Members of ACA International, including debt collectors, creditors, collection attorneys and debt industry service providers, will be attending this year’s ACA International Convention and Expo in Seattle. The convention takes place July 16 – 18 in the Washington State Convention Center, offering multi-track seminar sessions, a 205,700 square feet exhibit hall and several social and networking opportunities. 
Hotels partnered with this year’s convention and expo include the Sheraton Hotel Seattle, the Grand Hyatt Hotel and the Paramount Hotel Seattle. Register for the event here.
This year’s convention will include a golf tournament to kick off the weekend on July 15 as well as special add-on seminars. The next day, the ACA has its official Opening General Session, with a mid-day ice cream break and a special event entitled “The Museum of Pop Culture” the following night. This museum is located in Seattle and engages people of all ages with its exhibits, memorabilia and collections. Tickets may be purchased for $160 and will benefit the ACA’s political administrative fund.
Running on the Legal Track
The convention presents over a dozen seminars, most of which are legal tracks covering new laws and trends set in place by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). For example, “Avoiding Class Action Liability under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act” educates agencies and collectors on avoiding class liability. This session offers instruction on setting up a strong defense in case attendees find themselves in a class action lawsuit, and also provides guidance to manage the process and reduce attorney fees.
ACA International also included a case study session on the Collection Solutions Inc. vs. Jones lawsuit. More information on countless other legal track sessions will be added as the convention date gets closer.
An Internal Focus for Debt Collectors
Acknowledging the importance of team building, several sessions and forums focus on management skills, employee work and hiring methodologies. They also cover ethics codes, tips and tricks for hiring the best employees, and strategies on how to construct highly geared teams. A seminar entitled “What Behavioral Insight Can Really Do for You” will touch on behavioral insights to expand management techniques with employees that did not live up to expectations.
The convention will also hold forums on improving and innovating businesses. A session entitled “Incentivizing Accomplishment and Discouraging Negative Behavior” will review proper employee motivation while discouraging behaviors that can lead to violations of the ACA International Code of Conduct.
Another seminar called, “Let’s Play Jeopardy! ® – The Collector Management Edition” will incorporate audience participation and instruct leaders on how to train future collection managers.
Consumer and Client Satisfaction
The convention also offers seminars on developing good creditor-to-agency relationships. This session will highlight how to best serve agencies as a creditor and vice-versa. Similarly, the convention will include a seminars on achieving client satisfaction through behavior and data science to stay one step ahead of clients and regulators.
Exhibiting businesses at the expo include:
- Applied Innovation, Inc.
- Collector’s Insurance Agency, Inc.
- Cornerstone Collection Support, LLC
- The Omnia Group, Inc. to help companies avoid bad hires, manage and retain good employees.
Software producers will unveil new products such as:
- Lariat — a cloud collection software
- NobelBiz — a communications software technology solution focused on improving performance and compliance
- CompuMail — a software to increase profitability and for physical letters and email
Speakers
Speakers at this year’s convention are all industry leaders and professionals. The Opening General Session, given by Jeff Skiles, is entitled “Lessons from the Miracle on the Hudson”. His lecture will touch on the US Airways flight that was 
impacted by Canadian geese. As the engines failed, Co-pilot Skiles and his captain, Chelsey Sullenberger, decided to land in the Hudson River to avoid flying over densely populated areas with no guarantee of success. This opening session will highlight what to do when faced with unexpected situations.
Other notable speakers include:
- Josh Adams, the director of research for ACA and heads the new research initiative. He collects data enabling debt collectors to help consumers and the economy.
- Stephen Bernheim Esq., an attorney at law and the former Washington MAP State chairperson. He is a Collection Notice Review (CNR) attorney as well as a certified ACA instructor and a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
- Maria Wolvin Esq., the vice president and senior counsel for Regulatory Affairs at ACA. Wolvin is in charge of developing and instating the ACA’s regulatory strategy on a federal level, advocating for equitable and just regulations.
Optio Solutions provides best in-class debt collection services for U.S. businesses using extensive financial services experience in conjunction with full legal compliance, certified collectors and officers and the latest data security and technology.
Contact us for a free consultation.
