The Staffing AR Playbook
Resolve timesheet disputes, manage client payment velocity, and reduce factoring dependency. For all staffing verticals.
Why staffing AR is uniquely challenging
Staffing companies face a fundamental timing mismatch: you pay workers weekly while clients pay monthly. Effective AR management is existential, not optional.
Timesheet Disputes
Client says worker only worked 30 hours. You have a timesheet signed for 40. Resolving these disputes requires coordination across operations, the worker, and the client.
Timesheet dispute workflow with document attachment and multi-party communication tracking
Payroll Cash Flow Pressure
You pay workers every week. Clients pay every 30-60 days. This fundamental timing mismatch creates constant cash pressure.
Payroll-aware collection prioritization that accounts for cash flow timing
Client Concentration Risk
One client represents 30% of your revenue. If they go slow-pay, your whole business feels it. But you can't collect too aggressively.
Client risk dashboards with early warning indicators and relationship-aware escalation
Multi-Division Billing
One client has 12 departments ordering temps. Each has different approvers, different billing addresses, different disputes. Getting paid requires navigating the maze.
Hierarchical client management with division-level tracking and consolidated reporting
Factoring Dependency
Factoring keeps the lights on, but fees eat margin. Breaking the factoring dependency requires better collections—but who has time when you're managing payroll?
Factoring optimization tools that help you collect more directly and factor strategically
Staffing AR benchmarks
How does your AR performance compare?
Average DSO
Industry Typical
45-65 days
With Able Collect
30-45 days
Timesheet Dispute Resolution
Industry Typical
14-30 days
With Able Collect
5-10 days
Touch Rate
Industry Typical
30-40%
With Able Collect
65-80%
Factoring Volume
Industry Typical
50-80%
With Able Collect
25-50%
Best practices for staffing AR
Strategies from staffing companies that have mastered the cash flow challenge.
Resolve Timesheet Disputes Fast
Every day a timesheet dispute sits unresolved, you're financing it. Speed is everything.
- Establish SLAs for dispute response: acknowledge within 24 hours, resolve within 7 days
- Create standardized dispute categories and resolution workflows
- Involve operations early—they often have the relationships and context to resolve quickly
- Track dispute patterns: if one client manager disputes everything, escalate to their leadership
- Consider invoice adjustments for minor disputes—sometimes it's cheaper to adjust than fight
Manage Payroll-to-Collection Timing
Your payroll doesn't wait for clients to pay. Your collections need to account for this reality.
- Prioritize collection based on payroll impact, not just invoice age
- Know which invoices fund which payroll cycles
- Start collection efforts immediately at invoice creation—don't wait for past due
- Consider requiring deposits or faster payment terms from slow-paying clients
- Track the true cost of slow pay: financing costs, not just aging
Handle Client Concentration Carefully
Large clients get special treatment—but that doesn't mean they get free financing.
- Assign dedicated collectors to your largest clients
- Build relationships with client AP AND their hiring managers
- Monitor large client payment patterns weekly, not monthly
- Have escalation conversations early—before things get bad
- Document everything: when large client relationships go bad, documentation matters
Navigate Multi-Division Clients
Large clients with multiple divisions require a systematic approach.
- Map the client organization: who approves what, who pays what
- Create consolidated views for your collector while tracking division-level detail
- Identify the real decision-makers for payment prioritization
- Use positive divisions as leverage for problem divisions
- Consider negotiating master service agreements that simplify billing
Break Factoring Dependency Strategically
Factoring serves a purpose, but every dollar factored is margin lost. Reduce strategically.
- Identify your best-paying clients and collect those directly first
- Use factoring for new clients until payment patterns are established
- Calculate your true factoring cost including all fees and reserves
- Set targets for factoring reduction—treat it like any other cost
- Improve collections to build cash reserves that reduce factoring need
5 Proven AR Recovery Programs
Based on what works for staffing companies like yours. Configure the triggers, thresholds, and escalation paths to match how your team operates.
Early Delinquency Outreach (30-60 Days)
The problem: With payroll going out every Friday, you can't wait for invoices to age. But high volume means many slip through.
The approach: Automated outreach starting at invoice creation. Track client response patterns. Escalate before payroll crunches.
Configure it: Set your outreach timing, payroll-aware prioritization, and escalation triggers.
High-Risk Recovery (90+ Days)
The problem: Large aged balances from key clients are hard to pursue aggressively without damaging relationships you need.
The approach: Surface high-risk clients with relationship context, coordinate with sales/ops, generate recovery strategies.
Configure it: Define your risk thresholds, relationship-aware escalation paths, and approval workflows.
Timesheet Dispute Fast-Track
The problem: Client says 30 hours, you have 40 signed. Every day the dispute sits, you're financing their payroll.
The approach: Centralized timesheet dispute queue, multi-party coordination (client, worker, ops), rapid resolution workflows.
Configure it: Set resolution SLAs, documentation requirements, and adjustment thresholds.
Client Risk Monitoring
The problem: One client is 30% of your revenue. If they go slow-pay, your entire cash flow suffers—but you can't see it coming.
The approach: Continuous monitoring of client payment velocity, dispute patterns, and concentration risk. Early warning before problems escalate.
Configure it: Define your risk thresholds, concentration limits, and alert recipients.
Factoring Optimization
The problem: Factoring keeps the lights on, but fees eat margin. You're factoring clients who would pay directly—if you had time to collect.
The approach: Identify reliable-paying clients to collect directly. Reserve factoring for slow-payers. Model cash flow to know minimum factoring needed.
Configure it: Set client-specific factoring rules, payroll cash flow triggers, and collection vs. factor thresholds.
$1.1M-$2.0M
Combined annual improvement for mid-size staffing companies
*Based on outcomes from agencies with $50-150M revenue and $8-15M in open AR. Impact scales with your AR volume—larger companies with more AR outstanding see proportionally larger results.
See Able Collect for staffing
We'll show you how Able Collect handles timesheet disputes, client management, and factoring optimization.