Sherry Leahy
Lake Elsinore,CA
Summary
Dynamic Senior Collections Specialist with a proven track record at Auto Club of Southern California, excelling in debt recovery strategies and customer relationship management. Achieved significant improvements in cash flow through effective negotiation and compliance with collections regulations, while fostering strong client relationships and mentoring junior staff to enhance team performance.
Overview
17
17
years of professional experience
Work History
Senior Collections Specialist
Auto Club of Southern California
12.2008 - 10.2025
- Led collections initiatives to reduce outstanding debt and improve cash flow.
- Mentored junior staff on best practices in collections processes and customer interactions.
- Developed training materials for new hires to enhance team efficiency and knowledge retention.
- Established strong relationships with customers, enhancing communication and resolution of outstanding debts.
- Managed a high-volume portfolio, ensuring timely follow-ups and accurate record-keeping for optimal results.
- Improved client satisfaction by providing exceptional customer service during the collections process, addressing concerns promptly and professionally.
- Mitigated risk by thoroughly evaluating debtor profiles and implementing appropriate collection strategies based on historical performance and unique account characteristics.
- Collaborated with cross-functional teams for seamless integration of collections efforts with other business operations.
- Negotiated settlements with debtors, achieving mutually beneficial resolutions while maintaining professional relationships.
- Maintained strict compliance with federal regulations and industry best practices to ensure ethical collection practices at all times.
- Worked in call center environment handling manual and automatically dialed outbound calls.
- Processed payments and applied to customer balances.
- Maintained high volume of calls and met demands of busy and productive group.
- Negotiated to collect balance in full.
- Delivered exceptional customer service on collection calls and maintained calm and professional demeanor.
- Counseled debtors on payment options and arranged installment agreements.
- Processed debtor payments and updated accounts to reflect new balance.
- Contacted customers to discuss past-due accounts and negotiated payment plans.
- Maintained accurate records of customer accounts, payments and payment plans.
- Researched billing errors and discrepancies to initiate corrective action.
- Worked with customer to create debt repayment plan based on current financial condition.
- Established relationships with customers to encourage payment of delinquent accounts.
- Used skip tracing and other techniques to locate debtors.
Education
High School Diploma -
Northwest High School
Clarksville, TXSkills
- Debt recovery strategies
- Customer relationship management
- Collections compliance
- Risk assessment techniques
Timeline
Senior Collections Specialist
Auto Club of Southern California
12.2008 - 10.2025
High School Diploma -
Northwest High School