Back last November, I left my role as AR Manager for a major Oil & Gas supply company, to become an Area Credit Manager for a Fortune 500 firm which sells construction supplies. My territory is South Texas, based in Houston. There is a Credit Manager under me who was previously an Area Credit Manager, but he took a step down a while back as he prepared for his upcoming retirement.

His territory was Windows sales in the South Texas region, plus all construction equipment in our Rio Grand Valley locations. This past week I went with him to visit the RGC locations as he was winding up his time. His last day with our company is this next Friday.

Most business people understand the sometimes-difficult relationship between Sales/Ops and Credit. But any good AR/Credit manager will remind their team to respect the value of Sales reps and to treat them with courtesy and be helpful whenever possible. Any good Sales manager understands that Credit is an ally to help them create the sale, build relationships with the customers, and solve problems together. Dean, who is the retiring manager, has known the RGV managers anywhere from eight to twenty years, and they all knew he was retiring. That was the other part of why we went. In addition to giving me the chance to meet and speak with Sales managers, they in turn would have the chance to tell Dean how much they appreciated his help over the years and to wish him well.

Some of the Sales people were very cordial and polite. One Sales manager in McAllen, for example, bought Dean an ice cream cake, which Dean appreciated and shared with everyone in that office. But that man bought the cake out of his own pocket; his boss did not even find time to say hello to me or Dean, and he sent to farewell message top Dean.

Thursday we attended a Fish Fry in Mission, where about 250 of our Sales reps and admins were in attendance. I exchanged business cards with a couple dozen reps and shook hands with about 50 or so other people, but Dean was, well, largely ignored.

Now over the years, I have always made sure to say 'thanks' and 'best wishes' to people leaving the company, especially when retiring. Out of 500 or so people who were at various places we visited last week, about 30 took the time to wish Dean well.

This next week the Houston region will hold a farewell lunch for Dean. But Ironically, most of the people in the Valley knew Dean better and longer than those in the Houston region.

So my question is, as a matter of professional courtesy, if you were aware someone in a different department was retiring, someone who had helped you more than a couple times with a problem, and who had heard you out many times when you had a complaint or issue, what would you say you owed that person as a matter of personal responsibility?

Thanks for all who answer.

If I'm reading this right, I'm not seeing so much a question of "business" ethics as one of "personal" gratitude.
Meaning, it doesn't seem we're concerning ourselves with transfer of goods, like a below cost offer of property or the giving of extravagant gifts outside of normal practice. You don't seem to suggest that anyone is trying to use personal influence to gain territories or sales opportunities to which they otherwise weren't afforded.

Sounds like your current job, and the retiring guy's job, is one of risk management or other procedural where you're faced with telling someone "no" on occasion - usually when there's a too-good-to-be-true opportunity in front of them. I could spend paragraphs showing how, without legal, we get the company sued to pieces. Without risk management, we don't get paid. Without IT, we can't connect at all.

As you say, the man worked hard to provide help to individuals and the company for a long time - even if his position as adversarial. It sounds like all the people mentioned are better at their job and in a better position because of his effort. Failing to acknowledge and thank someone who helped us is always the wrong thing to do.

Thanks Mr Tulip, you have it right. Some of this is the old truth that soon after you leave a job you will be forgotten by most, no matter how good job you do. And Risk Management has never been the career path of the fair-haired, future CEO.

By the way, one odd thing I noticed on our trip was that winds were gusting last week, forcing semi's to drift into other lanes and make driving more difficult than we liked. And there are thousands of those windmills in the Valley, but despite the wind most were not turning at all. Maybe 15% of them were working, the rest motionless.

Dean explained that it costs a lot to repair the windmills when they break, and these break really easy. Also, since they are imported from China, it's not like we can get the manufacturer to send someone out to fix them. These suckers are three times the height of a water tower, and break like a cheap toy.

Seems there is a lesson about where we are headed.

I sell a LOT of wind power parts. While I can't directly refute that statement, I can tell you most of the machines are German. It's much more likely that they weren't turning that day because there weren't any free transmission lines available. Placing power on the grid is goofy, non-intuitive process.

I'm currently writing down invoices from customers who wouldn't pay us (for one reason or another). Having the corporate guys tell me that we shouldn't sell to this customer saves me a lot of lost cash.

Mr Tulip said:

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I sell a LOT of wind power parts. While I can't directly refute that statement, I can tell you most of the machines are German. It's much more likely that they weren't turning that day because there weren't any free transmission lines available. Placing power on the grid is goofy, non-intuitive process.

I'm currently writing down invoices from customers who wouldn't pay us (for one reason or another). Having the corporate guys tell me that we shouldn't sell to this customer saves me a lot of lost cash.

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That's good. Sorry, I was going by what Dean told me about the mills.

Did seem weird to have gusty winds but motionless windmills.

But I spoke without knowledge, sorry for that.

But my main work is as a credit manager. The payment hassles I see these days are PO completion, damage complaints (maybe 40% are valid, but it's hard to prove the customer dragged windows across the ground instead of properly picking them up, for example.

I prefer to solve problems rather than wait for them to whack us. Good information, keep communication lines open with both Sales and the Customer, and make sure my team has good resources and I always back them up.

I think, after reading the OP, is I would be a bit worried about the culture of cooperation between the groups.

bularry said:

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I think, after reading the OP, is I would be a bit worried about the culture of cooperation between the groups.

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Thanks bularry, it's always been tough for Sales and Credit to see eye to eye. The CEO tells Sales they need to make their numbers, no matter what, while the CFO tells Credit we have to stay in compliance no matter what.

Eventually Sales will want something that Credit can't do, at least the way that Sales wants or in the time frame Sales wants. I have found that getting Sales reps and Credit reps to talk more to each other helps both sides understand what can be done, and work out a solution between them, but that takes adults, and not everyone wants to be an adult.

Another thing that helps is to have regular meetings where it's like Festivus, at least in the Airing of the Grievances. That is, Sales managers tell me what is driving them nuts, that I could help, and I do the same. And that helps.

For instance, I got Sales to put 'customer at counter' in email subject lines when that is the case, so we will answer those requests - such as bumping a credit limit or adding a shipping address - right away, rather than answering that email in the order it is received. Sales also has my cell number, not just the department line, so they can call me in an emergency.

It's a process.

Hear, hear!
I attempt to get my team to understand the entire process of what we do. You don't have to be able to perform it, or troubleshoot it. You have to understand what happens when things get quoted, placed on orders, shipped, received, billed, and collected. There's things that can and cannot be started or stopped at each stage. Be aware, and ask questions FIRST. You won't sneak anything past the process. All you'll do is ensure it gets bunged up until someone else has the time to fix it.

Usually, chargebacks go against the rep's commission, so it's in everyone's interest to play by the rules.

Mr Tulip said:

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Hear, hear!
I attempt to get my team to understand the entire process of what we do. You don't have to be able to perform it, or troubleshoot it. You have to understand what happens when things get quoted, placed on orders, shipped, received, billed, and collected. There's things that can and cannot be started or stopped at each stage. Be aware, and ask questions FIRST. You won't sneak anything past the process. All you'll do is ensure it gets bunged up until someone else has the time to fix it.

Usually, chargebacks go against the rep's commission, so it's in everyone's interest to play by the rules.

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Oh, yeah!

At my last job, they would pay the commission the first check after the sale, but clawback the commission if the customer failed to pay. So in some slow months, a salesman could hypothetically miss his whole paycheck, plus get a note saying he still owed money to come out of his next check.

Ouch.

So I made sure Sales managers knew who was past due at least 45 days before that clawback could happen, so the only way the salesman had a clawback was if he couldn't fix the payment problem or was too lazy to do so.

More than a couple appreciated knowing ahead of time that they could avoid that.

I'm in accounting... I deal with the struggle to green light new sales items without crushing my team with manual workarounds and half-assed IT solutions on a weekly basis. I can definitely related with the tension.

Fortunately, my team is food-motivated. Nice annual bonuses and bringing in lunch from Lupe's, Pappas or Perry's always goes over well

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I appreciate the advice and suggestions. I'm relatively inexperienced in my role, so I'm always looking for "best of breed" ideas. I'll see if I can automate the process of identifying past due accounts that are ready to impact my outside account managers' financials. That way, I can impress upon them the importance of motivating the customer!

and yeah, food always helps keep the team's morale buoyed!

Mr Tulip said:

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I appreciate the advice and suggestions. I'm relatively inexperienced in my role, so I'm always looking for "best of breed" ideas. I'll see if I can automate the process of identifying past due accounts that are ready to impact my outside account managers' financials. That way, I can impress upon them the importance of motivating the customer!

and yeah, food always helps keep the team's morale buoyed!

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The key for me is to pay attention to how long it's been since the last meal, and bring up the next one before the team asks for it.

That way I come off as inspired and thinking about the team.

Also, for some reason my team freaking loves Costco's cookie sampler. They like ice cream, they like cake, they like breakfast burritos from Chick-fil-A, but bring in a plate of Costco cookies baked less than 2 hours ago, and the cheer like you wouldn't believe.