Sample slides for training on Code of Conduct YOUR INSITUTION Date

“All employees should behave in a professional manner to customers” Trainer notes: In preparation for the training, have participants find a picture that represents what professional behavior toward customers means to them. Start the discussion with each person showing his/her picture.

Review of the key articles of the Code of Conduct Trainer notes: Adapt this slide for your institution, pasting in the articles you want to address during the training.

What are some cases in which it can be hard to follow the Code? Trainer notes: Have staff discuss ethical dilemmas, meaning times when behaving professionally might be difficult. It can be from their own experience or stories they’ve heard. If possible, have an example or two ready you can share, to put staff at ease. Discuss the dilemmas by asking participants how the Code can help staff deal with ethical dilemmas.

Areas of risk – loan sales and collections! Most abuses and discrimination happen during the loan sales and debt collection processes— these need special attention! Trainer notes: Ask staff to list the different policies or rules in place that are designed to ensure clients are treated fairly during sales and collections. Source: Smart Campaign

Areas of risk – loan sales and collections! Reminder! International standards in client protection specify the following: Staff shall not force clients to sign contracts, and must respect clients’ rights to refuse a product. Staff shall not persuade clients to avail of particular product/service because they provide higher fee/commission unless the product/service is in the client's best interest. Staff shall avoid high pressure or agressive sales techniques Review the practices that are forbidden in your institution and also consider these international standards. Trainer notes: Facilitate a discussion on these points. What are the on the risks of aggressive sales? To the institution? To the client? Source: Smart Campaign

Forbidden practices in collections Trainer notes: Paste in the practices that are forbidden in your institution. According to international standards in client protection, staff are prohibited from doing any of the following collections behaviors: Use abusive language or shout at the client Use physical force or limit physical freedom Enter the client’s home uninvited Publicly humiliate the client Violate the client’s right to privacy The following behaviors are always prohibited and sanctions are specified in writing and enforced: using abusive language; using physical force; limiting physical freedom; shouting at the client, entering the client’s home uninvited; publicly humiliating the client; violating the client’s right to privacy; mistreating a client based on any Protected Categories; using intimidation or threats; sexual or moral harassment.

Are these practices acceptable or unacceptable? (part 1 of 4) Trainer notes: Discuss the following questions, by asking, “Are these good or bad practices?” The institution calls or sends a text message to the client a few days before the payment is due to remind him/her of the payment. Loan officers will not disband group meetings until a full payment from the group is made. The institution hires a collections agency and its contract with the agency covers only the financial arrangements, not treatment of clients. Many times, the answer will be, “It depends.” In that case, discuss different scenarios and when certain behaviors would be acceptable, as well as behaviors that are never acceptable. Additionally, ask staff to suggest other collections practices that they have used or have witnessed in the field. Eventually, for each practice, your institution should be able to tell staff whether the practice is acceptable or unacceptable. Source: Smart Campaign

Are these practices acceptable or unacceptable? (part 2 of 4) Staff leads group members in developing a code of conduct for how they will collect missed payments from their members. The institution posts lists of those in arrears in the lobbies of their branch offices. The institution contacts the guarantor whenever a loan is in arrears over 7 days.

Are these practices acceptable or unacceptable? (part 3 of 4) The institution contacts neighbors and family members of a client whenever a loan is in arrears over 14 days. The institution rewards on-time payment by providing raffle tickets to clients for each payment made on time, and then provides prizes to the winning ticket at least once a quarter. Loan officers visit delinquent clients at their home. What if the visit is: a. At 20:00 in the evening? b. On a holiday/during a family celebration? c. Every day until payment is made?

Are these practices acceptable or unacceptable? (part 4 of 4) Loan officers visit delinquent clients at their place of worship. Loan officers remind clients of the contractual sanctions for non-repayment, such as an inability to take out another loan with the institution, and confiscation of collateral. Trainer notes: Provide your own practices for loan officers to discuss.

Role Play Trainer notes: Have 2 people from the staff play the following roles: Andrew, the loan officer Tony, the client Give them a print out of the Role Play so they can read and prepare. Choose a 3rd person to read the introduction. Provide a print out of the role play ideally in adavance, so the staff who will do the role play can get prepared. If this is not possible, give them five minutes to read the role play in advance of beginning it. See the following slides for the role play instructions.

PART 1 of the Role Play: Identifying Acceptable and Unacceptable Collections Behavior Set-up: Audience: Field staff and branch managers Materials: Flip chart/white board and markers Activity: Do the role play. Questions to the staff: What about the reaction by Andrew? Make the arguments for both “pro” and “con.” Part 1 Instruction (to print out): Using the following collections practices, and/or a list of other collections practices identified by the FSP, list the different practices on a flip chart/white board.   Initiate a brainstorming session with staff by asking, “Are these good or bad practices?” Many times, the answer will be, “It depends.” In that case, discuss different scenarios and when certain behaviors would be acceptable, as well as behaviors that are never acceptable. You can also ask staff to suggest other collections practices that they have used, have witnessed or have heard about in the field. (Sometimes it’s easier to talk about the bad practices of others as a starting point.) The idea is to get staff to identify what is acceptable or unacceptable, and to define the parameters for the “gray” areas that are not necessarily clear. A collections policy should clear state both acceptable and unacceptable behaviors, and identify sanctions in the case of non-compliance. See an example of Indian FSP Swadhaar’s collections policy here: http://www.smartcampaign.org/tools-a-resources/472 Are these practices acceptable or unacceptable? 1. The institution calls or sends a text message to the client a few days before the payment is due to remind him/her of the payment. 2. Loan officers will not disband group meetings until a full payment from the group is made. 3.The institution hires a collections agency and its contract with the agency covers only the financial arrangements, not treatment of clients. 4. Staff leads group members in developing a code of conduct for how they will collect missed payments from their members. 5. The institution posts lists of those in arrears in the lobbies of their branch offices. 6. The institution contacts the guarantor whenever a loan is in arrears over 7 days. 7. The institution contacts neighbors and family members of a client whenever a loan is in arrears over 14 days. 8. The institution rewards on-time payment by providing raffle tickets to clients for each payment made on time, and then provides prizes to the winning ticket at least once a quarter. 9. Loan officers visit delinquent clients at their home. What if the visit is: a. At 20:00 in the evening? b. On a holiday/during a family celebration? c. Every day until payment is made? 10. Loan officers visit delinquent clients at their place of worship. 11. Loan officers remind clients of the contractual sanctions for non-repayment, such as an inability to take out another loan with the institution, and confiscation of collateral. 12. Provide your own practices for loan officers to discuss.

PART 2 of the Role Play: Case Study and Role Play for Field Staff Activity: Play the second part with Andrew + a new character, George, Customer Service officer Question to the staff: Did Andrew react on the best way to solve the repayment problem with Tony? What should have been his solution? How realistic is this role play? How does this example fit with your experience? What changes can we make in our institution to ensure fair treatment to clients during collections? Part 2 Instruction (to print out): Generally, a written collections policy is not sufficient to ensure staff understand how to apply acceptable collection practices in their daily work. In addition to a written policy, institutions should train staff using examples of scenarios they will likely encounter with their clients. This helps staff to identify problem situations and ethical dilemmas before they occur, and to develop strategies for dealing with these issues appropriately.   Use the case study presented here to simulate a situation in which a loan officer must determine how to deal with a recalcitrant client. Have two people act out the roles and one person read the italicized text. PART ONE FSP ABC loan officer Andrew drove slowly up to the small house where Tony stayed with his wife. This was the part of his job that Andrew liked least: following up on clients that had been missing payments. As he came to the front door Andrew spotted Tony heading out the side door. Andrew: “Hey Tony, good to see you! I haven’t seen you in a while.” Tony: “Yeah, sorry about that. Wish I could stay and talk but I was just heading into town.” Andrew: “That’s okay. I need to go back to town, too. I can drive you if you want,” [Tony stops walking and turns back to Andrew. Weariness spreads over his face.] Tony: “That’s alright. We can talk here if we make it quick. I suppose you want to talk to me about my payments.” Andrew: “That’s right. We have sent you several Demand Notice, I’ve called you 2 times and you told me last week you would come by the office and make the payment, but we never saw you. And now you’re more than 30 days late on your payment.” Tony [he looks at the ground]: “I’m very sorry. I have not forgotten. Let’s enter in my house, please sit down. I will get the money and pay my late installments…” [Andrew sits down on a chair, and waits for Tony going to the bedroom to take his money.] [Andrew waits several minutes, and starts to worry] Andrew: “Tony, are you there? Do you have a problem?” No answer from Tony. Andrew : “Tony? Tony? Are you ok?” [Andrew looks inside the bedroom] Andrew: “Oh, no, the windows is open, Tony has escaped from his house!!” [Andrew mimes the action as the following text is read aloud] Andrew is really upset and angry at Tony. Going out of the house, he sees Tony’s motorcycle. Although Andrew knows that the motorcycle was not registered as a collateral for Tony’s loan, he decides that it can be the guarantee to make sure Tony will come to the office and repay his loans. Andrew puts the motorcycle into the car and drives back at to the branch office. Questions to the staff: What do you think about Andrew’s reaction? Was it a reasonable action? Why or why not? Could this sort of scenario happen in our institution? Take the argument of the “Pro” and the “cons”. Then, read the rest of the story. PART 2 Upon arrival at Branch office, Andrew address George, the Customer Service officer: Andrew: “George, did Tony call and ask for me?” George: “No, no news from your client. Why, is there any problem?” Andrew: “No, it’s ok, just asking…” During 3 days, Andrew expected news from Tony. Finally, the institution receives a phone call from the police station. George: ”Andrew, what’s going on? The police says that Tony has filed a complaint that you have stolen his motorcycle! They are asking that you to go to the police station.” Andrew: “Oh, nooooooooo…” Was Andrew’s reaction the best way to solve the repayment problem with Tony? What else could he have done? Trainer’s notes: Ensure that the staff realizes that a loan officer cannot take initiatives alone that are not written in the procedures, and that in this case, he put himself in a difficult situation where HE becomes the bad guy! Have the staff propose solutions, and ensure that at the end, the best solution is for Andrew to come back at the office (without the motorcycle!). The expected end This story shows what not to do. Ask training participants talk about current policies to deal with a recalcitrant client. What are the step-by-step procedures that are expected of the loan officer (calls, letters, visits)? Do they know at what point should the loan officer escalate the situation to another level (customer service officer/debt collection officer/branch manager)? And how about at what point the legal action would be taken? If the organization does not have any specific policies, brainstorm with the training participants the elements of a good procedure. See the Smart Campaign resource Swadhaar’s policy on collection of overdues from delinquent clients and other recovery polices to provide an example of good practice. In conclusion, staff must remember what NOT to do. A procedure should be in place for how to deal with recalcitrant clients, and staff should know the procedure.

Trainer Notes for Part 2 of the Role Play Trainer notes: Ensure that the staff realizes that a loan officer cannot take initiatives alone that are not written in the procedures, and that in this case, he put himself in a difficult situation where HE becomes the bad guy! Have the staff propose solutions, and ensure that at the end, the best solution is for Andrew to come back at the office (without the motorcycle!!), to share the situation with the Customer Service Officer/ Branch manager who will call Tony to explain that his behavior is not acceptable for FSP ABC and can delegate the collection to a debt collection officer. Conclude on the role with some questions: how realistic is this role play? how does this example fit with your experience? What changes can we make in our institution to ensure fair treatment to clients during collections?

Reminders of sanctions for non-compliance with collections practices Trainer notes: Use this slide to paste in the sanctions associated with non-compliance with the collections practices

Reminders of sanctions for non-compliance with code of conduct Trainer notes: Use this slide to paste in the sanctions associated with non-compliance with the code of conduct in general

Conclusion Trainer notes: Conclude the training session by reminding staff of the Code of Conduct and any specific rules regarding staff treatment of clients. Link the importance of treating clients well with the institution’s mission. Remind them that professional and ethical conduct is also the best way to attract and retain clients. End the training by asking participants to write down one thing they will change now that they’ve gone through the training.