Successful Credit Management Offers Improved Financial Results

The joint approach combines two time-tested systems, SCHUMANN`s credit management software CAM Industry & Trade software and the hibis and prohibis systems developed by the hagebau Group. The result is a professional solution to improve credit management processes and enhance corporate success even in the short and medium term. Since the software has been specially customised to the hagebau environment, hagebau shareholders can acquire this professional solution at extremely favourable conditions!

Usually, setting up an efficient solution for effective credit management involves investments. Companies have to draw up their own credit policies and introduce a suitable software solution to implement this policy efficiently; and this means costs for licenses, maintenance and hardware. With the aim of providing shareholders with a solution requiring a minimum investment volume, this joint project has developed a solution for the hagebau Group offering the following advantages:

• Development of one sound and sensible credit policy for all hagebau shareholders. Advantage: Not every shareholder has to“reinvent the wheel”.
• Provision of the necessary hardware by hagebau Datendienst. Advantage: Hosting services provided in habau Datendienst‘s computer centre including administration, maintenance and upgrading of the system.
• Links to hibis and prohibis, as well as external systems such as SAP are possible. Advantage: The solution can be fully integrated into the existing credit management processes.

Each participating shareholder has access to a fully developed, professional credit risk management system. The quality of credit management processes
improves with each user and users benefit from the know-how of other shareholders in the Group. And an additional advantage is that the costs can be shared
out among the Group. If shareholders have any additional credit management requirements that are not covered by the hagebau standard software, they may switch to an individual solution and/or to their own server at any time and of course even transfer the existing data and settings!

The aim was to improve processes and provide appropriate IT support so that shareholders can assess new and existing customers themselves objectively, and consequently more reliably, reduce bad debt losses, shorten days sales outstanding and gradually reduce the number of debtors insured via commercial credit insurance. In addition the centralisation of data management was intended to eliminate media breaks, and the automation of audit processes to improve the efficiency of debtor management.

• Introduction of an early warning system in order to automatically detect changes in customers’ payment behaviour at an early stage.
• Fixing and maintaining an internal credit line according to predefined rules and taking into account the customer’s creditworthiness.
• Enabling comprehensible and more objective decisions according to set criteria.
• Providing information about customers across the company, regardless of location.
• Controlling access to all information using an extensive authorisation model.
• central framework condition was the integration of the solution into hagebau’s system landscape

Thanks to this joint venture with SCHUMANN the hagebau Group can offer its members a highly efficient, modern, yet inexpensive solution to the management of credit risks, laying the foundation for a decrease in bad debt losses, reduction of the involvement commercial credit of insurance companies, reduction of days sales outstanding as well as leaner and improved credit management processes. As a result both the members and the entire Group benefit from the improvements.