Honesty is, of course, absolutely essential in any col- lector. Many firms require their collectors to be bonded, which is very well in certain instances. But it would seem that the matter of bonding a person could in most cases be dispensed with. The most certain method of de- veloping responsibility in an employee is to give him re- sponsibility. He can only be known for his trustworthi- ness by being permitted to demonstrate that he is honest and one to be relied upon. The collector who is unfet- tered by any thoughts that he is only permitted to act in that capacity by the surety of some third party will give the best results, other things being equal. If he can feel that absolute confidence is placed in his integrity and abil- ity he will work energetically and use every endeavor to secure all the collections possible with the idea of “making good,” while another is apt to work half-heartedly and se- cure only enough collections to retain his position. Quite naturally, one must not give a dishonest person any tasks involving money, but it is presumed that the collection manager is a student of human nature and knows his sub- ordinates. If one has not confidence in the employees of the department, one has no confidence in their work, and any such employee might as well be transferred first as last to some other department or discharged, and some other obtained who is honest.
The Personal Call.
In making the personal call one should not approach the door or enter the office with the bill in one’s hand, but the approach should be made in a brisk, snappy manner with
