Collections associate vs collections coordinator

The differences between collections associates and collections coordinators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a collections associate and a collections coordinator. Additionally, a collections associate has an average salary of $38,589, which is higher than the $37,938 average annual salary of a collections coordinator.

The top three skills for a collections associate include phone calls, customer service and UPC. The most important skills for a collections coordinator are customer service, patients, and phone calls.

Collections associate vs collections coordinator overview

	Collections Associate	Collections Coordinator
Yearly salary	$38,589	$37,938
Hourly rate	$18.55	$18.24
Growth rate	-8%	-8%
Number of jobs	20,297	40,113
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	12	12

What does a collections associate do?

A collections associate is an individual who acts as a liaison between creditors and customers to collect outstanding payments and negotiates debt payments. Collections associates must contact debtors through telephone to negotiate debt recovery and prevent recurring delinquency. They must enact debt recovery plans and collaborate with other departments on debt collection strategies. They are required to research publicly-available resources such as loan documents and background checks to track down defaulters. They must also initiate legal proceedings when debt recovery fails and send statements of delinquency to the credit bureau.

What does a collections coordinator do?

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.

Collections associate vs collections coordinator salary

Collections associates and collections coordinators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Collections Associate	Collections Coordinator
Average salary	$38,589	$37,938
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $63,000	Between $30,000 And $47,000
Highest paying City	Danbury, CT	New York, NY
Highest paying state	Alaska	Connecticut
Best paying company	JPMorgan Chase & Co.	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	Finance	Professional

Differences between collections associate and collections coordinator education

There are a few differences between a collections associate and a collections coordinator in terms of educational background:

	Collections Associate	Collections Coordinator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 43%	Bachelor's Degree, 48%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Collections associate vs collections coordinator demographics

Here are the differences between collections associates' and collections coordinators' demographics:

	Collections Associate	Collections Coordinator
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 34.4% Female, 65.6%	Male, 26.6% Female, 73.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.3% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 17.5% Asian, 3.8% White, 61.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%	Black or African American, 12.1% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 20.8% Asian, 3.6% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between collections associate and collections coordinator duties and responsibilities

Collections associate example responsibilities.

Plan and conduct sensitive HUMINT collection operations with an emphasis on managing and debriefing confidential sources.
Perform follow up on Medicaid accounts.
Execute assertive collection skills for inbound/outbound calls while meeting FDCPA guidelines.
Call center collections following FDCPA guidelines for third party outbound collections.
Perform collections activities on delinquent loan accounts to include repossessions, foreclosures, bankruptcy proceedings, and disposition of repossess assets.
Position requires knowledge of Medicaid/Medicare formulary of cover drugs, the dosage and restrictions.

Collections coordinator example responsibilities.

Plan and conduct sensitive HUMINT collection operations with an emphasis on managing and debriefing confidential sources.
Manage accounts receivable/payment, insurance billing and follow-up for a solo physician clinic, and direct communication with patients regarding bills.
Audit outstanding accounts and resolve any balances including calling Medicare, Medicaid, government, private or commercial insurances.
Perform daily follow-up on Medicare, Medicaid, workers compensation and commercial insurances.
Hand illustrate fully render with marker and colore pencil sketches and Photoshop render drawings.
Submit insurance appeals and provider disputes when necessary.

Collections associate vs collections coordinator skills

Common collections associate skills

Phone Calls, 16%
Customer Service, 14%
UPC, 10%
Time Card, 7%
Retail Store, 7%
Patients, 4%

Common collections coordinator skills

Customer Service, 15%
Patients, 12%
Phone Calls, 6%
Collection Efforts, 4%
Delinquent Accounts, 4%
Appeals, 4%

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Office and Administrative Industry
Collections Associate
Collections Associate vs Collections Coordinator

Updated January 8, 2025

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