A billing supervisor oversees a team of clerks who are in charge of sending invoices to customers and collecting payments. The supervisor is responsible for assigning duties in the billing office and overseeing the clerks’ daily activities. Supervisors may have the authority to hire and fire clerks in some cases, and they are almost always responsible for providing on-the-job training and advice.
In most cases, insurance companies, hospitals, satellite television companies, and other service providers have in-house billing teams, which are led by a billing supervisor. Some employers demand that supervisors hold a bachelor’s degree in business administration, accounting, management, or a related field. Other companies simply hire experienced and skilled billing clerks to work as supervisors. Several billing supervisors may be employed by large insurance companies to oversee teams of clerks who handle payments for various types of policies.
The billing supervisor usually has to provide clerks with lists of clients who need to be invoiced for recent services on a daily basis. The supervisor is frequently required to submit daily, weekly, or monthly reports to keep track of the number of clients who have been invoiced and the number of bills that have been paid. The supervisor may be able to assist clerks in locating clients who are difficult to reach. Furthermore, the billing supervisor is likely to be familiar with local collections practices and laws, and can thus advise clerks on the most legal way to collect a past due debt.
Clients may dispute invoices if the listed services were not provided or if the total invoice amount differs from the estimated cost of services. In many countries, insurance companies pay medical premiums on behalf of the insured, but most policies only cover a limited number of expenses. The billing clerks must invoice the insured for the balance of the bill in this case. Co-payment charges frequently result in disagreements between clerks and customers. If the invoice is correct, such disputes are usually escalated to the billing supervisor, who has the authority to waive charges or confirm the information provided by the clerk.
Aside from attempting to resolve client disputes, the billing supervisor is also responsible for resolving inter-personal conflicts among clerks. The billing supervisor is usually in charge of writing the staff schedule and has the authority to discipline employees who are late, don’t show up for work, or perform poorly. Employees are required to submit time cards detailing their working hours in some countries, and the billing supervisor must sign these cards to authorize payroll payments.