Manager Customer Service

John Darrell Cruse

**** ********* *** . ****** *******, GA 30127

Home 770-***-**** . Office 404-***-**** . Cell 770-***-****

***************@*****.***

PROFILE

Diverse experience in Credit; including collections, cash applications,

accounts receivable, revenue management, payment processing, contract

maintenance, accounts payable, and payroll, as well as forecasting, account

reconciliations, financial reporting, general ledger maintenance and

research. Effective planning and time management abilities, top-rated

customer service and relations skills, and excellent verbal/written

communication skills.

KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Implemented advanced monthly reporting to track and disclose forecasted

revenue, actual revenue, and completed billing for Senior Management.

Revised and enhanced the revenue recognition process to aid with obtaining

a 5 day month end close.

Improved the completion time in the Contract to invoice process by 24

hours.

Effectively tracked all company hours each month to assure that all

utilized hours were properly billed and the revenue recognized.

Became certified in 2006 as a Green Belt in the Six Sigma program. Applied

the principals to reduce company returned mail items from a monthly average

of 62,053 down to 29,785.

Successfully reduced the number of lockbox suspense or exception items

received by 45% in a two-year period. Also reduced the number of in house

checks received from 12,670 in 2003 to 2,815 in 2005 by educating the

customer and converting many to ACH and EFT payment methods.

Reconciled a Return Item general ledger account from $2,790,000.00 down to

$40,893.00. Streamlined and simplified the reconciliation process for the

staff.

Managed the conversion of a Lockbox function from one vendor to another

from the beginning RFP phase, through legal/contract negotiations, and

through to completion of the project. The conversion saved the company a

minimum of $200,000 annually. It also reduced the number of exception

items by over 60% and moved the company to a paperless, on line process for

handling exception items.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

2008 to Present - Manager of Billing, Contracts & Accounts Receivable.

Tatum, LLC, Atlanta, GA

. Implemented advanced monthly reporting to track and disclose

forecasted revenue, actual revenue, and completed billing

. Completion of monthly Revenue Recognition and associated GL entries

and reconciliations.

. Improved the completion time in the Contract to invoice process by one

day.

. Instrumental in reducing company AR over 90 days by 45% within a 6

month period.

2007 to 2008 - Manager of Financial Controls, Crawford and Company,

Atlanta, GA

. Managed the Reimbursement team of five accounting analysts and one

team lead within the Loss Fund Accounting Department.

. Was ultimately responsible for the billing, cash applications,

collections, and management of over 2,650 clients and maintaining a

monthly account balance of over $90,000,000.00 to pay out insurance

claims and settlements on behalf of the clients.

. Was responsible for the daily, weekly, and monthly balancing and

reporting, daily review of large dollar checks with penalties, and

reviewing delinquent and deficit balance accounts.

Reason for leaving: Commute distance and time were too long. Offered

Management position with Tatum, LLC.

2007 to 2007 - A/R & Billing Manager, Witness Systems, Inc., Roswell, GA

. Managed a team of six collectors and three billing analysts.

. Audited monthly statements, reconciled and balanced general ledger

accounts.

. Handled customer escalations and conducted customer site visits when

needed.

Reason for leaving: Witness Systems, Inc. was purchased by Verint Systems

on February 12, 2007 and department was downsized.

2003 to 2007 - Payment Processing Manager, Earthlink, Inc., Atlanta, GA

. Set up and managed all payment processing options and methods within

the company, including Check, EFT, Credit Card, ACH, Bill Me Later,

Bank Draft, PayPal, LEC Billing, Western Union Quick Pay and Flex Pay.

. Oversaw Lockbox operations and managed relationships with the

company's payment-processing vendors.

. Managed a Cash Applications Supervisor and Cash Applications Analyst.

. Responsible for departmental GL reconciliations, reporting, special

projects, SOX compliance, and improvements to department efficiencies.

Reason for Leaving: Completed BA Degree, and was offered Management

position with Witness Systems, Inc.

2003 to 2003 - Cash Applications Supervisor, Suntory Water Group, Mableton,

GA (Contract)

. Managed a cash applications team of fourteen representatives who were

responsible for processing and posting an average of 50,000 to 75,000

lockbox exception checks per month.

. Implemented processes and controls to improve the operation of the

department.

Reason for leaving: Assignment ended and also accepted a full time position

with Earthlink, Inc.

2002 to 2003 - Invoice Processing Analyst, ACS, Inc., Roswell, GA

(Contract)

. Coded, researched and processed all Telecommunication invoices.

. Assured that entries were made to correct GL codes.

. Special projects, such as reconciliations and research involving large

dollar credits due ACS from major Telecommunication vendors.

Reason for leaving: Assignment ended.

2001 to 2002 - Billing Supervisor, Cingular Wireless, Alpharetta, GA

. Managed and supervised from 12 to 26 Billing Representatives.

. Identified and resolved payment misapplications as well as specialized

billing requests.

. Various special projects, including conversions from various market

locations to the central billing system in the Atlanta Corporate

office.

Reason for leaving: Company reorganization. Company reduced its total work

force by 7%.

2000 to 2001 - Key Account Manager, Nationwide Credit, Inc., Kennesaw, GA

. Owned and managed the client/company relationship for all

Telecommunications clients.

. Account management, reporting, forecasting, extensive customer

relations, contract negotiations, and sales.

Reason for leaving: Department and position eliminated.

1998 to 2000 - Financial and Collections Analyst, PeopleSoft, Inc.,

Atlanta, GA

. Team Lead in the Southern region of the company.

. Contract billing, collections, forecasting, revenue and reporting of

large dollar invoices and contracts, and other accounting functions.

Reason for leaving: Company reorganized and relocated position to

Pleasanton, CA.

1992 to 1998 - Billing & Support Manager, Norrell Services, Inc., Atlanta,

GA

. Created the Billing & Support Department.

. Managed a staff of 8 employees responsible for reporting, billing

corrections, specialized billing projects, documentation support and

various special projects.

Reason for leaving: Resigned from company to pursue opportunity with

PeopleSoft, Inc.

EDUCATION

BS, Technical Management, emphasis in Accounting, DeVry University,

Atlanta, GA

Graduated with a GPA of 3.84.

AA, Accounting/Business Management, Branell Business College, Atlanta, GA

Graduated with a GPA of 3.60.

SPECIAL SKILLS

Six Sigma certification, LAWSON, Midas, Great Plains, SOFTRAX, ORACLE,

MAS200, MAS90, Peachtree, PeopleSoft Billing, Expenses and AR modules,

Outlook, Vantive, Lotus Notes, Excel, Word, Access, Powerpoint, Project,

Internet, Visio, Cellware, MacroCell, Legacy, QuickPro32, Telegence,

Compass, CARE, BARS, CUBS, AS400, and American Express Payment link

Electronic Billing System.

Contact this candidate