CreditDevice really listens!

Joris ten Westenend | Manager Accounts Receivable and Cash | Sligro Food Group

Speed, efficiency and cooperation in the customer acceptance process is pure necessity for Sligro. “Take, for example, a customer who wants to make purchases, but does not yet have an approved credit limit. What do you do then? Deliver with all the risks involved, or not deliver with the result that the customer prefers not to do business with you. Customers count on us,” says Joris ten Westenend, Manager Accounts Receivable and Cash at Sligro Food Group. “Together with CreditDevice, we have been able to optimize this process into a streamlined process in which we can serve customers quickly and the risks are covered as much as possible.”

Strict credit approval procedures

At Sligro, ‘the eating and drinking man’ is central. The Sligro food service companies offer a total package of food and non-food-related products and services. This is used by some 500,000 passholders every month. This resulted in sales of €2.35 billion in 2018. Purchases are mostly made at one of the 50 stores, but for over 28,000 of those customers, Sligro delivers the products through one of its eight distribution centers. These customers buy from Sligro on account.

“Strict credit acceptance procedures are indispensable with these numbers,” Joris begins. “With new customers, the protocol is that the direct debit procedure is completed within 24 hours. This means that credit acceptance must have taken place before that. Within 72 hours, a customer must be fully ‘ready-to-go.’ Thus, an efficient procedure is crucial. In other words, making few mistakes and acting quickly, because we receive 60 new customer requests per week. We therefore try to save time wherever possible.”

Efficiency through reliable information

To move quickly, reliable information is of substantial importance to Sligro. Joris explains. “Previously, we had to double-check the data from the previous supplier because we couldn’t assume the information was correct. We can now do that with CreditDevice’s InfoScore. In cooperation with CreditDevice, we set up the InfoScore module. The InfoScore is like an automated underwriting process that acts according to a decision model. We first tuned this decision model internally and then, together with CreditDevice, we configured the various weighting factors. So every customer is accepted or rejected according to the same rules. That also makes it a lot more efficient. We save a lot of time this way.”

• “The customer request goes better since we have been working with CreditDevice. Read: right the first time.”

Improved internal cooperation

According to Joris, the gain is not only in time and efficiency, but also in internal cooperation at Sligro. “Sales and accounts receivable now work much more and better together. Thanks to the InfoScore, our commercial department, especially the field sales staff involved in acquisition, can immediately see whether a prospect is worthwhile or not. After a brief quick test, the field sales rep can decide whether or not to walk in on a potential new customer. And that also makes the relationship between commerce and accounts receivable, I might add, become very good. Coincidentally, I recently had that confirmed again,” said Joris. “Both departments are very happy with the cooperation the way it is going now.”

A new approach to receivables management at Sligro

An important change Sligro has gone through since working with CreditDevice is the approach to accounts receivable management, Joris says: “The whole perception of accounts receivable is different now, better. Before, when we did classic accounts receivable administration, the focus was on accounts receivable risk: ‘can it be done or not.’ Now that we do proactive credit management, we think much more in terms of possibilities. So no longer just ‘it can’t’, but rather ‘under what conditions can it be done’.”

Active product development

Sincere interest is what a good partnership is all about, according to Joris. “CreditDevice does not visit to tell you what they are good at, but asks ‘What can we do for you?’ and ‘What do you need?’ And that’s how CreditDevice makes a difference. Every week I get calls from companies and collection agencies who only tell me what they can or can’t do, but don’t ask what they can do for Sligro. They don’t know that. They haven’t thought about that.”

Joris continues and talks about his personal contact with CreditDevice. “CreditDevice, Joke, Hans-Peter, but also Robbert, they know their customer. And they know what that customer needs. They immerse themselves in the customer beforehand and you notice that. Because you can’t just make a flash visit to a customer or prospect to get acquainted. No, you have to immerse yourself in the industry, the structure of the organization, etc. Because only then do you understand what a company needs and how you can add value. And that’s what CreditDevice understands.”