What does an Accounts Receivable Specialist do?

A billing and insurance coordinator is responsible for coordinating with employees from different departments of an organization for billing and insurance processing purposes. Billing and insurance coordinators sort mail for distribution to appropriate personnel, performing administrative and clerical duties as needed, managing and releasing of invoices under the manager's supervision, and responding to employees' inquiries and concerns. A billing and insurance coordinator must be highly analytical, as well as have excellent knowledge of the insurance disciplines and processes to assist the employees with their payments and benefits.

While similarities exist, there are also some differences between accounts receivable specialists and billing and insurance coordinator. For instance, accounts receivable specialist responsibilities require skills such as "credit card payments," "reconciliations," "collection calls," and "general ledger." Whereas a billing and insurance coordinator is skilled in "work ethic," "strong work ethic," "customer accounts," and "billing process." This is part of what separates the two careers.

Usually working alongside a company's account receivables team, a collections coordinator is in charge of developing strategies to optimize the payment collection operations. Among their responsibilities include reaching out to clients through calls or correspondence to remind them of their payment obligations, arranging appointments, processing payments, arranging payment terms, and researching a client's communication information such as cellphone number, address, or email. Moreover, a collections coordinator must maintain an active communication line with staff while promoting and enforcing the company's policies and regulations.

In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, accounts receivable specialist responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "financial reports," "general ledger," "cash receipts," and "credit memos." Meanwhile, a collections coordinator has duties that require skills in areas such as "phone calls," "customer accounts," "collection process," and "outstanding receivables." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.

Accounting clerks are employees assigned to manage administrative and clerical tasks in the accounting department. Accounting clerks handle office accounting records and ensure that files are properly labeled and stored. They validate records and check whether these are updated. They also sort through documents to ensure that they are in their proper storage bins. Aside from document handling, they also help with creating and validating financial statements and bookkeeping. As such, accounting clerks should have a strong background in accounting to manage their tasks better.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an accounts receivable specialist is likely to be skilled in "patients," "general ledger," "medical billing," and "appeals," while a typical accounting clerk is skilled in "general ledger accounts," "hr," "ledgers," and "financial data."

An accounting administrator is responsible for reviewing and analyzing account statements, managing deposits, and resolving bank discrepancies and financial disputes. Accounting administrators handle the efficient and accurate cash flow within an organization, including payroll release and filing of petty cash. They maintain an organized record of payments and billing statements for reference and audit purposes to generate reports for the management. An accounting administrator must have extensive knowledge of the accounting principles, as well as excellent communication and analytical skills to perform duties effectively, even under minimal supervision.