Meet Maxine Rossum, CBA, CBF, CCE.(credit manager)

Meet Maxine Rossum, CBA, CBF, CCE; an inspiration to us all--Maxine works in Credit & Collection, Accounts Receivables for Flour City Packaging Corporation, a division of Pioneer Packaging and Printing, Inc. in Anoka, MN. Most people Maxine's age have stopped working and entered the leisurely world of retirement. Not Maxine! Read on ...

"It seems no one grows up and says "I'm going to be a Credit Manager," says Maxine. "In 1983, a former boss called and asked me to come work for him again. I started my career in credit 12 years before I would have retired."

After high school graduation, Maxine took classes at the University of Minnesota on and off for years. When her company joined NACM, she says "I took every class and seminar they offered 7 She joined CFDD in 1992; and started taking classes at North Hennepin College at the same time. James McIntyre, who taught classes there, encouraged Maxine to go for her CBA. "At my age--what for?" Maxine thought. However, he finally convinced her to go for it. In 1994, Maxine passed the CBA exam. She continued to take classes--and the first time she took the CBF exam, passed three parts of it. She took the fourth part again in 1995, and passed. "Then it took four years to finally pass the CCE exam," she says. But she did--in 1999. "I never planned on going that far--but what a sense of accomplishment!"

A lot of work, when she could have been planning for, and then enjoying her retirement. But Maxine says "It's been worth it--with every new credential earned, my boss gave me a nice raise!"

Maxine has worked in credit for 21 years now, and she says "I love it! I'm still working two days a week and handling all calls and collections issues at Pioneer Packaging and Printing. She started at Pioneer in October 2000: she says the receivables were pretty bad--$1.5 million past 61 days, and older. Maxine had all but ...