica can be reached at (201) 280-4773 or jbutler@attainconsultinggroup.com

 

Kenneth E. Green, President, IAB Solutions LLC

Kenneth E. Green has been President of IAB Solutions LLC for the past fifteen years. Previous to this, he gained extensive experience in sales promotion, vendor relations, merchandising and all aspects of finance and control both for small and large national retailer chains and manufacturers. He has presented at many national, state and local credit and customer financial service organizations specifically on the subject of accounts receivable outsourcing, deduction resolution best practices, and chargeback recovery. He has been named as one of the fifty most influential people in the credit industry by Credit Today.  

His educational background includes an undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a Masters in Business Administration from Columbia University, with additional graduate credits from Hofstra University. He plays an active role in local and national credit and customer financial service organizations, as well as with local community organizations. Ken is located at IAB's corporate offices in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania.

Ken can be reached at (570) 585-5202 or kgreen@iabinc.com

 

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