To Your Credit - CIC e-Newsletter

Welcome to the CIC e-Newsletter - Winter 2011

Editor's Message

Dear CIC Members and Students,

I'd like to take this opportunity to wish you all a happy, healthy and successful 2011. If your New Year's resolutions include career advancement, this edition features some articles that will help you—from tips on multi-tasking and reading between the lines when reviewing resumes, to a legal update on critical developments in cross border litigation and a review of key financial ratios and changes in accounting standards. Special thanks to Chris Dobosh from RMS Canada for providing the article on cash applications – suggestions for ways of uncovering additional working capital. We're also pleased to include an article written by Lisa Moore, CCP, one of our members in the BC chapter. Lisa works in equipment leasing and shares some insights with us. We would love to hear from other members and share their stories of challenge and reward in the world of credit.

Our volunteer profiled in this edition, Swaleh Namusasi, CCP, highlights one person's efforts to re-establish himself in Canada after a successful banking career overseas. It's truly an inspiring story of perseverance, and very gratifying for us as a professional association to learn how the Credit Institute helped Swaleh's advancement in Canada.

Happy reading,
Reggie Delovitch

Disclaimer
The views expressed in the articles are the opinions of the writers and contributors not those of the Credit Institute of Canada. Nothing in this publication is intended as legal advice, or tax or accounting advice. Nothing in this publication should be considered an alternative to seeking professional legal or professional advice. You are encouraged to use your judgment in deciding which of the ideas to accept or adopt, and which to reject and ignore.

In this Issue:

Association News
	Members on the Move

Bankruptcy & Insolvency
	Latest Bankruptcy Statistics - August 2010

Credit & Collections Management

Cash Application Today: Avoiding Cash Traps
Improving 6 key activities to speed your liquidation rate by up to 20%
by Michael Baldwin
In today's difficult economic situation, companies are searching everywhere for sources of working capital, and increasingly, they're looking at their own receivables operations. Since A/R is traditionally a back-office function, it easily falls victim to neglect. The result is receivables processes atrophy over time, and the resulting inefficiency translates to cash falling through the cracks...

Managing Risk in Uncertain Times: The role of the credit professional in the commercial leasing industry
by Lisa Moore CCP
December 15, 2009: civil servants in Ireland rally in reaction to the Irish government's vote in favour of a reduction in public sector compensation by 5-15%. The Republic of Ireland is claimed to be facing the deepest financial crisis of any advanced nation and it isn't over yet...

Credit Laws

Some Recent Canadian Developments in Cross-Border Litigation
by Ken MacDonald, LL.B., LL.M.
Here are some recent developments important to anyone engaged in cross-border civil litigation involving common-law Canada. One, the criteria for determining whether a court has jurisdiction over a non-resident defendant have been revised. Two, the concept of "forum of necessity" is now established in Ontario. Three, Canadian courts will not, as readily as in the past, decline to exercise their jurisdiction in cases where a parallel action (one involving the same parties and issues) has already been commenced elsewhere...

Financial Analysis

Financial Ratios and Related Tools
by Michel Blanchette, FCMA, CA
Professor, Université du Québec en Outaouais
This is the first in a series of two articles written to provide a quick reference on basic financial analysis tools. This first article will present a five-step approach to financial analysis and focus on liquidity ratios for credit analysis. The second one will focus on leverage and profitability ratios. (The second article will be published in the spring edition of To Your Credit.)
...

Focus on Members

Focus on Our Volunteer - Swaleh Namusasi, CCP

Swaleh Namusasi is a Credit Institute volunteer that many of our Toronto area students may know. For more than a year now, he has been the proctor for the CR1 and CR2 exams held in Mississauga. This fall, he also joined our National Audit Committee, the standing committee of the National Board that reviews the financial statements of the national office and the chapters...

Industry & Economic News

International Financial Reporting Standards - Part II
Effective January 1, 2011, IFRS will replace current Canadian GAAP accounting standards for Canadian publicly held companies and Government Business Enterprises. As of this date as well, private companies have the option of adopting IFRS or the new Canadian standards developed specifically to meet their users' needs. Not for Profits may adopt IFRS or choose not to. In our fall edition, we outlined reasons why Canadian companies might be moving to IFRS, and how this might impact businesses overall. In this edition, we zero in on how the changes may affect credit managers and lenders in general...

Professional Development

7 ways to unearth the truth in résumés
As unemployment continues to hover near 10%, the temptation to stretch the truth on a résumé is becoming harder for desperate job-seekers to resist.

That's why experts say job applicants are doing more "creative writing" on their résumés these days. And hiring managers need to be more vigilant...

Thinking about Multitasking? Think again.
by Sharon Larkin, ABC
Member of HR Communications Team at Hewlett Packard (HP)
Maybe you're one of those people who does at least two things at one time. You're in a staff meeting and building a Power Point deck. Talking with a client on the phone and filling out your expense report. Cheering at your daughter's soccer game and checking your HP email. Maybe you think you're really good at it...