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[VIDEO] How TrustFort helps make financial service companies more efficient

Posted on July 3, 2012 by in Video Spotlight

TrustFort powers many back-office functions of small- and mid-size broker-dealers and is expanding its partnerships with RIA technology providers

Last week I introduced the first of three videos on TrustFort, a Woburn, Mass.-based technology provider (see TrustFort targets broker-dealers and large RIAs with its scalable back office solutions).

In the second video below, I asked TrustFort President & CEO Atindra Barua about the company’s background in aggregating and normalizing investment portfolio data and also about the latest partnership with AssetBook to enhance their go-to-market strategy.

(watch How TrustFort makes financial service companies more efficient on YouTube)

FPPad Bits and Bytes for June 29

Posted on June 29, 2012 by in Bits & Bytes

While last week was an onslaught of news, this week the flow was reduced to a trickle. Having returned from giving a presentation in San Francisco yesterday, my focus is now on my move to Atlanta in July.

First, be sure to read this month’s Quickview update at Morningstar Advisor, Supercharge Your Conference Calls

Have a great holiday week next week, and now on with this week’s stories of interest:

Schwab Launches Advisor App for the iPhone® from Yahoo! Finance

[Finally, Schwab gets onboard with iOS devices and now has an app for iPhone. But wait: it doesn’t feature trading, it doesn’t have streaming financial news… well, it’s a good version 1.0, but advisers already have more functionality out of the apps from Fidelity (see Fidelity WealthCentral Mobile now available for iPad) and TD Ameritrade Institutional (see Exclusive look at Veo® Mobile app updates for iPad from TD Ameritrade Institutional’s Jon Patullo).] After a successful pilot, Charles Schwab announced today that it will roll out the first version of the new Schwab Advisor Center app for the iPhone. Starting today, independent investment advisors who custody assets with Schwab Advisor Services can download the app to view their clients’ account balances, positions and transactions, allowing them to easily tap into the real-time data they need from Schwab Advisor Center while on the go.

Smarsh Report Reveals Challenges in Oversight of Electronic Communications from Smarsh

[Smarsh knows a lot about compliance and archiving, having a commanding presence in the broker-dealer industry as well as a decent number of independent RIA clients. In this second update to its compliance survey, you can identify the hot topics that concern compliance professionals. Hint: Mobile, social, and website archiving are trouble spots for advisers.]  Smarsh®, the managed service leader in secure, innovative and reliable email archiving and compliance solutions, today released its second annual Electronic Communications Compliance Survey report, revealing the findings of a survey of compliance professionals in the financial services industry.

How to host effective conference calls and get the most out of what used to be a dreaded experience

Posted on June 28, 2012 by in Efficiency, Practice Management

Let’s face it: this guy in the photo above is your worst nightmare for conference calls. Wind noise, road noise, and constant interruptions break the discussion flow and disrupts the thought process of everybody participating in the call.

In today’s Morningstar Advisor Quickview update, I highlight a new service designed to reduce all the frustrating things about conference calls so you can focus on collaborating and getting work done.

Go read Supercharge Your Next Conference Call at Morningstar Advisor and try the service for your next call.

[VIDEO] Redtail CRM launches new mobile apps and makes them free to advisers

Posted on June 26, 2012 by in Video Spotlight

The leading web-based CRM provider overhauls its suite of mobile apps and eliminates its monthly charge for access

UPDATE 07/09/2012: Users can now download Redtail CRM from the Blackberry App World

In an announcement sent to users today, Redtail CRM announced the release of completely new mobile apps for use with iOS, Android, and Blackberry devices. All mobile apps can be downloaded for free and the company has eliminated the monthly access fee it used to charge for use of its mobile apps.

In the spotlight video below, Redtail Technology CEO Brian McLaughlin tells me about how the company developed the new apps in-house, focusing on the security of web streaming but preserving the speed and responsiveness of a native application.

“Redtail first released a mobile application for accessing Redtail CRM in 2009.  Since that initial release and through subsequent versions of Redtail Mobile, we have been fortunate enough to receive invaluable feedback from our subscribers as to what we can do to make the mobile experience of Redtail CRM better,” the company said in its statement.

Redtail’s existing mobile apps generally received lukewarm reviews in the various app stores. Most notably, users expressed dissatisfaction that an additional monthly access fee was charged to enable mobile device access to CRM data.

Today you can download Redtail CRM for iPhone/iPad in the App Store, for Android in the Google Play market, or from the Blackberry App World.

(watch Redtail CRM: Announcing new mobile apps for iOS, Android & Blackberry on YouTube)

[VIDEO] TrustFort targets broker-dealers and large RIAs with its scalable back office solutions

Posted on June 26, 2012 by in Video Spotlight

TrustFort, a Woburn, Mass.-based technology provider, is seeking to expand its recognition among broker-dealers and investment advisers.

Founded in 2004, TrustFort has primarily stayed behind the scenes, powering a growing number of broker-dealer technology platforms, including portfolio reporting and client portal functions. Now the company is expanding its relationships and taking on a more public profile.

To learn more about the company and its value proposition, I met with TrustFort’s President & CEO Atindra Barua. I filmed several segments on a variety of topics, the first of which addresses how TrustFort can enhance back office scalability to better serve today’s client in a mobile and social world.

(click here to view on YouTube)

FPPad surpasses a milestone with its 500th post

Posted on June 23, 2012 by in General

Advisers, like all human beings, love round numbers; increments of 1,000 in the Dow Jones Index, 100 in the Nasdaq and S&P 500, and $100 million in AUM.

So when FPPad hits a round number, it’s cause for some celebration.

Friday’s Bits & Bytes update marked a minor milestone as the 500th post to FPPad. It seems like only yesterday I celebrated 100 posts (for the record, it was December 2008).

To celebrate, I connected with Timothy Welsh, founder of Nexus Strategy and respected colleague during a short visit to Dallas.

Here’s to the next 500 posts!

FPPad Bits and Bytes for June 22

Posted on June 22, 2012 by in Bits & Bytes

Woah, who turned on the firehose of releases this week? Maybe everyone wants to get all their news out to the world before taking off for summer vacations.

So I don’t interfere with your vacation plans, let’s move right into week’s stories of interest:

Schwab Performance Technologies Announces Development of Hosted Version of PortfolioCenter from MarketWire

[My Twitter followers found out Monday morning of Schwab’s latest plans to offer a hosted version of PortfolioCenter to advisers. Getting portfolio management software off of your local server is one of the last hurdles to cross in transitioning your business into one that can operate completely in the cloud.] Schwab Performance Technologies® (SPT), a subsidiary of The Charles Schwab Corporation and a leading provider of technology solutions for independent investment advisors, announced today that the company is building a hosted version of its flagship portfolio management software for independent investment advisors.

Schwab Announces Availability of 28 New Workflows for Independent Investment Advisors from MarketWire

[My vision for workflows is an online exchange advisers can upload and download workflow scripts for specific CRMs. Well, that assumes CRMs can import and export workflow scripts, which most can’t do, not even Salesforce, if I remember correctly. Until then, advisers will have to settle for “pseudo-code,” i.e. a high-level description, of what steps to follow in a workflow, delivered in a PDF or Word document. And that’s exactly what Schwab Intelligent Technologies is delivering.] In order to help advisors gain greater efficiency in their business practices, Charles Schwab announced today that a full library of 28 universal workflows are now available in the Schwab OpenView Workflow Library(TM) (Workflow Library) through Schwab Intelligent Technologies.

Cloud version of Junxure on the way from InvestmentNews

[Junxure Essentials is coming, well, soon, and we don’t yet know how much it will cost. Last year, August 24, 2011 to be exact, I relayed the company’s plans to release a cloud-based version of Junxure in Q4 2012. According to CRM Software’s Greg Friedman, now plans are to launch a beta version in the fall with general availability in 2013. Building this is not easy, and Junxure’s only going to get one chance, in my opinion, to get this right. Oh, and if you made it this far, Junxure posted a sneak peek of Joel Bruckenstein’s review from the Technology Tools for Today newsletter.] Junxure, a CRM application popular among registered investment advisers, is heading to the clouds.

Smarsh Acquires AdvisorSquare from Symantec from MarketWatch

[If you archive websites (see Smarsh releases Web Archiving, an automated solution to archive adviser websites), you might as well support the creation of them in the first place. Here Smarsh announces the acquisition of AdvisorSquare and their website support for “thousands of investment professionals nationwide.” I stopped recommending AdvisorSquare to my clients back in 2009. Will Smarsh’s investment reverse my opinion of their product and service?] Smarsh(R), the managed service leader in secure, innovative and reliable email archiving and compliance solutions, today announced the acquisition of AdvisorSquare from Symantec.

Junxure Launches Blog for Financial Industry from PRNewswire

[Junxure, a top-three CRM in use by advisers, now has a public blog. I contacted Junxure president Greg Friedman and asked that he set up an RSS feed with Feedburner to offer a few more flexible options for visitors to subscribe.] Junxure, an industry-leading CRM practice improvement firm that integrates technology, consulting, and training, has launched its Company blog at www.junxure.com/blog. The new Junxure blog will primarily focus on topics related to the financial industry, from technology trends to industry best practices. In addition, the Junxure blog will report important news and updates about its products and services.

 AssetBook and BlazePortfolio Announce Strategic Partnership to Deliver End-to-End Back Office Solution for Investment Advisors from BlazePortfolio

[Managing portfolios for your clients means more than just downloading and reconciling account positions. You also need a tool that scales your ability to place trades. Here’s a good development between trade order management provider BlazePortfolio and  online portfolio service bureau Assetbook (see AssetBook CEO Rob Major discusses advantages of hiring an outsourced portfolio service bureau.] BlazePortfolio Systems  and AssetBook today announced an integration partnership between software platforms which would provide AssetBook users access to BlazePortfolio’s real-time trade order management system, Atom Align.  The combined offering will provide enhanced flexibility for registered investment advisors who are seeking a best of breed approach to manage their portfolio management systems.

YouTube Integration Reflects Growing Use of Video as Social Tool for Business from Arkovi.com

[You no doubt have noticed the addition of video content here at FPPad. You’re likely considering making videos of your own (if not already) to feature your business. But any video you post is marketing material, and is therefore subject to the same capture and archive requirements in FINRA and SEC regulations. So how do you archive videos you post to popular hosting sites like YouTube? One option is Arkovi’s extended solution.]  Arkovi announced today at the Morningstar Investment Conference a new integration with YouTube, continuing a series of major releases on its social media archiving, compliance and monitoring platform. The YouTube integration includes a number of key features including publishing, compliance and supervision, reporting and search features.

Black Diamond’s Clientele Swells After Advent Merger from WealthManagement.com

[A little more than a year after being acquired by Advent for $73 million, Black Diamond continues its healthy growth. What I’d like to know from you is what has (or has not) changed with respect to the customer service you receive.] Not every advisor was pleased in May 2011 when Advent Software announced it was buying its smaller, younger rival, Black Diamond Performance Reporting.

See, I told you there were a ton of new updates this week!

Kitces: Eleven blogs for all financial advisers to follow from InvestmentNews

[It’s a privilege to have FPPad included among excellent blogs you should follow. I hope you continue to enjoy the Video Spotlight and Bits & Bytes content produced for you.] While there are many lists of blogs out there, financial planning’s own social media “power tweeter” Michael Kitces, partner and director of research for Pinnacle Advisory Group and publisher of The Kitces Report and his own blog, Nerd’s Eye View, maintains a list of blogs specifically relevant for financial advisors.

[VIDEO] How to use Redtail CRM like a power user

Posted on June 21, 2012 by in Software, Video Spotlight

All-day training helps advisers and operations staff get the most out of the popular online CRM.

As you review the CRM you use to manage client relationships, you probably recognize that you’re only using a small portion of all the features the program offers. Wouldn’t it be nice if you could get exposed and trained on some of the advanced features that improve your firm’s client communication (and your bottom line)?

Redtail CRM, the leading provider of web-based CRM software to financial advisers, provides an all-day training course to its users called Redtail University.

I recently met Redtail CEO Brian McLaughlin at a recent Redtail University event in Dallas and asked him about the value the course provides to advisers.

“With every new tool or software [advisers] get today, they’re only using 10, 20, 30% of the application. This is an opportunity to learn everything we have to do, take it back home, and hopefully implement one, two, or three new things,” said McLaughlin.

See the full video for more information about Redtail University, then view the schedule of upcoming training events.

[VIDEO] TD Ameritrade Institutional’s Veo® Open Access to enhance trading, fee billing, and client on-boarding processes

Posted on June 19, 2012 by in Practice Management, Video Spotlight

Veo® Open Access, the award-winning integration platform initiative launched by TD Ameritrade Institutional last year, is getting additional upgrades this summer to further simplify advisers’ processes.

Several weeks ago, I met with Chris Valleley, director of the new Technology Solutions group for TD Ameritrade Institutional, and asked him about what’s in store for advisers currently using Veo®, the custodian’s account management and trading platform (see TD Ameritrade Institutional’s Jon Patullo discusses electronic signature and future enhancements of Veo® Open Access). The number of supporting integrations with Veo® Open Access Architecture continues to grow, now surpassing 60 vendors in all.

“Throughout the summer, we’re really focusing on those features where the vendor can push data back to Veo, [such as] things like trading and allocations,” Valleley said. (see Orion CEO discusses Veo® integration at the TD Ameritrade Institutional 2012 National Conference)

He discussed three key workflow enhancements planned for the near future: trading and rebalancing, management fees, and client on-boarding and electronic signature.

For example, Valleley highlighted how updates to Veo can streamline the quarterly process of submitting management fee invoices for accounts held at TD Ameritrade Institutional.

“Instead of creating [an intermediate] file and all the manual work that goes along with that, the [integrated portfolio management] vendor can then push the invoice directly to Veo,” he said.

Watch the full interview to get all the information on the progress TD Ameritrade Institutional is making with its integration platform.

FPPad is moving to Atlanta!

Posted on June 18, 2012 by in General

Atlanta, Georgia twilight

I have exciting news to share today. FPPad is moving to Atlanta in July!

You may have noticed that the frequency of new posts has slowed somewhat, or the disclaimer on my Consulting page that says I’m not taking new clients through the end of July. I’m busy getting ready to move from Dallas, where my business and family have been based since 2009.

I’m looking forward to exploring the Atlanta metro and building on the success FPPad achieved as a Dallas-based company. After July, you should notice an increase in new content at FPPad, including video, podcasts, and a few new secret developments up my sleeve.

Sign up for my free newsletter to keep up to date on the latest news and information.

And if you live in and around Atlanta and want to connect, contact me!

(Image credit: drashleyj)