Credit Control and Customer Administration

1

• Credit Control and Customer Administration
• Nicky Oxford
• Manager Customer Operations
• March 2005

2
Agenda

• Organisation
• Responsibilities and Teams
• Processes
• Profound/SAP
• Questions

3
Organizational Structure - International
4
Credit Control - Responsibilities

• Nicola Smith Team Leader International
• Donald Kinsey Manager USA
• Manage collections for Profound, Dialog,
  DataStar, CDRom, ID and NewsEdge
• Cyclical telephone and written communication with
  customers
• Work with Business to resolve issues and queries
  that prevent payment
• Provide customer feedback to relevant areas of
  the business

5
Credit Control - Team

• Nicola Smith Team Lead
• Andrea Davies
• Agents, UK
• Ursula Krahforst
• Germany, Scandinavia, Switzerland and Austria
• Alba King
• Italy, Spain Benelux
• Catalina Donoso-Crichon
• UK
• Caroline Plantier
• France

• Liean To
• Cash Application
• Scott Blackie
• Cash Application
• Kristin Ang Regional Manager AP
• Asia Pacific Credit Control
• Donald Kinsey AR Manager USA
• Latin America Credit Control

6
Credit Control

• Contact us - International
• Telephone [phone]
• Email dialog.ukcreditcontrol_at_thomson.com
• Contact us AP
• Telephone [phone]
• Email dialog.apcontractdept_at_thomson.com
• Contact us USA
• Telephone [phone]
• Email accounts.receivable_at_thomson.com

7
Contract Administration - Responsibilities

• International Team (including AP) manage
  Profound, NewsRoom, Dialog, DataStar(Global),
  CDRom(Global)
• Customer set up and maintenance
• Contract initiation and maintenance
• Password set up and Maintenance
• Renewals
• Cancellations
• Credits
• Queries (Including NE and ID)
• US Team manage Profound, NewsRoom, Dialog,
  NewsEdge(Global) and Intelligence Data (Global)
• Customer set up and maintenance
• Contract initiation and maintenance
• Password set up and Maintenance
• Renewals
• Cancellations
• Credits
• Queries

8
Contract Administration - Team

• Ashley Goodman
• Customer set up and Maintenance
• Contract Initiation
• Password set up and maintenance
• Add-Ons
• Cancellations
• Renewals
• Alex Peters
• Queries / Enquiries
• Credits
• Customer usage reports and maintenance
• Kerry Robinson
• Produce reports to enable accurate and efficient
  auditing
• Contract Audits

• Kristin Ang Asia Pacific
• PAYG set up for Dialog
• Queries / Enquiries
• Credit Requests and investigation
• Credit Control
• Tony Villani USA Manager
• Customer set up and Maintenance
• Contract Initiation
• Password set up and maintenance
• Add-Ons
• Cancellations
• Renewals
• Queries / Enquiries
• Credits

9
Contract Administration

• Contact Us International
• Telephone [phone]
• Email dialog.ukcontract_at_thomson.com
• Contact Us - AP
• Telephone [phone]
• Email dialog.apcontractdept_at_thomson.com
• Contact Us - USA
• Telephone [phone]
• Email dialog.uscontractdept_at_thomson.com

10
How it all works

• Manual Processes
• Products are billed and maintained from
  individual billing systems
• Any plan that has a cap covering more than one
  product needs to be manually managed
• Back Dating Contracts
• Consolidated Billing
• Proformas
• Currencies for contracts
• DataStar CHF or USD
• Dialog USD
• CDRom - USD
• Profound GBP, USD, EUR, AUD, Canadian Dollars
• ID - GBP, USD, EUR, AUD, Canadian Dollars
• NewsEdge - GBP, USD, EUR, AUD, Canadian Dollars
• Service Fees
• Adv Ent Plans Pfd, Anything for DLG, Dstar
  PAYG
• Start Up Fees
• 225 US and UK 75 ROW one off charge all
  products DLG,DS, Pfd Adv, Enterprise and NR
  (not corp or prem)

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How it all works

• Correct documentation signed
• Use the Agents Website
• Renewals Feedback
• site licenses
• extensions
• reverting payg
• Use of Contract Admin Set Up Sheet
• Requests all information relevant to set up
  contract correctly

12
Profound / SAP Changes

• No Capped IDs
• Unable to restrict to table of contents
  currently no work around
• Unable to apply credit limits
• Advantage Plans must have a 1st of the month
  start date for both monthly and annual starts
• Any mid-month starts will be charged
  transactional usage with an equivalent discount
  for the days until the beginning of the next
  month. (Work around potential for monthly billed
  contracts)
• Unable to backdate contracts
• No detailed usage report
• Detailed usage available through bill-back
• Unable to transfer user IDs from one account to
  another. The existing ids will be deactivated
  and new ids set up on the required customer
  will get new id and password
• Unable to view customer passwords
• Close date aligned to Dialog
• Unable to change plan type mid month without an
  interruption to service (24hours min 48hrs max)

13
Key Success Factors

• Understanding of business systems limitations
• Avoid manual work arounds
• Use of standard contracts
• Communication
• Build relationships
• Two Way information flow
• Flexibility
• Support

14
QUESTIONS ..

• Thank you