Managing Credit at Christmas by Emma Reilly

As the construction industry gears up for the Christmas shutdown, credit managers face one of the most challenging times of the year. In this episode of Minimise Debt, Maximise Cash with Top Service, CEO Emma Riley (Credit Professional of the Year 2025) provides crucial advice on how to keep your cash flow steady when projects wind down, sites close, and payments slow to a crawl. Discover why the festive season is a tough period for credit control: Tighter margins and delayed valuations as December progresses. Site closures and early finish dates that mean invoices may not be processed until January. Reduced headcount in accounts teams causing delays in approvals and payments. Main contractors managing cash tightly to hit year-end targets, potentially pushing payment dates back. Emma shares five key actions for construction credit managers to focus on what you can control: Communicate Early with your customers to confirm payment schedules, site closures, and office shutdowns. Chase Aged Debt Now—don't wait until half the industry is on holiday. Review Applications for Payment and variations carefully to ensure everything is submitted and agreed before staff disappear. Keep Credit Limits Under Review and tighten exposure early if you see signs of strain on a client's cash flow. Coordinate Internally with commercial teams, project managers, and finance on collection priorities and cash targets. By implementing these strategies, you can head into the New Year with stronger collections and fewer surprises. The podcast will be taking a break over the Christmas period. The last 2025 podcast will be on December 1st, and the show returns on January 5th, 2026.  To enquire about Top Service services for your Business, go to https://www.top-service.co.uk/contact-us/ Music by Purple PlanetRead transcript