Eddee Daniel – Bad debt is good business!
PPS was granted the pleasure of having the Menomonee Valley Artist in residence Eddee Daniel visit us to discuss business in the Menomonee Valley. The purpose of the artist in residence program is to use art as a medium to boaster the potential of the growing businesses in the Menomonee Valley as a symbol of urban revitalization and cultivate relationships throughout businesses and individuals in the Valley. Eddee with years of experience in art, teaching, and writing was kind enough to write an article about his impressions on Professional Placement Services on his blog Art Without Boarders. Excerpt below:
PPS is a successful and growing business with 40 employees and 180 clients. “We’re experts in collection,” Craig says. “Our clients want to outsource collection activities to the experts.” Their clients include local and national retailers, banks, health care companies and various levels of government. And, yes, I’m told fervently, security is one of the primary concerns. The locked doors—and the surveillance cameras I hadn’t even noticed—are intended to protect the privacy of client businesses and debt-laden consumers alike.
I confess ignorance about the business of collection. Craig, who hears this all the time, is energized. The company makes 35,000 calls a day, he tells me. “We want to help people get out of debt. Our big message is, ‘Communicate with us’.” Clearly relishing the subject, he elaborates, “Some people have an image of us as the collector at the door with a baseball bat. We work hard to change that.” Their primary goal, he says, is to enable people to manage their finances. In a soft, compassionate tone he suggests, “Everyone goes through times that are tough. We want to understand the situation and work with them.”
Debt collection, says Craig, is important to the economy and the local community. “It’s the backbone of a credit-based economy. The money we collect helps keep businesses operating, helps owners make payroll and provide benefits, helps to keep people employed. It also helps government avoid tax increases.”
