Credit Controller in Burnley

Hybrid working - Oldham

Salary: up to £32k plus bonus

The Role

Stepping into our Collections team, you won't just be chasing arrears—you will be a frontline defender of our business. Reporting directly to the Collections & Recoveries Manager, you will take ownership of default prevention and early‑stage recoveries, predominantly managing accounts within the crucial 30‑60 day arrears window. You will balance a firm, authoritative commercial approach with the ability to treat customers fairly, navigating challenging conversations to confidently secure timely repayments to minimise the need for formal escalation.

The Impact You Will Make

• Protect the Ledger: Proactively tackle credit control issues to prevent customer agreements from reaching termination, focusing heavily on early intervention and default prevention within the 30‑60 day arrears window.
• Investigate & Track: Go beyond standard letters and calls. When customers go silent, you will proactively utilise original underwriting files and initial application data to trace, investigate, and re‑establish contact.
• Drive Recoveries: Actively engage customers via phone, email, and letter to secure acceptable resolutions and keep accounts out of delinquency.
• Negotiate & Resolve: Structure, negotiate, and rigorously enforce realistic repayment plans.
• Take Ownership of Legal & Systems: Manage MCOL (Money Claims Online) files from end to end, and play a hands‑on role in the testing and optimisation of our internal systems, particularly Aspire by LTi.
• Manage Risk: Act as the eyes and ears of the department, identifying and advising management on potential customer default risks before they escalated.
• Foster Team Dialogue: Maintain open, active communication with the wider Collections team. We succeed together, so you will be expected to share insights, discuss challenging cases, and collaborate on recovery strategies.
• Ensure Compliance & Care: Uphold strict collections policy guidelines and legal requirements, ensuring all actions, disputes, and payments are accurately recorded while maintaining sympathetic but firm customer care.
• Collaborate: Step up to provide cover for early arrears or other business areas when required by management.
• Other Duties: Any other reasonable tasks at the request of the management and provide cover for other areas of the business at the request of the management.

Who We Are Looking For

• Experienced in Finance: You bring a minimum of three years of credit control experience within a similar financial organization and are highly familiar with the SME/B2B market.
• Tenacious & Investigative: You don't give up when a customer ignores a call. You possess the investigative mindset to dig into data, find alternative contacts, and pursue silent accounts until a resolution is reached.
• Commercially Astute: You possess strong reasoning, excellent numeracy, and the sharp decision‑making skills required to resolve disputes efficiently.
• A Master Communicator: You are entirely comfortable having difficult conversations. You have an excellent telephone manner and the ability to build robust, professional relationships with our introducers, suppliers, and service providers.
• Driven & Autonomous: You are self‑motivated, thrive under the pressure of strict SLAs, and manage your time flawlessly with an exacting attention to detail.
• A Proactive Problem‑Solver: You don't just follow a process; you identify opportunities for improvement and are enthusiastic about taking on varied tasks to support the wider business.

Benefits & Perks

• Financial Rewards: Discretionary annual bonus of up to 10%.
• Flexible Working: Hybrid setup allowing up to 2 days working from home per week, available upon successful completion of your probation and training period.
• Time Off: 25 days annual leave (3 to be held for the Christmas closure), plus you get your birthday off.
• Work Environment: Modern, recently converted offices that are easily accessible, located close to the motorway, bus routes, and tram links. Free on‑site.