The collection industry showed up in a huge way yesterday as part of an educational event that was raising funds for healthcare workers and first responders who are helping treat people during the coronavirus pandemic. The industry collectively donated $20,161 as part of Collector.Live! Home Edition, which vastly exceeded the amount organizers had expected to raise.
Collector.Live! Home Edition features an all-star line-up of two dozen industry luminaries who spoke on topics related to helping frontline debt collectors adjust to the new normal that we are all facing because of COVID-19. Speakers at the event included:
Tim Collins 
John Bedard 
Beth Conklin 
Ron Brown 
Kelly Knepper-Stephens 
LaDonna Bohling 
Michael Klutho 
Nicole Strickler 
Sylvia Larrass 
Irene Hoheusle 
Dennis Barton 
Leslie Bender 
Harry Strausser 
Roger Weiss 
Ken Peck 
Mary Shores 
Gordon Beck 
Kelli Krueger 
Garret Angelo 
Manny Newburger 
Greg Ruffino 
David Kaminski 
John McNamara 
Collector.Live! is a unique event that brings industry experts together to discuss issues and topics that apply to frontline collection agents, who do not usually get access to such a diverse range of professional development. The idea behind yesterday’s event was to share ideas, best practices, and tactics to help collectors who are working remotely and under far different circumstances than usual. Topics included how to be a good resource to consumers; how to stay motivated as a remote worker; how to treat consumers in today’s world; stress management and anxiety relief techniques, and how to speak with consumers who might be out of work or dealing with COVID-19.
The event also featured nearly two dozen sponsors, including:
Among the largest donors during the event were: Payment Savvy, which contributed $3,500, Applied Innovation, which donated $2,000, VoApps, which donated $1,400, and WebRecon, which gave $1,000. All total, more than 120 companies and individuals contributed to the event. Anyone who contributed to the event will be able to access recordings from each of the sessions.
The funds raised will be donated to Direct Relief, an organization that provides personal protective equipment and medication to healthcare workers and first responders across the country.
The outpouring of support and participation at yesterday’s event was overwhelming, but stood as a testament to the virtue of those who call the collection industry home. The event brought people together at a time when everyone is separated from one another, under an umbrella of education and professional development, with a goal of helping others, and the industry responded in a huge way.
As one of the organizers of Collector.Live! Home Edition, along with Jack Gordon from WebRecon, it was incredibly moving to see so many industry executives put aside all of the new and difficult issues they are dealing with as their workforces are not in the office and come together to share what is working for them, to see so many vendors, many of whom are making far less money than they used to, but still donating significant sums as illustrations of their commitment to the industry, and to see so many people watching the sessions and looking for answers, at a time when there are more questions than ever before. To everyone who helped make this event such a success, Jack and I say thank you.
