Session Descriptions

Selling To A Company in Chapter 11

With bankruptcies soaring, credit executives are increasingly confronting the issue of whether they should be extending credit to a Chapter 11 debtor. This program deals with the risks of extending such credit and the various credit enhancement devices that should increase the likelihood of payment. Included in the discussion will be standby letters of credit; selling on a consignment or purchase money security interest basis; the  use of critical vendors and the Section 503(b)(9) administrative priority claim to obtain payment of the creditor's pre-petition claim during the Chapter 11; the use of guarantees, third party collateral; and third party credit support, such as credit insurance and sales and puts of claims; a trade creditor's setoff and recoupment rights, and for trade creditors in certain favored industries, lien and  trust fund rights.

Communication & Credit

This session offers a basic introduction to the communication process and the challenges credit and collection staffers face daily - particularly with collection calls. Concepts, such as "interference" and "encoding and decoding" messages, will be examined using role play and group discussion formats. Other topics for discussion will be verbal and nonverbal skills and challenges.

Why Face-to-Face Networking is Important to Your Company

The more things change the more they stay the same. One that has been tried and true is face to face networking. Companies spend millions of dollars each year in advertising and marketing, yet the one thing they point back to consistently is networking and word of mouth as a way to drive customers in the door. Today, more than ever, it is important that not only are the sales teams in the community networking, it is important that everyone on staff begin to network and carry the message of your company out into the public. Learn 10 of the most important things that you and your company should be doing to build a strong network and word of mouth presence in your community.

How Online Networking Can Help You

Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, Blogging...these are a few of the online sites you need to know about. Utilizing the online aspects of networking can build your brand, get the word out about your company, build a strong word of mouth message, and be able to listen to what is being said that could help you and your company have the edge. Online networking will support your face to face networking and your company should have a strategy for how you are going to use these tools.

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking is a form of judgment specifically purposeful and reflective. There are many factors that enter into development of critical thinking skills. This session will begin with discussion of mental processes, analysis and evaluation to solve problems. Different types of mental applications and evaluation techniques will be demonstrated. This session will also engage conversation on how to overcome bias and learned value judgments to reach informed decisions and find solutions to complex issues. Several case studies will be presented so that attendees can practice the mental and evaluation techniquest discussed during the session.

Speaker Bios

Holly Brown is currently the Customer Operations Manager for Carroll Company and oversees the Credit, Collection and Customer Service Departments.   Like most credit professionals she began her career over 25 years ago from a customer service background.   Communication has been and still is a predominant factor in her professional life in sales, collections, and supervision.  She has been an active member of the CFDD- Dallas/Ft Worth chapter having served recently as chapter president and board member.  Holly was awarded her Chapter’s Distinguished Member Award in 2008.  Her involvement with NACM includes active participation with her local affiliate, NACM-Southwest.  Presently, she is a CAP and ACAP instructor for NACM SW and holds both a CBA and CCE designation.   She graduated from Texas Tech University with a BS in Secondary Education as well as an MA in Communication.   Her career path has included teaching Speech Communication and Public Speaking in both high school and college.  Currently, she volunteers as a Cantor and Reader at St. Patrick’s Church in Dallas and works with the high school youth that volunteer as readers for Sunday services.

Dawn Wallace Cook, CCE, is Treasurer of Newton Manufacturing Company, a hydraulic and design build facility, located in Royal Oak, Michigan. Dawn has been with Newton since 1972 and treasurer since 1976. Dawn is an active member of NACM, CFDD, FCIB and CRF. She has served as National Chair of both NACM and CFDD and is currently serving as chair of NACM Great Lakes Region and President of the CFDD Toledo chapter.

Tyler C. “Chris” Hooker, CCE has been in the business credit field for over 40 years in several types of businesses:  manufacturing, distribution and service, resolving many challenges  in credit and receivables management.  Chris is a long-standing member of NACM and CFDD, having served on the CFDD Board and on the local NACM Denver Board. He is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt, a certified Value Stream Mapping Expert and a certified Fit Office Expert.  Chris is also a CAP and ACAP instructor for NACM, and an adjunct faculty member at Argosy University Denver, teaching undergrad and graduate levels in business finance.

Chris Kuehl, Ph.D. Managing Director, Armada Corporate Intelligence, USA is the co-founder (with Keith Prather) and Managing Director of Armada Corporate Intelligence, a company created in 1999 to provide strategy foundation, competitive intelligence, business analysis and economic forecasting for corporate clients. Chris is the Chief Economist for Fabricators and Manufacturers Association. This includes writing Fabrinomics and serving as a keynote speaker for their conferences and meetings through the year. Chris is a frequent commentator for the media both locally and nationally. He is a regular economic/business analyst for KMBZ radio, KSHB-TV (local NBC affiliate) and has been extensively quoted in national newspapers, magazines and trade publications. He holds a Masters Degree in Soviet and East European Studies, a Masters in East Asian Studies and a Ph.D. in Political Economics from the University of Kansas. He has been on the faculty of universities in the US, Hungary, Estonia, Russia, Singapore and Taiwan. He has been on the local steering committee for the Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals and has been active with a number of business and finance organizations.

Bruce Nathan, Esq. is currently a partner in the Bankruptcy, Financial Reorganization and Creditors' Rights Group of the law firm of Lowenstein Sandler PC. Mr. Nathan concentrates on all aspects of creditors' rights and workouts in bankruptcy, out-of-court matters and other types of insolvency cases for secured creditors, creditors' committees, unsecured creditors, trustees and other creditors. Mr. Nathan serves as counsel to the unsecured creditors' committee in Interstate Bakeries Corporation and Advanced Marketing Services Inc. and has represented substantial creditor interests in the Enron, WorldCom, Solutia, Metromedia Fiber Network, Adelphia, Calpine and Heilig-Meyers chapter 11 cases. Mr. Nathan also negotiates and prepares letters of credit, guarantees, security, consignment, bailment, tolling, and other agreements for credit departments of institutional clients and is also involved in the negotiation and preparation of loan, letter of credit, and factoring documentation and other matters for banks, asset-based lenders and factors. Mr. Nathan holds combined J.D./M.B.A. degrees from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and the Wharton School of Management. He is an active member of the American Bankruptcy Institute ("ABI"); is a member of ABI's board of directors; is a former Co-Chair of ABI's Unsecured Trade Creditor Committee; is a contributing editor of ABI Journal's "Last In Line Column" and ABI's "Second Circuit Cases Update"; and is the author of ABI's Manual On Sellers' Rights of Reclamation, Stoppage of Delivery and New Administrative Claim. Mr. Nathan is also an active member of, and regular lecturer for, the National Association of Credit Management (NACM); is a member of NACM's Editorial Advisory Board; is a frequent contributor to NACM's Business Credit; is a contributing editor of NACM's Manual of Credit and Commercial Laws; and co-authored The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention And Consumer Protection Act of 2005: An Overhaul of U.S. Bankruptcy Law, published by NACM.

Anita Pilo, CCE is a credit manager for US Foodservice in Fort Mill, South Carolina. She started her 32-year career with the company as a switchboard operator and has worked her way up through three different branches of the company.  She earned her CBA and CBF designations in 2006, and most recently earned her CCE designation in 2008.  Anita is an active member of CFDD, and currently serves as president of the CFDD Charlotte Chapter.

Phyllis Truitt, CCE has worked at Atlas Van Lines since 1989. She is currently the Director of Credit and Collections. Prior to working at Atlas, Phyllis worked as a controller and office manager at various companies in Evansville, Indiana, where she resides with her family. Phyllis graduated from The University of Southern Indiana with a degree in business in 1992. Currently Phyllis is serving NACM-National as Chair Elect. Phyllis was CFDD National Chair in 1999-2000. She was CFDD representative on the NACM National Board from 2000-2003. She has served as NACM-National Vice-Chair for the Central Region the last two years. Phyllis wrote the CFDD Officers Training Manual and several programs for CFDD. She has also presented several programs for NACM and CFDD. Phyllis was NACM's National Credit Executive of the year in 2002. Her greatest honor was in 2006 when she was awarded the CFDD Marilynn Daugherty Spirit Award.

Hazel Walker has spent the last 15 years networking and teaching others to network. She started out owning her own Insurance Agency that she built using her networking skills. Today Hazel is the Executive Director for BNI of Indiana, a Referral Institute Trainer, as well as a professional speaker and writer. Hazel works with teams who need more effective communication skills as well as business owners and sales professionals who are frustrated with their lack of prospects. All things being equal people want to do business with people they know, like and trust. Hazel helps business owners leverage their time, and their networks to build their businesses. A member of the National Speakers Association, Hazel speaks to organizations around the world. She writes a weekly E-newsletter called Referral Tip of the Week with a subscriber list of several thousand people around the world.

Cynthia M. Wieme, CCE, MICM, CICP, MBA was recruited to Jeppesen Sanderson Inc. in 1994 to bring aviation and credit experience to the team.  Her overall professional experience encompasses 30+ years in the “finance field,” working in family-owned, entrepreneurial and municipal organizations, as well as “Fortune 500” companies.  Her industry experience includes construction, agribusiness, software development, and aviation and aerospace, encompassing regional, national, and international customers, business operations, regulations, and colleagues.  She has served on local and national not-for-profit committees and boards, and is currently most active as a volunteer with the Arthritis Foundation, Rocky Mountain Chapter (Colorado, Wyoming & Montana).  Cynthia is the Immediate Past Chair of the Board for the Arthritis Foundation and is currently serving as a State Officer of the Colorado Business & Professional Women’s organization.  Past board service includes Mackintosh Academy (Primary International Baccalaureate Programme) and NACM Colorado. Cynthia holds a B.A. degree in Business Administration, a B.S. degree in Management and an M.B.A. from the University of Phoenix, Denver.  She is also an alumni of the NACM Graduate School of Credit and Financial Management.