The “Getting to Know” series is sponsored by Applied Innovation. Applied Innovation is helping to shape the future of accounts receivable management. Product development is driven by customer feedback, agency profitability and compliance and includes platforms addressing client portal access, document management, payment negotiation, Regulation E focused electronic payment authorizations and TCPA communication authorization platforms. Partner with a company who understands your business challenges and evolves to provide cutting edge technology to overcome those challenges and achieve success.
There aren’t a lot of people in the ARM industry who you would consider to be a Jedi among us mere mortals, but Brit Suttell is one of them. Recognized by the National Creditors Bar Association last year as the winner of the Donald Kramer Award, Brit’s intellect and honesty have made her one of the most respected and sought-after legal minds in the industry. Read on to learn more about Brit and why, when somebody has to save our skins, we can count on her.
Name: Brit Suttell
Job Title: Attorney
Company: Barron & Newburger, P.C.
Length of Time at Current Company: Four years.
Length of Time in Industry: Complicated, but I will say 18ish years.
How did you get your start in the industry?
My Dad, Bill Suttell, had a law firm in Seattle, Wash., and in the mid-1980’s began focusing on debt collection for local banks. I remember filing the green cards from certified mail when I was like eight or nine. The law firm grew and in high school and college I started doing more and more. I did everything except posting payments and litigating. After law school I moved to Pennsylvania where I passed the bar and worked for the first 10 or so years as an attorney at Burton Neil & Associates, P.C., and then came to work for Barron & Newburger.
What is your career highlight so far?
Being awarded the Donald Kramer Award last year by the National Creditors Bar Association.
When or how are you most productive?
I am definitely a morning person and am most productive when there are minimal to no distractions and I can listen to “Star Wars” soundtracks.
Which industry professional do you admire most?
I can give you the top three: My Dad, Joann Needleman, and Manny Newburger.
What is one thing you do better than everyone else?
Relate anything to “Star Wars”.
What do you like most about this industry?
I really enjoy the people. It’s a collegial industry even though many people are actually competitors. For the most part, everyone is interested in helping everyone else through similar compliance, operations, or legal issues. I really enjoy my current position because there is something new just about every day.
What is one thing you wish you could change about this industry?
I wish I could change the “us vs. them” mentality between the consumers’ bar and the collection industry. I understand that we have different perspectives, but I think there is probably more we agree on than both sides realize.
Describe a typical work day.
Get into the office, check my email and industry news (which always includes AccountsRecovery.net’s Daily Digest newsletter), check for new case law or press releases from industry regulators. From there, it could be a mix of compliance work, litigation, or regulatory work. Of course, there are meetings and court appearances thrown in, but every day is different.
If you weren’t in this industry, what would you be doing?
Either a high school history teacher or early American history professor.
What is your guilty pleasure?
Not sure I’m guilty about it, but anything involving “Star Wars” (movies, shows, books, comics, video games, tabletop and RPGs).
The Getting to Know Series is Sponsored By:
What is the best advice you’ve ever received?
Your focus determines your reality.
What are you currently reading?
A biography on Gerald Ford; “Star Wars The High Republic: Into the Dark” by Claudia Gray; “The Hobbit” (aloud to my younger son); “Magnus Chase and the Ship of the Dead” (aloud to both of my sons); and I’m listening to “Tristan Strong Punches a Hole In the Sky” by Kwame Mbalia.
What is one fact you’d like everyone in the industry to know about you
I grew up salmon fishing with my Dad and Grandpa in Seattle and once woo-ed my wife with taking her fishing, catching a salmon, and grilling it for her in less an hour.
Who else would you like to see answer these questions?
Liz Terry, Executive Director of the National Creditors Bar Association.
The “Getting to Know” series is sponsored by Applied Innovation. Applied Innovation is helping to shape the future of accounts receivable management. Product development is driven by customer feedback, agency profitability and compliance and includes platforms addressing client portal access, document management, payment negotiation, Regulation E focused electronic payment authorizations and TCPA communication authorization platforms. Partner with a company who understands your business challenges and evolves to provide cutting edge technology to overcome those challenges and achieve success.