Stopping a trade customer's orders, extending their terms and writing off their balance each need a named approver. A credit control approver authority matrix sets which account actions an AI agent may take, from statements to proposed stops, which it holds for a credit controller or manager, and the value limits and second approvers for each.
What does credit control need to approve?
Credit control manages money owed by business customers. An agent fits naturally: it can send statements and reminders at depth 3 within approved templates, draft escalating letters at depth 2, and propose account actions such as a credit hold. The harder decisions stay with people, because they affect relationships with customers the sales team values.
Three decisions need particular care. Credit holds and releases: stopping a customer's orders protects cash but can lose a customer; releasing an order on stop takes on risk. Concessions: extended terms and settlement discounts trade margin for cash. Endings: write-offs and legal referral close the relationship. Each needs an approver with the right authority, and the approver authority matrix for the credit team sets the limits that credit control works within.
How do you fill it in?
- List the account actions your team takes.
- Set the agent's depth for each. Routine reminders at depth 3; anything that changes terms or status at depth 2.
- Set the approver and value limit, matching your existing delegated authority.
- Decide who must be consulted, such as the account's sales owner, before an action is approved.
- Name the second approver for actions above a value or that end the relationship.
- Record the certificate approvers must hold, if approval rights are tied to certification.
The template
| Account action | Agent depth | Approver | Value limit | Consult before approving | Second approver when | Certificate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Send statement and reminder | ||||||
| Send escalation letter | ||||||
| Place account on credit hold | ||||||
| Release an order while on hold | ||||||
| Extend payment terms | ||||||
| Offer settlement discount | ||||||
| Refer to collections agency or legal | ||||||
| Write off balance |
A worked example
A hypothetical building supplies wholesaler with 4,000 trade accounts, six credit controllers, a credit manager and a finance director. Values are illustrative.
| Action | Agent depth | Approver | Limit | Consult | Second approver when | Certificate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Statement and reminder | 3 | None within template | n/a | None | n/a | n/a |
| Escalation letter | 2 | Credit controller | All | None | Key account, credit manager | Foundations |
| Credit hold | 2 | Credit controller | Balance up to 20,000 | Sales owner | Above 20,000, credit manager | Operator |
| Release order on hold | 2 | Credit manager | Order up to 10,000 | Sales owner | Above 10,000, finance director | Operator |
| Extend terms | 2 | Credit manager | Up to 30 extra days | Sales owner | Longer, finance director | Operator |
| Settlement discount | 2 | Credit controller | 2 points of margin, written in the policy | None | Above that, credit manager | Operator |
| Agency or legal referral | 2 | Credit manager | All | Sales owner | Always, finance director | Operator |
| Write-off | 2 | Credit manager | 2,000 | None | Above 2,000, finance director | Operator |
The agent proposes credit holds based on overdue days and balance, but it does not place them. A hold can stop a builder's delivery the morning of a pour, so a controller checks the account, consults the sales owner and decides. If the agent proposes a hold on an account where payment is in transit, the controller's check catches it.
Releasing an order on hold sits higher than placing one, with the credit manager, because it takes on new risk on a customer already behind.
A customer's emailed promise to pay is declared data, not evidence of payment. The agent may record it but should not lift a hold because of it. Only a payment that appears in the firm's own bank records, which are sealed, clears the arrears.
Credit control and lending share some logic; see the approver authority matrix for the lending team. The detailed thresholds belong in the approver rule for the credit control team.
Where the Academy fits
Pryme Intelligence Academy's Operator track covers how a governed agent decides and how reviewers read held actions, with tests set in the learner's own industry and role. A credit manager can use the admin view to confirm which controllers hold a current certificate before giving them hold and discount rights.
Questions people ask
Can the agent place a credit hold automatically?
In this model, no. It proposes; a controller decides. Some firms allow depth 3 holds for small accounts far past terms, once the agent has earned it. The skills behind each role are in AI agent skills by role.
Why consult the sales owner?
They often know why an account is late, such as a disputed invoice or a pending order. Consulting them avoids stopping a customer over something already being resolved.
Who sets settlement discount limits?
The finance director, as part of the credit policy. The matrix only records them and who may approve within them.