Kimberly DeFriece

I am currently the Supervisory Administrative Assistant to the Director of Compliance. I have been in this role for over 4 years, with a total of almost 8 years in Compliance. My job is to work with financial examiners across the country to help coordinate and facilitate the examinations conducted on the licensed locations of Check into Cash. I work directly and indirectly with the examiners to provide the reports, files, documents, etc., as well as answer any questions that may arise during the examination process. Of recent, many of the examinations have been conducted remotely, which means I have been responsible for gathering and organizing every aspect of of the exam process, many times coordinating several exams at once. Once the exams have been completed and the exam report has been received, I ensure each report is logged and electronically retained. I work with the Director of Compliance to research any issues cited, gather any additional information needed, and generate the response to the Report. Additionally, I supervise the corporate Internal Audit team. They look to me to assist with questions, help resolve issues, and coordinate work schedules.

• Organized and maintained filing and document management systems by coordinating, archiving and purging files.
• Developed administrative processes to achieve organizational objectives and improve office efficiency.
• Reviewed and suggested improvements for diverse range of documentation, including interoffice correspondence, reports and presentations.
• Interviewed applicants, recommended individuals for hiring and evaluated staff performance.
• Conducted employee evaluations and reviews.
• Created training manual for employees to use as reference guide.
• Delegated work to staff, setting priorities and goals.
• Cross-trained in many roles to maximize operational knowledge.
• Managed completion of planned audits, reviewed records and procedures for accuracy to accomplish objectives and appraised policies and plans under audit review.
• Facilitated successful internal and external audits through sound and thorough documentation.
• Communicated audit findings by preparing and disseminating final reports to the Director of Compliance.
• Assessed potential risks, evaluated controls and conducted compliance testing.

Prior to becoming the Assistant to the Director of Compliance for Check into Cash, my job was to audit finance documents and processes, particularly when changes were made. My attention to detail was key in this position in order to ensure the updates were applied timely and appropriately to ensure compliance was maintained. Additionally, I would draft internal policy and procedure manuals for new products, as well as update and maintain the existing manuals.

• Conducted audits on internal controls and developed reports on findings.
• Communicated audit findings by preparing and disseminating final reports to the Director of Compliance.
• Identified weaknesses of existing control systems and made suggestions for remediation.
• Created and implemented audit program that could identify risks and assess compliance requirements.

I initially started in Customer Service for the Internet division of Check into Cash. I would contact applicants to obtain the appropriate documentation needed in order to process the loan application. This position required attention to detail and knowledge of the product(s) offered and information required for compliance based on the customer's location. After successfully training my replacement, I began working with outstanding loans, providing courtesy calls and advising customers with upcoming due dates of their payment options. Shortly after moving to this team, I was promoted to Team Lead. In this position I not only supervised the Courtesy Call team, but I also supervised the Returning Customer Loan team, as well as the inbound call and document management teams. I answered questions, handled escalated calls, and performed the nightly closeout processes.

• Delegated daily tasks to team members to optimize group productivity.
• Monitored team progress and enforced deadlines.
• Fostered positive employee relationships through communication, training and development coaching.
• Integrated process improvements to increase overall workflow.
• Organized and prioritized incoming work orders and optimized team workflows and resources to handle dynamic demands.
• Rotated through series of different stations based on team needs.
• Offered constructive criticism regarding quality assurance on team phone calls.
• Quality checked components to determine conformance to specifications.
• Promoted to leadership position in recognition of strong work ethic and provided exceptional customer service.
• Assessed, motivated and empowered team members to work to build customer satisfaction and loyalty, to support retention and growth.