TEC Services Group | Robert Fite On Upgrading Collections Ecosystem | Receivables Roundtable Ep. 131

Adam:
Hello everybody, Adam Parks here with another episode of Receivables Roundtable. Today I'm here with my friend, Mr. Rob Fight, who's joining us from TEC Services Group. How you doing today, Rob?

Rob Fite:
Doing great, just doing great.

Adam:
Awesome. So for those of you that have not been as lucky as me to get to spend a whole bunch of time with Rob through the years at various conferences, Rob, could you tell everybody a little bit about yourself and how you got to the seat that you're in today?

Rob Fite:
Oh, wow. Well, I've been in the business for about 30 years in the collection space. Started out on the data side, working for Experian. Then migrated over to Fair Isaac and their analytics. And they had collections software capabilities at the time and ran that division. And I found my way to running LexisNexis collections division, other data products for about 10 years. And eventually, That led me over to a startup called Tellrock for collection software. And after helping that bring it to the market, uh, I was thinking about retiring, but TEC said, no, we've got a solution and we got a position for you that you can't resist. And they were right. And so today I am a, what they refer to as like a solutions expert, or as you joked with me, a solutions wizard. I'm not so sure I would go that far, but, uh, that's my role there at, uh, TEC helping pull together solutions from various technology together for the clients that we work with.

Adam:
Okay, and so, you know, from TEC Services Group, I know that's kind of a new piece of the TEC organization. Can you tell everybody a little bit about what it is that you do there?

Rob Fite:
Yeah, so at TEC, everybody knows I'm historically providing really good integration services and support. Well, what had happened is over time, they were getting were questioned, can you help me? We're looking at new collection system. We're looking at new collections technology. Can you help us pick the right ones? And then can you help us integrate it and help us deploy it? And so from that sprung this idea is that, hey, we can not only help pick the solution, but we can help represent what I would call the core set of key. solutions that you most see in the market, a lot of the name brands. And so from that sprung, several organizations, including Genesis, that said, you folks are right there at the epicenter of this when clients need help. Could you represent our solution? And so we now represent what I would call the mall and all the name brands are in the mall. And so as the mall owner, we get to work with the client and these partners to bring really a really good solution to bear.

Adam:
Well, it sounds like you're getting to have some fun. I love the technology side of things and being able to build these different application stacks and with so many different pieces of technology coming into the market, whether it be AI, machine learning, communications tools, digital communications, now that we're in a post-REGF world. All of those different pieces and parts, I think, brings together a really interesting conversation. And I know, and I can't remember what conference it was, maybe RMAI where we're having a chat and we were talking a little bit about, like it's great to upgrade, you know, your system of record or your CRM or collection software, but it's all about the environment in which your organization is collecting, right? Like I feel like the problems with your CRM or moving to a modernized CRM, as we'll say, all comes from, you know, kind of, not necessarily looking at the entire, the entire ecosystem in the way that it could potentially be leveraged. So it's an interesting approach. How do you guys look at that problem and how are you helping clients to address that differential?

Rob Fite:
Yeah, you know, it's we've seen this growing trend more recently, Adam, where they first come to us with a spot problem or a spot need, right? I just pointed solution, if you will. But the minute you started getting in the conversation, it quickly unfolds. Well, we could do that for you, but you still haven't solved the problem, only solved part of it. And so

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
when you start taking a broader look at their current infrastructure, their ecosystem across the technology, the people, and even the partners.

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
You start to say, boy, you need to revamp and upgrade your entire ecosystem. Now, that sounds like big heavy lifting, but really it's just going in and finding the soft spots and ensuring them up, whether it's integration, which seems to be one of the bigger problems out there. And we'll get to that if you'd like. But it could also be your partners, because you rely on them and their capabilities and their technology is holding you back. Ultimately, it's all about trying to drive more collections efficiency, effectiveness, performance and overall results. And today you've got to have an optimized ecosystem to do that.

Adam:
Well, I think a lot of collection agencies and debt buyers that fall onto the small and medium scale don't necessarily have the information technology resources in-house to manage some of these processes. And the IT resources that they do have are laser focused on client transfers, right? That seems to be like the... biggest use of IT time in our industry is accurately and securely transferring consumer information from point A to point B and back again. And so that whole process is eating up a lot of resources. When you go beyond that, you know, I look at that, the system of record or CRM is kind of that hub, and then you have all these things that are plugging into it. So the level of ease in which these... different technology tools start to integrate and the cost structure at which that can happen, I would assume is a major driving factor as agencies and debt buyers are looking to purchase or enhance their software application staff.

Rob Fite:
Yeah, I mean, it used to not be the first thing I said, well, you can just transfer files. Now the buzzword is APIs, right?

Adam:
Mm.

Rob Fite:
Some people are not a spell that still, but they're working on it. But the idea is that they want that information flow. And you think about

Adam:
Yeah.

Rob Fite:
it across the ecosystem, it's not just between the client and your own CRM system. It's to your partners, it's to the various vendors, it's to various other parts of your. ecosystem like your dialers and now today your digital environment if you will and then you know now with chat bots and you've got Artificial intelligence and machine learning all those have to and depend on information flowing back and forth, excuse me And so you if you're not doing that very effectively very efficiency in a

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
streamlined manner Everything starts to break down

Adam:
Agreed. I think the simplicity of moving information in organizations failed to realize how easy it can be done. It was the old file transfer mechanisms here. We're going to drop it on an SFTP. You pick it up. I'll drop it off. And that whole process was one thing. But then, you know, the APIs and being able to move information in real time, I think also comes with some unique challenges like. do my systems have the capability of those integrations? And even if they do, who's coding it?

Rob Fite:
I think there's a misnomer out there. Generally speaking, it's relatively easy, but you still have to make the connection, and there still has to be that information even through APIs. There's still work to be done there, but to do it makes great sense and you need to do it. I just find that there are just levels of capability and you need to understand that. or else you're gonna

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
be disappointed. Well, I thought I had that and it doesn't do it. Now you're back into a situation like you had and maybe under your old system.

Adam:
So as you've been working with various clients to try and evaluate their existing technology stacks, where are you seeing some of these weaker points for their integrations or weaker points in their entire environments? Is it a, are you seeing, let me rephrase this, are you seeing more problems in moving into new technology or are you seeing more of these problems being kind of, we need to fix what is existing? Right? Are people

Rob Fite:
Yeah.

Adam:
moving to new products or are we trying to fix,

Rob Fite:
What

Adam:
you know, what we already have?

Rob Fite:
question? No, I think, I mean, there's some people have done a good job of band dating and trying to get the most out of what they have.

Adam:
Sure.

Rob Fite:
I think you reach a point where you say, I can't get there with what I have. And

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
so we're dealing with a lot of organizations right now that have kicked the can down the street for quite a long time. And so now

Adam:
Mm. Ha

Rob Fite:
they go,

Adam:
ha.

Rob Fite:
they, I want to move to a modern system. OK, what do you mean? And so, but. What I find is in the course of that, that it is the organization itself that is so lean and limited resources internally that even to move, we can't do it. Or, you know, we don't have the people and,

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
or the knowledge, right? The guy that did that, he's gone. And so, you know, they're,

Adam:
Yes.

Rob Fite:
they're kind of stuck and now happy to do this. And then we say, okay, let's, let's peel it back. Let's see if we can do this in phases. And organizations like TEC can help them with those resources, if you will, by providing them and the expertise. And that's usually how it unfolds.

Adam:
Well, prior to the compliance age in the debt collection industry, I don't think documentation was what it is today. And so a lot of these systems that were built prior to that, let's call it 2012, 2010 timeframe, right? If that system comes from before that time block, probably don't have a lot of great documentation on the code that's been brought in or deployed within that platform, which I'm sure causes... some really big headaches for you guys as you're going through the process of trying to integrate something when it doesn't follow a standard process and you don't have documentation. So you almost have to go through this like exploratory process

Rob Fite:
I'm going to go to bed.

Adam:
to figure out, right? I'm trying to find

Rob Fite:
Yeah.

Adam:
a good analogy in my mind here, but you gotta like go out into the forest kind of exploring before you even know what direction you're trying to go in because you don't necessarily know what rivers you have to cross, right? You don't know what... what challenges you're going to face throughout the process if a system of record or a piece of technology is not well documented.

Rob Fite:
Even when it is, or they think it is, they give us the map and you find out, well, there's roads missing. Because

Adam:
Yeah.

Rob Fite:
let's you say is exactly right. The older the system is, the poorer the documentation.

Adam:
Mm.

Rob Fite:
There's memory gaps, if you will, in what people understand that they had and what they changed in it. And so there is this exploratory process that takes place. But we've been around a long time so that. helps mitigate that risk, if you will. But

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
there's always a little bit of risk when you're dealing with it, especially under systems that are what I would call closed systems, where the databases aren't very friendly. And so, you know, it's kind of like going into an open heart surgery, you won't know until you get there. So.

Adam:
Yeah, look, and that stuff always drove me nuts, right? Like a system

Rob Fite:
I'm sorry.

Adam:
of record not allowing me to integrate in with other tools and partners unless they give me the magic key to open the door. Like what? To me, that's not a, it's not a great environment by which to build an organization and it really does take away your capabilities of making something truly your own because I always looked at software as kind of the starting point. right? And then whether it be through customizations, whether it be through configurations of existing, you know, options or whatever, but we're all trying to make it our own to fit our specific needs to fit our specific niche, whether we're an agency, a buyer, a law firm, whatever, or creditor. And so, for me, that's always been a big challenge, right? How does it? How do you see it from your side?

Rob Fite:
Yeah, you're right, Adam. I mean, historically there was a back, we call it the black box,

Adam:
Yeah.

Rob Fite:
right? As long as you didn't have to go inside it, it didn't matter. And a lot of these systems were structured and the needs were such that black box was okay.

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
But the world has gone to more open systems, open architecture, right? And bringing in best debris to interact and exchange information and work together. And so that's the new world, right? And

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
then on top of that, If you talk to a lot of the mid-tier organizations, they'll tell you, I don't want to see another piece of hardware if I can help it.

Adam:
Yeah.

Rob Fite:
They want to go to the cloud. And so the idea is that I want everything. They first say, oh, I want the CRM we can run in the cloud. And then it's, well, you know what? What would it take to have everything run in a cloud? And so there is this huge idea. One, it's because they don't want to deal with the hardware and the infrastructure. And two,

Adam:
Uh-huh.

Rob Fite:
they don't want to deal with the cost. And if they think by going to a cloud it's going to be more affordable. And it can be, but I'm not going to fool anybody. It could be the same cost, but just less headache. You know, but it all depends on where you're coming

Adam:
Well, depends

Rob Fite:
from and

Adam:
on how

Rob Fite:
the

Adam:
you're

Rob Fite:
level.

Adam:
evaluating that cost, right? So it's been my experience that if you're including all of the information, security staff time into the equation and all these other things, it's far less expensive with, again, a holistic ecosystem type of view in terms of moving to the cloud. I mean, like I don't have anything local anymore other than a local device to connect to cloud tool sets, right?

Rob Fite:
Well, that's it.

Adam:
what's the point of hardware at this point in time and the processes that have to go to manage it. And I can guarantee that it's easier for Amazon, Google, and Microsoft to hire high-end developers and networking engineers than it is for us to have those types of people internally. We can't bring them in holistically. You know, a lot of people use, or a lot of organizations are using contractors to manage that process. And I think that works to a particular level as well, right? Even if it's physical network engineering, but getting that out to the cloud and then only having to worry about data in and data out to the internal system, I mean, what a game changer.

Rob Fite:
Yeah, and you're exactly right. And that's, I think people are waking up to that. At least that's what we see. And so it goes back to that concept. Okay, I'm looking now more holistic view. It's not

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
just that I need a new CRM or I want to move to digital capabilities. They start to understand and the bulb goes on somewhere in the night and it says, oh my gosh, I need to enhance or improve my entire ecosystem. And here's my chance to do that in order to compete going forward.

Adam:
If you got to go through a system conversion, right, and even if you're just going to change your CRM and you're going through that process, like there's so much that goes into that and the planning and the data, the six months. I mean, it's a it's a big undertaking. It's been my opinion, if you're going to rip off the bandaid like that, you're going to have fresh ideas, a fresh understanding of how your data is managed and manipulated throughout your processes. And to me, it feels like the perfect opportunity to deploy new technology, or at least to get the train tracks down. Once you got the tracks down, you can put as many cars on it as you want. But getting those tracks down between your various technology systems, even if you haven't moved into digital yet, for example,

Rob Fite:
Bye.

Adam:
but you know that that's the future, or at least part of the future, you want to get those tracks laid down as you're going through a system conversion so that your ecosystem is prepared. to be deployed, even if you end up having to build it piece by piece as you go due to resources, cost or other constraints.

Rob Fite:
Yeah, you're spot on there, Adam. I do see that kind of words of wisdom is that, OK, when you move forward in line things, don't lose sight of, what are the three or four key things you want to come out the other side on this?

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
And don't lose sight of this. Because once you get into these projects and then you've got your day jobs, all of a sudden you start falling back into, we'll just do it the way we did it. And I wish I had a buck for every time in the middle of these projects. Well, I tell you what. just for timing purposes, let's just go back and do things, you know, file transfer versus doing APIs

Adam:
Just for now.

Rob Fite:
and integrations. You know, we'll come back to that. You never come back. And so the idea is you end up with somehow deviating from the original roadmap, which I get,

Adam:
Mm-hmm.

Rob Fite:
but then you also lose what you really were trying to do from the get-go, which is move to a better ecosystem to drive your business.

Adam:
Agreed. Well, let me ask you this, Rob. If

Rob Fite:
I'm sorry.

Adam:
you could share one thing with the whole industry about the world that you're living in today, what would you want, what does everybody need to know in our space?

Rob Fite:
Wow, that's a good one. What does everybody need to know? Oh, well, so in our space, what I find is, is that there's a lot of people that are still afraid of technology and that it is not as complex as it may seem and that I think if you shy away from it, you're gonna be worse off than trying to embrace it because it's where everybody's going and I hate to say, you know. Everybody needs the movie, but they do. And the sooner you do it, the better off you'll be and procrastinating and waiting one more day just makes it worse. I mean, that's, that's the thing.

Adam:
That's some really good insight, Rob. It really is. I find that there's always this balance between the volume of accounts and the collectability of those accounts. And as we're going into a cycle with a higher volume of accounts and a lower collectability, we need to operate with the optimal efficiencies possible in order to maintain the margins, right? Like... commissions have been condensed on agencies, everything has been contracting except for the volume of debt and leveraging technology for the purpose of managing these accounts, providing the best experience to the end user consumer while also optimizing or maximizing the value

Rob Fite:
You got

Adam:
of the

Rob Fite:
it.

Adam:
portfolios for those that own it and the creditors that the debts are owed to, I believe is the future, right? Like leveraging some of these communication technologies, leveraging anything that can allow us to manage and provide the best possible consumer experience with the least amount of human effort because the cost of human effort is rising exponentially.

Rob Fite:
I couldn't say it better. Matter of fact, I should have been interviewing you. Nicely done.

Adam:
I love this stuff. The tech side of the collections world is something that I've been in for 20 plus years now and I love the way that some of these pieces and parts come together. I think as we look at the changes in our environment, and I don't know if I was lucky enough or unlucky enough to have come out of college right

Rob Fite:
Yeah.

Adam:
at the beginning of that last recession, right as the wave started to crash. you know, put me in a position to where I was in the space and I got to learn a lot from watching that economic cycle and taking the political aspects out of it, I'm seeing that same economic cycle or at least a lot of the same indicators starting to come into play now. And we talked about it at the RMAI and we had a keynote from TransUnion that was up there talking about the changes that they're expecting to see based on what they're seeing being. back to the credit bureaus related to consumer credit. And so it's really interesting to see how all of these things are starting to come together. And I think that this is a conversation that's going to continue forward for some time here too, Rob. I feel like this is one of those things where, you

Rob Fite:
Oh yeah.

Adam:
know, it's gonna be a big topic at ACA in Chicago, at RMAI Summit out in Monterey. Like this is the application of this technology in order to manage this influx of accounts is... more essential than it's ever been.

Rob Fite:
Yeah, let's just consider this part one and that we'll be having another discussion on this in the not too distant future. We'll call

Adam:
I have

Rob Fite:
it

Adam:
a

Rob Fite:
part

Adam:
feeling

Rob Fite:
two.

Adam:
you may have seen these episodes before. For those of you that are watching, if you have additional questions that you'd like to ask Rob or myself, you can leave those on LinkedIn or YouTube. We'll be happy to respond to those. If you have additional topics that you'd like to see us cover, you can leave those in the comments below as well. And I'm willing to bet I can get Rob on here at least one more time to help me continue creating great content for a great industry. But Rob, I really appreciate you coming on today and having a chat with me. I always enjoy our opportunities to hang out.

Rob Fite:
Thank you so much. Appreciate the opportunity.

Adam:
Absolutely. For those of you who are watching, thank you so much for joining us today and we'll talk to you again soon.

Rob Fite:
Take care, bye.