Cecilia Russell
Accounts Receivable Manager
Tucson,AZ
Summary
Analytical Accounts Receivable Manager with successful career supervising 9 personnel, including training, work allocation and problem resolution. Skilled in credit review and new accounts preparation, general ledger activities, accounts receivable processing and collections. Effective leader with 14 years of hands-on experience in Manufacturing industry.
Overview
24
24
years of professional experience
4
4
years of post-secondary education
Work History
ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE MANAGER
FIJI WATER COMPANY, LLC, FIJI Water
TUCSON, AZ
09.2016 - Current
- Oversee over 500 million in annual billing and collections for, , Justin Wine & Vineyards, Landmark and JNSQ
- Train, mentor and optimize performance of team of 1 A/R Supervisor and 8 A/R Specialists by addressing employee relation issues, clarifying A/R Policies and Procedures and maintaining weekly check-ins
- Manage new account setups for FIJI Water, Justin Wine, Landmark and JNSQ by conducting credit checks on all customers in US, AU, CAD, GB &Asia
- Assist IT by testing and analyzing any EDI issues that are related to purchase orders, item setups, customer setups and invoicing
- Manage daily uploads of credit card interfaces for eCommerce and restaurants
- Review daily reconciliations to identify and resolve variances of over 500 transactions for club orders
- Lead multiple projects to automate AR and Deduction Processes through RPA (Robotic Process Automation) which will help save the company over 4000 hours per year (equivalent to 2 FTEs)
- Collaborate with the EDI Team to ensure successful delivery of special projects on time
- Create and monitor modifiers for all entities to ensure accurate fees are automatically billed on invoices
- Establish appropriate credit limits and payment terms for distributors or direct customers by analyzing and reviewing bank & trade references, 2-year audited financial statements, D&B and Kreller Report
- Monitor customers on an ongoing basis by working directly wih the CFO on credit limit increases
- Assure timely and accurate invoicing
- Oversee cash receipt processing
- Provide cash forecast with 3 rolling day-flow to Treasury
- Manage A/R month-end close process for Domestic and International Entities
- Provide accurate AR Confirmations and Order to Cash flow process during audit season
- Assist Controller and Assistant Controller with yearly audit
- Review monthly Account Reconciliations and Bank Reconciliations for Domestic and International Entities
- Manage collections for US (including Caribbean & Mexico), CAD, AU, GB (including EMEA Region) & Asia
- Collaborate with Operations, Sales and Senior Management in addressing deduction issues
- Manage the receivable operations in order to prepare for year-end close
- Maintain bad debt reserves for all entities
- Significantly improved the invoicing process for EDI and non-EDI customers by implementing and designing a Repricing Program with IT in 2019
- Assisted in a major transition from Distirbution to DSD customers in 2018 by setting up over 300 new accounts timely, while building A/R functions to support added invoices and deductions.
AR SUPERVISOR
FIJI WATER COMPANY, LLC
TUCSON, AZ
01.2011 - 01.2016
- Supervised 3 Accounts Receivable Specialists
- Reduced DSO from 38 to 25 days by proactively monitoring A/R balances
- Improved the collection percentage from 80% to 90%
- Managed monthly bottle bill reporting for US and Canada
- Managed the collections for US and International Entities
- Established appropriate credit limits and payment terms of potential distributors by conducting credit reviews
- Prepared weekly aging reports for upper management
- Responsible for Trader Partner Setups
- Managed Sales Tax Returns for 30 states per month
- Made significant improvements with EDI by resolving issues with EDI 810, 824, 864 and 850 with the EDI Team and Operations Team
- Streamlined the bottle bill reporting by modifying monthly reports, automating credit and bill process, and building a tracker in the system for unbilled ship to locations.
AR SPECIALIST
FIJI WATER COMPANY, LLC
TUCSON, AZ
04.2008 - 01.2011
- Handled international and domestic collections
- Significantly reduced the DSO for US from 49 to 38 days within a year.
COLLECTIONS SPECIALIST
RAINBIRD – TUCSON
, AZ
01.2006 - 01.2008
- Handled international collections and assisted with domestic collections when needed
- Ensured department activities were maintained in the absence of Assistant Credit & Collections Manager and/or Credit Manager
- Maintained key accounts in Western Canada
- Received an award for providing an exceptional service to customers.
CUSTOMER SERVICE SUPERVISOR
WOLFGANG PUCK COFFEE
ORANGE, CA
01.2004 - 01.2005
- Assessed customers’ needs to increase sales and upsale products
- Coordinated shipments for 10 remote warehouses to avoid backlogs
- Managed daily operations of the Customer Service Department and 10 national and international distribution warehouses.
Sales and Marketing Administrator
ICN PHARMACEUTICALS
COSTA MESA, CA
05.1995 - 09.2002
- Managed over 25 key accounts for worldwide distributors
- Supervised 15 key accounts netting over 60 million
- Negotiated contracts with distributors by establishing aggressive margins while offering competitive discounts
- Headed daily operations of the department to ensure smooth function of business
- Interacted with Vice President, Regulator Affairs, Logistics and Global Chain Supply Management positions to streamline product and sales issues.
Education
Bachelor of Science - Health Science, Biology
CALIFORNIA STATE DOMINGUEZ
01.1993 - 06.1995
Associate of Arts - General Studies
Long Beach Community College
01.1991 - 01.1993
Skills
Process implementation
Reading, Working Out
I enjoy reading self improvement books. I like to start my day by going for a run in the morning.
Timeline
ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE MANAGER
FIJI WATER COMPANY, LLC, FIJI Water
09.2016 - Current
AR SUPERVISOR
FIJI WATER COMPANY, LLC
01.2011 - 01.2016
AR SPECIALIST
FIJI WATER COMPANY, LLC
04.2008 - 01.2011
COLLECTIONS SPECIALIST
RAINBIRD – TUCSON
01.2006 - 01.2008
CUSTOMER SERVICE SUPERVISOR
WOLFGANG PUCK COFFEE
01.2004 - 01.2005
Sales and Marketing Administrator
ICN PHARMACEUTICALS
05.1995 - 09.2002
Bachelor of Science - Health Science, Biology
CALIFORNIA STATE DOMINGUEZ
01.1993 - 06.1995
Associate of Arts - General Studies
Long Beach Community College
01.1991 - 01.1993
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