For immediate release                         

December 5, 2010

ADEL, IOWA — To increase awareness about the strategic value of learning in organizations, the American Society for Training & Development (ASTD) has declared December 6-10, 2010, as “Employee Learning Week.” This is an opportunity for organizations to highlight the important link between developing employees’ skills and achieving organizational results.

ASTD research shows that organizations continue to invest in growing the knowledge and skills of their workforce. “Increasingly, business leaders realize that the most important asset in our knowledge economy is talent, and a skilled workforce is the key to realizing results. We encourage all organizations to demonstrate their commitment to learning by recognizing Employee Learning Week,” says Tony Bingham, ASTD President and CEO.

In support of Employee Learning Week 2010, collector mentor will be giving away 50 complimentary one-year subscriptions to qualified first-time readers. “Regular training and skill development is an important part of having a successful career in this industry,” says Gary Jensen, editor of collector mentor. “The growing skill gap and increased competitiveness in the industry require companies to develop a highly skilled workforce. We want to provide those companies with an opportunity to experience the benefits of having an ongoing educational tool available for their employees.”

Published bimonthly, collector mentor is a quick-read publication dedicated entirely to delivering articles and actionable advice that teaches credit and collection professionals how to increase collection results, enhance productivity, improve teamwork, and become better stewards of the industry.

“It’s designed as a training aid which builds and reinforces key principles and practices that are vital to being successful on the industry frontline,” adds Jensen. “There are more than a dozen ways to include collector mentor in a corporate training strategy.”

One-year digital subscriptions will be offered at a company-level, and subscribers will have the right to internally reproduce and redistribute issues at no additional cost to ensure that each staff member has access to a personal copy. This offer will last until all 50 subscriptions have been awarded, or until December 11, 2010, whichever comes first. For more information about receiving a complimentary subscription, please visit www.collectormentor.com/trial and enter promotional code ELW10.

To learn more about collector mentor’s recognition of Employee Learning Week, contact Gary Jensen at (515) 339-5899.

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For more information, please contact:

Gary Jensen

Editor | collector mentor

Phone: (515) 339-5899

Email: editor@collectormentor.com

Web: www.collectormentor.com

About collector mentor

collector mentoris a bimonthly publication designed to meet the very specific needs of frontline credit and collection professionals. The articles and advice that appear in each issue are carefully developed in order to promote and encourage professionalism in the industry. If you are looking for “tough guy” tactics, this isn’t the publication for you. For more information, visit www.collectormentor.com.

About ASTD

ASTD (American Society for Training & Development) is the world’s largest association dedicated to the training and development field. ASTD’s members come from more than 100 countries and connect locally in 130 U.S. chapters and with 30 international partners. Members work in thousands of organizations of all sizes, in government, as independent consultants, and as suppliers. For more information, visit www.astd.org.

insideARM.com recently unveiled a new contest, Best Collection Floor Game, Contest or Incentive.

 To participate you’ll want to “submit an outline of your best contest, game, or incentive you have played/used on the collection floor” to editor@insidearm.com.

The contest is being sponsored by Intelitech and there are some sweet prizes up for grabs:

If you submit a game or incentive to us, we will send you the Top 10 games/incentives to utilize or try in your collection organization. The finalists will be voted on by insideARM.com readers. Each finalist will receive a $25.00 Amazon Gift Card and Collector/Coach Boot Camp session from The Intelitech Group. The First Prize Winner will receive a $150.00 Amazon Gift Card and 3 Collector/Coach Boot Camp sessions.

A new pet photo contest has been posted on InsideARM.com.

Here are the details as posted on the contest website:

If you’re a pet owner and work in the collection industry, send us a photo of your furry, feathered, or slippery companion for a chance to win the first ever (that we know of) ARM industry pet photo contest.  As with our previous contests, entrants will send in their submissions, we’ll narrow it down to a group of finalists, and insideARM.com readers will vote on the best pet photo. The winner gets a $50 gift certificate to PetSmart.

To submit your photo, please visit http://www.insidearm.com/go/contests/pet-contest/pet-contest.

Photo on Flickr c/o suchitra prints

Would you like a chance to win an extra $50? We thought so! And, thanks to InsideARM.com you can!

This past April, InsideARM.com launched a contest series to provide credit and collection industry professionals an opportunity to have a little fun while getting rewarded for doing so.

The Collector Contest Series is relatively simple. Visit the website, click on one of the available contests, and submit your entry. Then, once the contest closes, readers will place their vote and a winner will be selected.  Just think…it could be you!

So what are you waiting for? Stop by and enter today!

For more information, please visit www.insidearm.com/go/win-50-bucks.

Photo on Flickr.com c/o Photos8.com

In my last post I called attention to the awesome contest going on over at InsideARM.com (Share Your Best Collections Story and Win $50!).

The contest closed a few days ago, and the entries have been filtered down to the final five. The polls are currently open and I encourage you to stop by and vote for your favorite story.

Here is a brief overview of the finalists:

• KEEPING INSURERS HONEST – Read how one collector helped a consumer get to the bottom of a $240,000 account.
• COLLECTORS HELP SHOOTING VICTIM – Collectors in one agency raise $2,000 to pay off an account for a consumer who fell victim to a mass shooting in a mall.
• THANK YOU, GRETTA – Ever receive a thank you note from a thankful customer? Read along as Monica expresses her gratitude for one collector’s willingness to help her find a solution.
• STICK TO THE BUDGET – A collector helps a young couple develop a budget to pay their bills. Two years later they come back — debt free — for additional advice as they plan for buying a house.
• DREAM HOME – A collector receives a thank-you note after helping a customer close on her new house by clearing up misinformation.

Photo on Flickr c/o Theresa Thompson

 InsideARM.com is currently running a contest for the Best Collection Story! And, get this…the winner will get their hands on a crisp $50 bill! Cha-ching!But, you gotta hurry. The contest closes on April 30th! Here are the details c/o of InsideARM.com: 

 Debt collectors: We’re looking for the best collection stories in the industry. They can be inspiring, funny, poignant…whatever you’ve got. 

 We’ll pick the top submissions and then showcase the finalists on insideARM for a reader vote to determine a winner.. The story with the most votes wins a $50 gift certificate to Amazon.com. 

 This is the first contest in a series we will be running for ARM professionals. We want to show the world that collectors approach their work basically the same way as everyone else, even if our stories are unique to the collection industry. Be on the lookout for more contests, complete with prizes, very soon. 

 So send in those stories where you helped someone with a long-running debt, or received payment in full in nickels, or had a consumer speak to you in Scooby Doo’s voice. There are no guidelines, just please keep the stories clean and respectful. 

 Submissions will be accepted until April 30, with voting beginning the following week on this page. 

 Email editor@insidearm.com or use the form here http://www.insidearm.com/go/story-contest to submit your story. Remember: you only have until April 30.