The savvy collector: smarter decisioning, smarter outcomes

Today, collections organizations cannot afford to rely on traditional methods and legacy applications alone. As portfolios grow more complex, the ability to make timely, informed decisions has become a critical part of effective collections decisioning and operations.

This blog builds on the discussion of workflows and collections automation by exploring how embedded collections decisioning helps inform strategies and drive smarter outcomes across the collections life cycle.

Throughout this series, the savvy collector represents a modern collections professional—one who benefits from guided workflows and decision support that adapts to changing data and customer behavior.

Many of the approaches described in this blog are informed by our experience supporting clients through CGI Credit Studio for collections and its Strata decision engine, though the challenges and considerations explored here are common across the industry. Strata has been independently certified as an Arum Approved System for decisioning in the collections and recoveries market, recognizing strengths such as AI-ready, governed decisioning and transparent optimization.

Embedded decision engines provide real-time outcomes

Some legacy collections systems rely on external decision engines to dictate strategy. In many cases, these decision engines are connected to the collections system through batch interfaces. As a result, strategy decisions may be evaluated only once per day and can be based on outdated information.

The savvy collector benefits from embedded, real-time collections decisioning powered by Strata within CGI Credit Studio for collections. When a collector executes a specific step in a workflow, decisions can be reassessed immediately, allowing next actions to reflect the most current data rather than waiting for the next batch-processing cycle.

When paired with data-driven insights drawn from behavioral, operational and contextual signals, embedded collections decisioning enables strategies to adapt continuously as customer situations evolve, helping teams make faster and more accurate decisions.

Enhanced outreach strategies

In legacy environments, contact strategies are often rigid, one-dimensional and difficult to manage. They may not easily adapt to preferred contact times, channels or changing customer behavior.

With more dynamic collections decisioning in place, the savvy collector takes advantage of outreach strategies that evolve in real time. Preferred contact times and channels can be considered and adjusted as new information becomes available. When customers are enabled to interact through methods they prefer, they are more likely to resolve accounts independently, allowing collectors to focus on customers who require additional attention.

While individual collectors may not manage strategy updates directly, collections support teams can implement changes quickly, ensuring strategies remain aligned and consistent across the organization.

Freedom from spreadsheet-based tools

Some specialized collections processes—such as hardship evaluations, repossession fee calculations and promise-to-pay assessments—require regular calculation of certain values. In legacy environments, these calculations are often handled outside the collections system using spreadsheets or other external tools.

With embedded collections decisioning, the savvy collector receives the outcomes from complex calculations that are performed directly within the workflow. Decisions that once required manual review or external tools can be completed in seconds, helping teams reach outcomes faster while reducing the risk of error.

By bringing decision logic into daily routines, organizations can simplify processes and support collectors with clearer, more consistent guidance.

Modernize your collections operations

Smarter collections decisioning is a natural extension of workflow automation. Together, they help organizations improve consistency, respond more effectively to change and support better outcomes across the collections life cycle.

Discover how CGI Credit Studio for collections and its Strata decision engine support smart, real-time, embedded collections decisioning to help modernize collections operations.

Stay tuned for the next blog in the savvy collector series, where we explore how real-time updates help collections teams stay informed and in control.