Leadership Lessons on Managing Culture Across Multiple Locations

Culture is often the silent driver of success in any organization. For agencies in the collections and receivables management space, it’s the difference between transactional operations and teams that perform with purpose.

On the Receivables Podcast, Brian Bowers, Co-Founder and CEO of Financial Recovery Services (FRS), sat down with Adam Parks to share how his company built a culture that not only survived but strengthened as it expanded from two people to four locations.

In an industry defined by performance metrics and regulatory scrutiny, culture may seem intangible – but Bowers has proven that it’s measurable, transferable, and scalable.

Why Culture Matters in Multi-Location Agencies

Culture influences productivity, compliance, leadership, and client trust. When agencies expand to multiple sites, preserving consistency becomes a mission-critical challenge.

Building a Strong Culture Framework Early

How FRS Used Mission, Core Values, and “FRS Views”

Brian Bowers founded FRS in 1996 after identifying a gap in how agencies balanced compliance and performance. As the company grew from a two-person team to more than 140 employees, maintaining consistency in people, processes, and expectations became essential.

FRS responded by creating a Mission and Values Card that every employee receives. The document outlines the company’s mission, “to provide the best quality collection services through fairness, empathy, and responsiveness,” and defines behavioral principles called the “FRS Views.”

These include commitments such as:

• Take ownership
• Be an ambassador
• Choose to be happy
  

Turning Values Into a Daily Operating System

Formalizing culture transformed these values from abstract ideas into a practical framework that guided day-to-day decisions across every location.

Scaling Organizational Values Across Teams

The Role of Shared Accountability

“If you see it and it’s broken, it’s yours. Fix it.” – Brian Bowers

Shared accountability prevents silos and ensures that every employee – regardless of title – contributes to continuous improvement.

Why Leadership Alignment Drives Consistency

A McKinsey report found that transformations are 5.3x more likely to succeed when leaders model desired behaviors. This demonstrates the importance of consistent cultural reinforcement from leadership.

Turning Mistakes Into Opportunities for Growth

Building a Growth Mindset Culture

At FRS, mistakes aren’t punishments – they are teaching tools.

“You just have to accept the fact that there are going to be mistakes and those mistakes are learning opportunities.”

This mindset encourages transparency, learning, and ownership.

How Engagement Impacts Retention and Performance

According to Gallup:

• Highly engaged teams show 23% higher profitability
  
• Turnover drops by 51% in low-turnover and 21% in high-turnover organizations
  

Engagement-driven workplaces create lasting organizational loyalty and performance.

Developing Leaders Through Trust and Empowerment

FRS’s Scalable Leadership Model

“We give them a lot of rope – they can run with it, or they can tie it around their neck.” – Brian Bowers

Leaders are empowered to act autonomously while upholding the company’s core values. This ensures quick decision-making without sacrificing cultural integrity.

Balancing Autonomy With Accountability

By institutionalizing empowerment, FRS built a leadership model where values – not supervision – become the primary control mechanism.

Connecting Culture to Compliance and Client Trust

In the collections industry, compliance is reputation.

FRS’s culture framework ensures fairness, empathy, and consistency across all consumer and client interactions. The organization maintains strong compliance scores and low HR incident rates – rare achievements in a high-volume environment.

This proves that a strong culture directly improves compliance and operational performance.

A Proven Playbook for Managing Culture at Scale

Document Standards Early – 

• Don’t assume employees understand expectations – write them down and distribute them.

Reinforce Values Continuously – 

• Embed values in training, reviews, and internal communication.

Empower Teams With Ownership – 

• Teach employees that accountability doesn’t require authority.

Celebrate Mistakes as Teachable Moments – 

• Turn errors into opportunities to coach and improve.

Lead With Consistency – 

• Culture scales when leaders model what they expect.

Measure Culture-Driven Outcomes – 

• Track how culture influences compliance, retention, and client satisfaction.

Conclusion: Scaling Culture Through Leadership Consistency

Managing culture at scale requires clarity, consistency, and conviction. FRS demonstrates that when culture is formalized and modeled by leadership, it becomes both scalable and sustainable.

“The fundamentals stay the same. The tools change – but everything on the inside should stay the same.” – Brian Bowers.

As agencies adapt to automation, remote teams, and shifting regulations, culture remains the constant that drives excellence.

About the Author: Adam Parks

Adam Parks is a recognized voice in the accounts receivables industry. With nearly two decades of experience in portfolio purchasing, debt sales, consulting, and technology systems, he produces industry news, hosts hundreds of Receivables Podcasts, and manages branding and marketing for more than 100 companies in the industry.

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