Set up an accounts-receivable process
Help a client build a simple, repeatable accounts-receivable routine so getting paid is a managed weekly discipline rather than something that only gets attention when the bank balance looks worrying.
What this play helps you do
- Define what a working AR process actually involves
- Give the client a regular cadence for managing receivables
- Make overdue accounts visible before they become problems
- Assign clear ownership of the receivables function
- Connect the process to escalation and recovery
7 min read
When to run this
Run this play with a client that invoices well enough but has no system for what happens next. Money owed is managed reactively — someone glances at the bank balance, panics, and chases whoever comes to mind. Without a routine, the ageing report quietly worsens, overdue accounts pile up unnoticed, and the business is perpetually surprised by its own cashflow. An accounts-receivable process turns getting paid from an occasional scramble into a steady weekly discipline.
It is the connective tissue between all the other prevention plays: checks, terms, invoicing and reminders feed into a receivables routine that actually watches the ledger and acts on it.
The play (steps)
Help the client stand up a lightweight but real AR routine:
- Set a regular cadence. Pick a fixed weekly slot to review receivables, so the ledger is looked at on schedule rather than in a panic.
- Work the ageing report. Use the ageing report as the worklist — newest overdue accounts get prompt, friendly contact; older ones get firmer attention.
- Lean on automation. Let automated reminders handle routine follow-up so the human time goes to the accounts that need judgement.
- Define escalation triggers. Set clear points at which an account moves from reminder, to direct contact, to stop-supply, to recovery.
- Assign ownership. Name who runs the weekly routine and who makes the escalation calls.
- Track the numbers. Watch days-sales-outstanding and total overdue so the process is measured, not just performed.
What good looks like
A working AR process means receivables are reviewed every week against the ageing report, overdue accounts are caught early and worked in priority order, and there is a clear, known path from a gentle reminder all the way to recovery. Someone owns the function, the key numbers are tracked, and the business is rarely surprised by its cashflow because it is watching the ledger continuously. Getting paid becomes routine maintenance rather than emergency response.
When an account exhausts the routine and remains unpaid, the client can hand it on through refer a debt rather than letting it drift.
What to say to the client
Contrast reactive with managed: “At the moment you only look at who owes you when cash gets tight, by which point the easy wins are already stale. A fifteen-minute weekly review of your ageing report catches problems while they're still small and keeps your cashflow boringly predictable. Getting paid shouldn't be an emergency — it should be a habit.”
Stress ownership: a process with no named owner reverts to nobody doing it. Even in a small business, someone has to hold the weekly slot and make the escalation calls, or the routine quietly lapses.
Common mistakes
The first mistake is having no cadence, so receivables are only ever managed in a crisis. The second is leaving the function unowned, so the routine depends on whoever happens to have time. The third is a process with no teeth — reminders that never escalate, so a genuinely bad account is monitored indefinitely instead of being referred. A real AR process has a schedule, an owner, and a clear exit to recovery.
Key takeaways
- A weekly AR routine turns getting paid from a scramble into a discipline.
- Work the ageing report in priority order, with automation handling the routine follow-up.
- Name an owner — an unowned process reverts to nobody running it.
- Build a clear exit to recovery for accounts that exhaust the routine.
FAQ
How much time does an AR process take?
Often surprisingly little — a focused weekly review of the ageing report, with automated reminders handling the routine chasing. The time goes to the handful of accounts that need a judgement call, not to every invoice.
Who should own receivables in a small business?
Whoever can reliably hold the weekly slot and make escalation decisions — sometimes the owner, sometimes a bookkeeper. The role matters more than the title; an unowned process simply lapses.
When should an account leave the AR process for recovery?
When it has exhausted the reminder and direct-contact stages and remains unresolved. A defined exit point stops bad debts being monitored forever instead of acted on.
Run the play — we'll handle recovery
Commission-only recovery your clients can trust. No recovery, no fee.