Elevate Your Factoring Career: IFA’s Account Executive & Loan Officer Training Class

Written by: Robyn Barrett, SVP Managing Director, Oxford Commercial Finance

The IFA is an amazing source for networking as well as helping members advance their careers. The Account Executive/Loan Officer (AE/LO) class is a great class for those IFA members who are both new entrants to the factoring industry and experienced members of the factoring industry who may want to brush up or enhance skills. There is always something new to learn and valuable information to gain. The landscape of the factoring industry is an ever changing field.

The IFA AE/LO class provides a two-day immersive course for the AE/LO employees within the factoring industry who wish to learn AE/LO skills by providing information and actual real life scenarios involving various routine (and not so routine) business and legal issues, including, AE/LO responsibilities, with a focus on best industry practices in respect to administering relationships with factoring clients.

The AE/LO Class is offered annually in July. While attendance can be in person or hybrid, we have found the interaction of being in person will likely provide a better and more in depth experience, as well as network opportunities and form relationships within the factoring industry. 

The scope of the AE/LO Class covers an exhaustive list of areas of factoring such as underwriting, operations, credit and legal. The class is a great opportunity to see an overview of a deal from beginning to end and how factors of different sizes and ownership structure look and manage transactions. The bulk of the class is on operations and credit. Our focus is on two things.  First, we will provide attendees with information in connection with managing collateral, managing clients and managing risk. A competent AE/LO should learn knowledge and skills to manage various risks to be successful to help the factor become an efficient and successful business. The good news is after attending the AE/LO Class you won’t have to post questions on the IFA Member Forum. You will have all the answers! 

Second, we seek to provide attendees with a greater depth of understanding about the factoring industry.  While participation is not mandatory, we do believe that course participation is helpful. We take a deep dive into how to identify things that effect the collectability of invoices or what would cause an account debtor not to pay an invoice. We do this by discussing best practices such as: What items should be on an invoice? How to analyze the paper trail? Who is the actual debtor? How to review purchase orders, contracts, and agreements? What industries or products are risky? How to review the accounts payable and accounts receivable reports prepared by the client? What are pitfalls to watch out for?  Our goal is to help attendees build confidence and skills to analyze their portfolio and identity red flags.  

The topics that are discussed in detail during the AE/LO Class include best practices for: identifying and managing clients with MCA debt, reserve management, verification processes, collections procedures, debtor credit review and limits. This is just a glimpse of the topics to be discussed. 

In addition, the AE/LO Class will discuss legal topics related to specific factoring industry niches, including, among other niches, surface freight motor carrier and broker transportation factoring.

The class is taught by experienced factor principals and attorneys with more than 100 years of combined knowledge in the factoring industry who are willing to share the good, the bad and the ugly!! We also encourage questions! Whether you work for a factor or have your own shop, this class will teach you the fundamentals of factoring operations. 

The instructors are Jay Atkins and Robyn Barrett. Jay is a 30 year Commercial Finance Executive, holding titles as CEO or President within the Factoring industry for the last 20 years. Jay currently serves as President of Seacoast Business Funding a division of Seacoast National Bank. Robyn started a factoring company in 2001 and sold her company to Oxford Commercial Finance, a subsidiary of Oxford Bank, in 2022. Robyn is currently the SVP, Managing Director of the Working Capital Group for Oxford Commercial Finance.

Legal counsel will be provided by Michael Ullman, Esq. and Jared Ullman, Esq., partners of the law firm Ullman & Ullman, P.A. 

Mike started Ullman & Ullman, P.A. in 1981. Ullman & Ullman, P.A. has specialized in all forms of commercial transactions and litigation. Mike currently serves as co-counsel to and has been a frequent lecturer for the International Factoring Association for three decades. Mike received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Florida in 1975 and graduated Nova Law School Magna Cum Laude in 1979. He also served as a member of and published for the Nova Law School Law Review. Mike is a member of the Florida Bar, is admitted to practice in the United States Bankruptcy Courts for the Southern, Middle and Northern Districts of Florida, Southern and Middle and Northern Districts of the Federal Courts in Florida and in the Eleventh and Fifth Circuit Federal Courts of Appeals as well as having been given pro hac vice status to serve his clientele throughout the country in numerous other states, including matters involving complex domestic and international arbitration proceedings.

Jared is a partner with the law firm Ullman & Ullman, P.A. located in Boca Raton, FL. Jared represents factors, forfaiting companies and various asset-based lenders, including purchase order, equipment and inventory finance companies in a host of areas, including, among others, transactions, due diligence issues, regulatory matters, workouts, Chapter 11 bankruptcy matters (including post-petition debtor-in-possession financing), and litigation in state and federal courts, as well as complex commercial domestic and international arbitration. Jared can be contacted at 561-338-3535 or jared.ullman@uulaw.net.

The views expressed in the Commercial Factor website are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, the International Factoring Association.