Hollis Cobb’s Collection Manager over Training and Development, Vilma Zeledon, has earned her Trainer Specialist (TSP) designation from ACA International. ACA is the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals, the premier trade organization providing education for the debt collection industry. Vilma is now qualified to teach the ACA’s core collector courses and help prepare collectors for the ACA Professional Collection Specialist (PCS) designation exam. Her exam covered the essentials of the FDCPA (Fair Debt Collection Practices Act) which governs the debt collection industry, along with collection skills and techniques.
Vilma has a diverse and colorful career, and Hollis Cobb is fortunate to have her on board sharing her knowledge and expertise. Born in Nicaragua, she moved to St. Louis, Missouri at the age of 18 where she earned a degree in Business Administration from St. Louis University. Vilma said she chose St. Louis because she always wanted to live in the Midwestern United States in order to learn the English language properly. When she first moved to St. Louis, she was a Spanish teacher, and also earned her teaching certification for English as a second language. After college, Vilma worked for 11 years at a hospital in St. Louis. She started in the Registration area and eventually worked her way up to the position of Financial Business Analyst.
Her desire to move back to Nicaragua brought Vilma to Hollis Cobb. In August of 2011, she was hired to manage the Bad Debt collection team at Hollis Cobb’s international office in Managua, Nicaragua. After 4.5 years, she moved to Mobile, Alabama where Hollis Cobb had acquired another company. Vilma managed the Bad Debt collection team in Mobile, helping transition the staff and processes to the Hollis Cobb workflow. While in Mobile, she also taught children Spanish at the local community college.
When Hollis Cobb needed a trainer in Atlanta, the management called on Vilma, and she accepted the new position of Collection Manager over Training and Development, moving to Atlanta last year. She trains Hollis Cobb staff in Early Out and Bad Debt Collections, Patient Access, Insurance and Customer Service. “I enjoy training and sharing the knowledge I have gained over the years,” Vilma said. “I understand my audience and I am able to identify different types of learners,” she said. Vilma trains collectors on the FDCPA, HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), Hollis Cobb’s FACS collection system, basics of health insurance and telephone collection techniques for healthcare which includes resolving objections and using a proper tone with patients.
Vilma enjoys the diverse responsibilities and the challenges of her position at Hollis Cobb. She is passionate about helping others gain knowledge and improve their work. Her newly acquired TSP designation has helped her hone her training skills, and will ultimately benefit the staff at Hollis Cobb as well as the clients.
