The story I’m about to tell may sound sensational, but unfortunately, it’s all too common.
Picture this: You’re embarking on a journey to transform your collections and recoveries operations.
You’ve convinced your boss that investing in a new system is the way forward - it promises big benefits, automation, and a vastly improved experience for both customers and colleagues. Everyone’s on board. The pressure is on. You need this delivered yesterday.
You’ve even identified a preferred vendor, after some market conversations and a relatively quick selection process. Sure, it took a bit longer than expected, but you’ve got to move fast now. The next big milestone is signing the contract, and you’re determined to hit it. Requirements? Well, they weren’t fully defined or included in the scope, but no problem - we’ll figure them out during the project. Get the contract signed, start implementation, and reap the rewards. What could go wrong?
Fast forward: Reality hits.
The vendor is onboarded, and they’re ready to start building your solution. But they need something crucial - detailed processes to design and configure the system around. You don’t have them yet. No problem, you think. “We’ll quickly pull these together - how hard can it be?” A slight delay of a week isn’t a big deal.
But then the second week rolls around, and the deliverables for the next phase are due. Now, the project is three weeks behind. Dependencies start cropping up. The vendor mentions change requests, explaining that some of your emerging requirements aren’t in the agreed scope. Wait, what? Didn’t we already cover that? You’ll need to escalate this.
Your boss isn’t pleased. The project is under pressure, the costs are creeping up, and timelines are slipping. But you’ve already sunk time and money into this - it’s too late to back out now. You push forward, accepting the delays and additional costs.
Fast forward again: Testing phase.
It’s time to test the system, but there’s a problem. The initial requirements - if they even existed - were too vague to provide meaningful test cases. Traceability is poor, and defects are being uncovered that should have been caught much earlier. The team’s under strain, deadlines are looming, and the launch is imminent. The system goes live.
And then: Issues. Lots of issues.
The system isn’t performing as expected. Processes don’t align with your business needs. Customers are frustrated. Colleagues are overwhelmed. Fixing the problems feels like trying to rebuild a plane mid-flight. The project has delivered, but it hasn’t succeeded.
Rewind: What if things had been done differently?
What if you’d paused at the outset to define your requirements properly? What if you’d taken the time to establish a clear vision of what success looked like, with detailed processes, traceability, and alignment between business and vendor teams?
This is where Arum comes in. We’ve seen this scenario play out too often. Poorly defined requirements are one of the most common reasons collections system implementations fail to deliver. Requirements are the foundation of everything that follows—design, build, testing, go-live, and beyond. Without them, your project is built on shaky ground.
At Arum, we help you get it right the first time. We work with you to define your requirements in detail, ensuring they are aligned with your business goals, operational needs, and customer expectations. We build traceability into every stage of the project, giving you confidence that the solution will deliver as intended. And we bring the experience to spot risks early, helping you avoid costly mistakes.
The takeaway? Don’t compromise on requirements.
Yes, it takes time to get them right. Yes, it means slowing down the initial pace. But investing in detailed, well-thought-out requirements at the outset saves time, money, and headaches in the long run. With Arum by your side, you can ensure your collections system delivers on its promises - without the painful detours.
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About the author
Matt Riddall
Senior Director – Global Delivery
Matt has been with Arum since 2008, starting as a consultant and advancing to Senior Director in 2024. With over 16 years of experience in collections and recoveries technology and operations, Matt brings a wealth of expertise in leveraging data, technology, decision-making, communications, and AI, to drive clients' success. As a leader at Arum, he is committed to delivering exceptional consulting and services to clients, ensuring excellence across all areas of the business.