Our clients

I have used Chris Firat Training to support the re-write of our Induction Training Programme and to deliver development courses. Managers have also attended CFT's public courses.

Chris Firat's enthusiasm and knowledge of debt collection in terms of negotiation and legislation is the best I have ever witnessed. Everybody who has attended one of Chris' workshops said it was the best course they had ever been on. They were full of admiration and gratitude for Chris as she supported them in the challenges we face day to day. Chris keeps things real by providing examples and sharing her experience. Her courses are always interactive and promote best practice.

Chris keeps people's attention whilst embedding the message you want to get across. Following each course, both my managers and collectors have come back to the operation motivated, and have made a positive change to the way they were doing things.

I would highly recommend Chris Firat Training to anybody who wants to make a positive difference to their debt collection operation whilst remaining within legislative guidelines but achieving excellent results.

- Louise Schofield, Head of Collections, Robinson Way and Company Limited
ScotCall have employed the talents of CF Training for the past two years where we have run an annual course internally to train our newer Account Managers and do refresher training for more experienced Account Managers. Feedback from our staff has been excellent but the real gain has been increased collections across the board, where we have seen between a 30% to 40% increase in the first year, but also significant increases so far in year two. We have also sent our Collection Management Team on CFTs public seminars with their peers and they have benefited greatly from that. I have no hesitation in recommending CF Training to any company in our industry as the training is all tailored to both our industry and your company. Indeed it is our intention to look at increasing refreshers from the current once a year.

- Graeme Niven M.I.C.M., Head of Collections
Over the last 2 years, CFT has assisted in training more than 500 of our collectors, including those responsible for the collection of credit card, personal loan and current account debt. The training sessions have taken place both in the UK and South Africa, and each course has been tailored to the unique environment of the collections unit in question. Without exception, the trainer has brought an in-depth level of knowledge to each of the training sessions, strengthening both the capabilities of the business and the collector.

The feedback received from the courses has been exceptional, and Barclaycard is continuing to work with CFT on maintaining the high standard of debt collection achieved to date.

- Jim Waddell, Head of Collections and Group Recoveries
Bolsover District Council enlisted the help of CFT to develop and deliver a bespoke training workshop to its Recovery Officers entitled, 'Effective Debt Collection by Telephone' in March 2007. Jane Lapins, Billing and Recovery Manager for Bolsover District Council made the following comments after the training had been completed and the success of the workshop assessed:

"Following the training at the end of March 2007, debit card transactions taken by Revenues staff alone increased by 27.8% from April to June in 2007, compared to the same time last year. Direct Debit take up has increased by approximately 4% during this same period.

The training had a positive effect on staff and they really took on board the points made. They felt 'empowered' that they could be in control, assertive and induce payment.

I certainly feel that the training has been, and will continue to be, a key factor in our performance."

- Jane Lapins, Billing and Recovery Manager
Southern Finance has used Chris Firat Training on several occasions to deliver training days and presentations to its in-house collections staff, and Area Managers whose role includes doorstep collecting.

"We are delighted that our staff has been able to enjoy the professional expertise and training solutions provided by CF Training. In our opinion, having experienced a number of training providers over many years, Chris Firat consistently displays sound unsurpassed knowledge in the subject, which is delivered in a style that never fails to captivate delegates' attention. We very much expect to continue our association, which to date has existed since the first training session provided for our staff by Chris in 2001."

- Carl Virgo, Operations Director
I was curious about Chris Firat Training having heard many endorsements from other collection managers across the industry. After an initial meeting with Chris it was clear that she had a passion for debt recovery rather than an enthusiastic sales pitch which I have encountered through other training providers.

Chris was appointed to perform a one-day bespoke workshop for all collectors within the department and this was conducted over a two-month period. I was particularly impressed with Chris' flexibility as she was more than happy to work in to the evenings to accommodate shift workers and would adjust the course for collectors who managed different products.

Chris' style as a trainer was one that the collectors had not encountered before, as previous trainers had been quite staid and rigid, however, they found Chris to be innovative and engaging. The feedback from the attendees has been remarkable with collectors actually sending me messages of thanks for scheduling them on the course, which is something I have never received before. The fact that Chris is an experienced collector is one of the reasons why she gained credibility and buy-in from the attendees.

As they had collected in a particular style for many years, I knew that the collectors would find it difficult to adapt to a whole new approach and this has been the case for a few. However, Chris has worked with the Team Managers and I to ensure that her techniques are taken on board and has revisited the site to perform follow-up coaching and assessments. We are already starting to see the impact of Chris' training through results as well as from individual feedback, and many collectors have managed to adapt quickly and are performing at a much higher level.

I hope to continue to employ Chris as a trainer in the future and have her regularly revisit us to reinforce the training given and help shape and mould new recruits.

- Paul Atherton - Customer Service Manager, Debt Management Unit
I have used Chris Firat for both training and consultancy on many occasions over the last 10 years. These assignments have varied in scope, and have included debt collection training for new starters, enrichment training workshops for experienced staff, team leader training for collection supervisors, and consultancy 'Health Check Reviews' to determine the strengths and areas for improvement within various debt collection operations.

Chris Firat has always delivered what I wanted and the delegates on training courses have thoroughly enjoyed themselves. If you want 'real world' collections training, CFT is the company for you!

- Garry Stran, Chief Executive
Commercial Credit Management Limited, the Knowsley based debt collection agency, called in the services of Chris Firat, one of the industry's leading trainers.

Managing Director of CCM, Steve Murray, commented, "We have a mission and a reputation for going the extra mile and paying attention to detail in all areas of our operation. As we've had a few changes within the Operations Department recently, I wanted to fast track and motivate the team to help them excel at what they do, which is collect the money our clients can't. I was confident Chris Firat could help me achieve this."

Joe Smith, Senior Account Manager, said, "Chris's knowledge and approach to debt collecting was refreshing and powerful, and we can immediately see the results of putting her style into our ethic. A very beneficial days training."

- Steve Murray, Managing Director
Alliance and Leicester has used Chris Firat Training on more than one occasion to complement the courses already provided by its well established in-house Training Department. CFT is able to provide in-depth specialist knowledge on debt collection tactics and techniques as well as giving delegates the legal and regulatory knowledge they need to conduct their debt collection role efficiently and effectively within the Law.

The training services provided were quirky, informative and fun. The delegates thoroughly enjoyed the sessions and retained the information they were given. Chris Firat's style is unique!

- Tracey O'Neill M.I.C.M, Collections Manager - Personal Loans Department
I would like to offer my feedback on the training sessions recently undertaken by Chris Firat Training. To say that I am delighted with the content and quality of these sessions would be an understatement. In the past, I have used various providers to deliver telephone collection skills, and they delivered very little at an exorbitant cost. This time it was different.

In preparation for the sessions, the trainer familiarised herself with the unique product that is a Student Loan, and ensured she was well versed with the many challenges facing our staff. This earned her the admiration of her audience who all commented that, "she certainly knows her stuff and she knows what we do inside and out." This thorough preparation encouraged open participation as the attendees felt in Chris they were with someone who could relate to the key issues of the day. After the first session, I had Team Leaders contact me to tell me how great they thought the course was. One had even begun to put the outputs of the session into practice and was already seeing results. The attendees were all enthusiastic, motivated and are looking forward to putting what they learnt into practice.

I would urge that this training course is a must for any organisation looking to maximise their collections performance through the use of innovative and highly effective telephone collection skills. Since running this course our overall cash collection has increased by 19% and for some agents has increased by 30%.

- Yvonne MacLeod MICM, Manager, Collections Division