Third Party Collection Industry....Growing and Growing and Growing...

Did you know the credit and collections industry has more than doubled over the past seventeen years?

It's no surprise, considering the hike in American consumer debt. Hoffman, Brinker and Roberts say the average household's credit card debt in 1990 was $2,966. In 2007 it was $9,840. Of that group, 40 percent are "revolvers" who accrue penalties and additional interest fees— in fact, $18.1 billion in late fees alone.

As of August 2008, total consumer credit debt exceeded $880 billion. Just like anything else, when there is demand for a service, someone provides it. Enter the third party credit and collections industry. Here are some interesting facts:

• Nearly $40 Billion in bad debt was collected and returned to businesses on a commission basis in 2005. (source: ACA International)
• In that year, the credit and collections industry actually lowered private-sector bad debt by 22 percent, a sum equal to 3 percent of U.S. corporate profits for the year.
• Collectors actually put more money back in the average citizen's wallet by helping merchants avoid increasing prices to cover more significant losses.

Data from PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP shows that the third-party collection industry directly employs more than 150,000 people and more than 450,000 people indirectly. At the current rate of growth, it will be all hands on deck for many years to come.

Is your current staff up to challenge? How will you meet the demand for talented employees... from CEO's to collection team leaders?

The best candidates can be hard to find. If you are a collection agency, law firm, debt buyer, financial institution or any receivable outsourcing group... consider a close alliance with a reputable, responsive recruiting firm that understands your industry and can tailor its process to your hiring tendencies.