Executive Change: Lowell Group Appoints Director of External Collections

UK ARM firm Lowell Group has appointed Gary Jones, currently Director of Operations for Lowell Preston, to the new wider role of Director of External Collections for the Group.

In his new role Gary will continue to manage Lowell Preston while taking on the additional responsibility of managing all the company’s outsourced collections relationships, including its DCA panel and relationships with litigation houses, insolvency practitioners and debt management companies.

Gary joined Lowell four years ago when the company acquired the assets of his trace business, J2 Solutions. Since then he has been responsible for successfully developing Lowell’s Preston-based ‘outsource to sell’ operation. The operation offers clients the chance to work with Lowell on a commission basis initially before committing to a full debt sale, allowing both parties to learn more about debt sale and make informed decisions on pricing and strategies.

Andrew Bartle, Lowell Group’s COO, said: “This new senior management position reflects the growing importance that outsourcing relationships play in our business. Gary will be responsible for driving the performance of our outsource partners to maximise revenue while ensuring that their practices and processes are compliant and in keeping with Lowell’s standards.

“Gary has done a fantastic job in developing our Preston ‘outsource to sell’ operation, working with outsource partners, so we are delighted to be giving him this expanded management role.”

Gary Jones

Gary Jones commented, “I am delighted to be taking on this new role and look forward to developing relationships with our valued external partners and building mutually beneficial strategies.”

Paul Thomas, who has been responsible for managing Lowell’s DCA panel for the past three years, will remain with the group as Head of Collections Strategy. This appointment will enable Paul to focus his efforts solely on the internal operation.

Formed in 2004, Lowell Group is a specialist debt purchasing company. Today the business employs more than 550 people at its state-of-the art HQ and customer contact centres in Leeds and Preston, and in recent years Lowell Group’s performance has earned it numerous awards.

In 2012 Lowell Group became the first company to be named ‘Debt Purchaser of the Year’ for the third time in Credit Today’s annual Collections Awards, having been the inaugural winner in 2007 and also winning in 2010.