The purpose of this document is to describe the procedure for recording sponsor (customer) follow up on outstanding Accounts Receivable (AR) invoices.
Regular customer contact is essential in expediting collection. Once the determination has been made that an invoice is in arrears, good business practices dictate that follow up should be done and these actions documented. Documentation encompasses recording collection actions in the AR module of the Oracle business system through "Customer Contact Records."
Some examples of collection actions are:
Decentralized operating locations are responsible for collection actions of all awards, solely or in conjunction with Central Office. Note: For awards with billing terms of LOC, the decentralized operating locations share joint fiscal responsibility with the Finance Office of Central Office.
The Office of Sponsored Program Services at Central Office (CO) is responsible for collection of all sponsored awards, excluding awards with billing terms of Letter of Credit (LOC). Centralized operating locations are responsible for collection actions of all multiple sponsor awards, cash driven awards (i.e., clinical trails, agency and corporate operation awards) and awards in which the invoicing responsibility lies with the operating location. Note: For awards with billing terms of LOC, the centralized operating locations share joint fiscal responsibility with the Finance Office of Central Office.
The Finance Office at Central Office is responsible for the coordination of payments made via the Letter of Credit process. Therefore, they are responsible for initial follow up on any outstanding invoices on awards with billing terms of Letter of Credit (LOC).
Important! Follow-up actions on LOC awards are performed in conjunction with both Centralized and Decentralized operating locations to resolve collection issues. If it is determined that the reason for non-payment of an invoice is related to non-submission of deliverable(s) (i.e., progress reports, budget modifications, etc.), it is the operating locations responsibility to follow up and make sure the required deliverables are submitted.
All follow-up actions on outstanding Accounts Receivable (AR) invoices are recorded (entered) in the AR module of the Oracle business system. This is accomplished via a "Customer Contact Record" attached to an outstanding invoice. Customer contact records are entered on each outstanding invoice that follow-up actions have been taken. For detailed information on how to enter a customer contact record follow the Enter a Customer Contact Record process help.
It is recommended that when entering Customer Contact Records, all fields (optional and required) in the Call Topics form are completed. The table below identifies the fields in the Call Topics form and describes the entry to be made:
Field |
Entry Value |
Outcome |
Select the default value of "See Notes" Enter information in the "Notes" field to identify the result of the contact made. |
Response |
Choose from List of Values. To view the current list of values, review the field level help definition for Response. |
(Follow Up) Action |
Select the default value of "See Notes" Enter information in the "Notes" field to identify the follow up action to be taken. |
(Follow Up) Date |
Enter the date based on operating location procedures or agreements made with the sponsor |
Notes |
This is a free-from text field used to capture the outcome and follow-up action as well as any additional information in regards to the response received. |
Note: Central Office/University-Wide Support Office of Sponsored Program Services utilizes the Customer Contact Record to document actions they have taken on invoices in "Formal Collection." This information is accessible to operating locations by reviewing the customer contact record or the RF Collector Contact History Report.
There are two fields in the Customer Contact Record forms in which the list of values may be updated: Collectors and Response.
Collectors defines the campus staff that are responsible for follow up action. Response is used to record the reply received when follow up contact has been made. This field is located in the Topics form.
Requests for additions or changes to either of these fields can be made via e-mail request to Customer Services. Requests will be reviewed to avoid duplication and notification will be sent upon completion. To view the current list of values, review the field level help definition for Response.
Follow-up actions can be reviewed by using the RF Collector Contact History Report or through the AR module by reviewing customer contact records entered via the "Call" form on an associated invoice.
The RF Collector Contact History Report displays all customer contact records that have been attached to an invoice unless: 1) the invoice no longer has an outstanding balance or 2) the customer contact record has been "completed." This report can be used to follow up on collection action taken on outstanding invoices. Management staff should use this report to review follow-up action and determine if any items require escalation to their attention or to Central Office for formal collection.
Customer contact records are not required to be completed if the invoice in question is now in a "closed" status due to full payment being received or an invoice adjustment being made. However, customer contact records may be completed when the collector deems the issue is resolved but the invoice remains in an "open" status.
A customer contact record can be "completed" by checking the complete button under the follow-up section of the Call - Topics form. The steps below outline how to complete (close) a customer contact record:
Once the record is closed it will no longer display on the RF Collector Contact History Report. However, a parameter is available in the report to request completed contact records be displayed. Note: It may be necessary to review a closed contact if the invoice is still open.
Documentation related to collection activity should be retained in the correspondence, billing or collection files.
This documentation can include but is not limited to the following:
Feedback
Was this document clear and easy to follow? Please send your feedback to webfeedback@rfsuny.org.
Copyright © 2011 The Research Foundation of State University of New York