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The differences between credit managers and debt collectors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-8 years to become a credit manager, becoming a debt collector takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, a credit manager has an average salary of $68,583, which is higher than the $33,865 average annual salary of a debt collector.
The top three skills for a credit manager include customer service, financial statements and credit card. The most important skills for a debt collector are customer service, outbound calls, and payment arrangements.
| Credit Manager | Debt Collector | |
| Yearly salary | $68,583 | $33,865 |
| Hourly rate | $32.97 | $16.28 |
| Growth rate | 17% | -8% |
| Number of jobs | 63,898 | 23,385 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | High School Diploma, 34% |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Years of experience | 8 | 12 |
A credit manager is an individual who supervises the credit granting process for a company by evaluating the creditworthiness of potential customers. Credit managers must maintain corporate credit policy to optimize company sales and reduce bad debt losses. They must manage the proper relationship with agencies such as the collection agency, credit insurance providers, and the sales department. Credit managers may work in different industries such as banks, accounting firms, or auto dealerships. They must also possess a bachelor's degree in financial management or related field.
Debt collectors are also known as collection agencies and are responsible for recovering past due debts. Most of them are hired by companies to collect debt either for a fee or a percentage of the total amount recovered. Also, some debt collectors buy delinquent debts at a discount and seek to collect the debt's full amount. They have many strategies to collect debts, including calling debtor's phones, sending letters, and even visiting them at their home. However, if debtors fail to pay their due, debt collectors can either update the debtor's credit report or sue them over debt. Once sued and debtors ignore court hearings and lose by default, results could either be garnishment on debtor'debtors' wages or levies on their bank.
Credit managers and debt collectors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Credit Manager | Debt Collector | |
| Average salary | $68,583 | $33,865 |
| Salary range | Between $39,000 And $119,000 | Between $26,000 And $43,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Oregon | California |
| Best paying company | Microsoft | Mayor Ethan Berkowitz |
| Best paying industry | Finance | Construction |
There are a few differences between a credit manager and a debt collector in terms of educational background:
| Credit Manager | Debt Collector | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | High School Diploma, 34% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | - |
Here are the differences between credit managers' and debt collectors' demographics:
| Credit Manager | Debt Collector | |
| Average age | 46 | 46 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 53.9% Female, 46.1% | Male, 30.7% Female, 69.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 15.3% Asian, 7.8% White, 64.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% | Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 4.0% Hispanic or Latino, 20.0% Asian, 3.4% White, 59.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 8% |