Growing companies depend on accounts receivable professionals to turn delivered goods and services into cash flow while maintaining strong relationships with their most valuable customers.
This post covers everything you need to know, whether you're expanding your company's finance and accounting team or thinking about becoming an accounts receivable professional yourself.
What does an accounts receivable professional do?
In a nutshell, accounts receivable professionals manage the process of converting sales into actual revenue. When the company delivers goods or services to its customers, AR professionals make sure the company bills for those deliveries quickly and accurately—and according to any contractual obligations.
As a result, the accounts receivable role directly impacts cash flow and working capital, which, in turn, affect the overall financial health of the company.
By effectively managing customer billing and payments—and maintaining accurate financial records—AR professionals help maintain the steady flow of cash the company needs.
Accounts receivable duties: Roles and responsibilities
At a high level, an accounts receivable clerk links the finance department with sales and operations, making sure that the goods and services provided to customers become actual cash flow. In some cases, an accounts receivable specialist may also weigh in on potential contracts, especially when it comes to payment timing and terms.
Their work touches multiple departments. In a single day, they might coordinate with sales about customer contracts, with operations about deliveries and expected timing, and with customer service about any payment-related inquiries.
What are the main tasks of an AR professional?
An accounts receivable job description often includes a wide range of tasks that combine financial expertise with customer service skills. Their day-to-day work balances multiple responsibilities, from keeping accurate financial records to addressing delinquent accounts to maintaining positive customer relationships.
This balance requires a unique mix of "hard" financial skills and "soft" people skills—although the people skills may not always appear in the accounts receivable specialist job description. AR professionals who possess both tend to do exceedingly well in the field.
Managing the accounts receivable ledger
The AR ledger tracks the money a company is owed. Every invoice, payment, and credit needs to be recorded accurately in the AR ledger. Even small errors in recording financial transactions can create significant problems down the line.
Accounts receivable duties include organizing and maintaining these records, making sure the ledger provides a clear and accurate picture of who owes what and when it's due.
Processing customer payments and credits
Accounts receivable payments might come in as checks, ACH transfers, credit card payments, or even international wires. They might cover more than one invoice, or they might represent partial payments on a large shipment.
AR professionals match incoming payments to the right invoices and customer accounts, recording those payments in the system.
When customers demand credits or refunds, they handle those too, documenting each request and adjustment according to company policies.
Maintaining customer relationships
AR professionals often become the go-to contact for customers' payment questions. They handle billing disputes professionally and work to resolve any concerns. Success requires understanding each customer's payment process while staying within company policies.
The best AR professionals look for ways to turn payment conversations into opportunities. This might mean opening a conversation about new services and putting them in touch with sales, introducing early payment discounts, or reminding the customer of alternative payment options they might prefer to use.
Following up on overdue customer accounts
Collection work demands both persistence and tact. AR professionals review aging reports to track late payments and decide how to follow up, sending payment reminders and working with customers to resolve any issues.
This may require coordinating with sales teams or account managers to keep customer relationships positive while making sure invoices are paid on time and according to the agreed terms.
Reconciling accounts and resolving discrepancies
Regular account reconciliation, such as a monthly or even weekly close, ensures that everything adds up—payments, credits, and account balances all need to accurately reflect any transactions that occurred.
When they don't, AR professionals investigate these account discrepancies and fix any differences, documenting their work carefully to create a clear trail for auditors. These reconciliations help keep the company's financial reports accurate.
Generating AR reports and analytics
AR professionals create aging reports for overdue customer accounts, collection forecasts, and other analytics that show accounts receivable status and metrics such as payment trends. Some of these metrics may be about the AR process itself, indicating how efficient the collections process is and providing insights into how it might be improved.
Financial reports from the AR team help the CFO understand cash flow patterns. They can also indicate new practices or policies that might improve business outcomes. This could include changing payment terms, accepting new payment methods, creating self-serve customer payment portals, or offering additional incentives for recurring ACH billing.
See how BILL helps improve AR metrics. Learn more>
Accounts receivable specialist: skills and qualifications
Success in AR comes from combining technical know-how with strong people skills. As technology evolves and business practices change, AR professionals need to stay on top of new systems and best practices—including new ways of communicating with customers and building strong connections.
Required education and certifications
Most AR positions require a bachelor's degree in accounting, finance, or a related field. As in most financial careers, advanced accounting degrees or certificates tend to make job candidates more competitive and command higher salaries.
Accounts receivable professionals may boost their credentials with specialized certifications, and ongoing education helps AR professionals stay current with industry practices and new technologies.
The role of the accounts receivable clerk
An accounts receivable clerk may serve a similar role as an accounts receivable specialist, including many of the same tasks found in an accounts receivable specialist job description. However, this accounting job may only require a high school diploma or GED, focusing less on customer queries and more on accounting figures.
A larger accounts receivable department may include:
- An accounts receivable officer managing accounts, appropriate credit limits, and financial reporting
- An accounts receivable specialist who helps resolve account discrepancies and oversee collection efforts for outstanding payments as well as other AR financial operations
- An accounts receivable clerk or similar entry-level accounts receivable role responsible for entering financial transactions related to AR and noting past due accounts in a timely manner
Technical skills and software proficiency
Today's AR professionals record transactions in accounting software systems, not on paper. That means being comfortable with accounting software, ERP systems, and spreadsheets—although even spreadsheets are rapidly becoming a thing of the past.
Accounts receivable professionals also need to be familiar with the digital payment systems and automation tools that make AR processes more efficient.
Finally, they need to be proficient at reading financial statements—recognizing signs of financial health as well as indicators that may be cause for concern. Data analysis skills help AR professionals turn financial information into useful insights and smart business decisions.
Soft skills for success
While technical skills always matter, people skills often make the difference between good AR professionals and great ones. Attention to detail and excellent organizational skills keep records accurate, while customer service skills help maintain positive relationships even during difficult conversations.
Creative problem-solving abilities can help AR professionals tackle payment issues in innovative ways, while verbal communication skills help them work effectively with customers and internal teams.
Automate invoicing with BILL
Today's technology solutions are changing the way AR professionals operate. BILL Accounts Receivable helps professionals streamline their work and speed up payment collection through smart automation.
The platform handles time-consuming tasks automatically—from sending invoices to payment reminders to connecting seamlessly with major accounting systems to eliminate manual data entry.
Key features that make AR professionals more effective:
- Smart invoice creation and delivery
- Automated payment reminders
- Real-time payment tracking
- Automatic integration with accounting systems
- Clear to-do tasks, reporting, and analytics
