Outstanding debts are often a sign of conflict – no coincidence.

A payment from a key project client is outstanding. The amount in question is over €100,000. This is inconvenient for liquidity, but far more critical for the relationship. Technically, everything is complete. The project is finished, the go-live has taken place, support tickets have been closed, and the contract has been fulfilled. And yet, payment hasn't been received.

The feedback is vague: "Something's still open." What exactly is open remains unclear. No concrete defect, no clearly defined problem, no objective complaint. Just this diffuse feeling that something isn't right.

Jürgen Dostal zeigt auf, wie Konflikte zu offenen Forderungen führen können.

Outstanding receivables are rarely an accounting problem.

In many companies, an automated reflex kicks in at this point. The dunning process is initiated, the project manager is involved, the accounting department gets involved, and legal escalation is already being prepared in the background. Formally, this is correct. Substantively, it often falls short.

Because outstanding invoices in project-based business are surprisingly often not a payment problem, but a relationship issue. What wasn't addressed during the project resurfaces later at the invoicing stage. Disappointed expectations, misunderstandings, unspoken irritations, or the feeling of not having been taken seriously.

These issues cannot be technically improved or legally resolved. They remain unresolved. And they have an impact.

When numbers are a barrier, conversations have often failed to take place.

Especially in complex projects, friction arises not from errors, but from differing assumptions. What the client takes for granted is understood differently by the project team. What is considered resolved internally remains emotionally unresolved for the client.

As long as this isn't discussed, cooperation is strained. The invoice then becomes a proxy. It won't be paid, not because it's incorrect, but because something else hasn't been clarified.

Outstanding debts are not a coincidence in this sense. They are a symptom.

Why these conflicts should not be delegated

This is precisely where how companies handle responsibility becomes apparent. In many cases, the conflict is passed on – to the project manager, to accounting, or to the lawyer. Everyone does their job. The actual issue remains untouched.

However, conflicts of this kind cannot be effectively delegated. Not because others are incapable of doing it, but because they affect a level where only management can be credible. It's about relationships, attitude, and reliability.

When the managing director personally leads the conversation, the dynamic changes. Not through pressure, but through presence. Through the signal: This relationship is important enough to me to personally address it.

Clarification before escalation

In this specific case, the managing director consciously chooses to lead the conversation himself. Not about legal clauses or payment terms, but about cooperation, expectations, and what has remained unspoken during the course of the project.

Only within this context does it become clear what it's really about. Not about performance. Not about money. But about trust.

The result is clear. The invoice is paid. And a tense situation leads to a follow-up order.

Outstanding receivables as a leading indicator

Those who view outstanding debts solely as a financial issue overlook their true significance. They are often an early warning sign, an indication that a conflict exists that has not been addressed.

Those who only collect are treating the symptom. Those who investigate and resolve the issue solve the cause.

Delegated conflicts remain operational tasks. Conflicts handled personally create clarity. And clarity is not a soft factor, but an economic necessity – especially where customer relationships are viewed as long-term.

What CEOs should do differently in the future

The crucial question, therefore, is not: How do I enforce this claim?

But rather: What is this open demand trying to tell me?

For outstanding receivables, first have a clarifying conversation before escalating or delegating the matter. Treat this as a management issue – not as an accounting task.

Because where conflicts are resolved, not only payments are generated, but also trust. And trust is the real currency in project business.