Tag Archives: IMPACT 2011

FPPad Bits and Bytes for November 11

Posted on November 11, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

I’ve been back in Dallas for a week, but I still have yet to review and edit my notes from Schwab IMPACT 2011. Soon I hope to have two or three new updates on my feedback from conference breakout sessions, but consulting, new content development, and family obligations take precedence. Still, I’ve kept my pulse on the wires this week for the best in technology stories for financial advisers.

First, if you have a website, but are wondering what you can do to take it to the next level and convert visitors to clients, read this month’s column on Morningstar Advisor, How Marketing Automation Can Accelerate Client Growth.

All the major media outlets were on site at Schwab IMPACT 2011, so there were a number of stories released this week regarding related announcements. Most of them were good, but in this case, video content did a better job of addressing what the custodian is doing with its technology platform for advisers than print.

Here are two video updates from Schwab IMPACT worth viewing, one from InvestmentNews’s Davis Janowski interviewing Neesha Hathi and a second from James J. Green’s AdvisorOne, also interviewing Neesha Hathi.

Advisor Tested: Arkovi expands and archives a firm’s online footprint from RIABiz.com

[As an adviser in a regulated industry, you can’t tweet, post to Facebook, or interact on LinkedIn if it’s related to your business unless you archive and supervise your records. One tool that facilitates your compliance obligations is Arkovi, and Judy Messina gives a good rundown in this RIABiz Advisor Tested story.] As registered investment advisors flock to Twitter, Facebook and other social-media sites to establish themselves as thought leaders and connect with customers and other investment professionals, storing and keeping track of tweets, posts and other content for compliance purposes can seem like an exercise in herding cats.

And in related news, I think you might care a little bit about what might happen with the future of regulatory examinations for investment advisers.

Let RIAs Foot Their Own Examination Bill, Report Says from FA-Mag.com

[In a report commissioned by TD Ameritrade Institutional, Georgetown University finance professor James J. Angel proposed that RIAs should pay for their own periodic compliance examinations conducted by an outside third party. There’s merit to this idea, as RIAs who take custody of client assets today must subject themselves to (and pay for) a surprise audit by an independent public accountant that is registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB).] Instead of the Securities And Exchange Commission (SEC) or the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (Finra) examining RIA firms, the firms themselves should foot the bill for their own periodic compliance examination by using an outside body.

 

FPPad Bits and Bytes for October 28

Posted on October 28, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

I just came back from Brooklyn where the NAPFA Practice Management and Investments conference was held. While away, I kept an eye on new tech stories for advisers and wrapped them in one nice convenient package for you here:

TD Ameritrade Institutional Veo® Integration with Salesforce CRM Helps Financial Advisors Manage Important Client Relationships from amtd.com

[My Bits and Bytes post for September 9 listed TD Ameritrade’s announcement of an impending release of Salesforce CRM for its advisers. Yesterday, TD formally announced its release, which includes pre-defined workflow sequences advisers can use to get up and running quickly.] TD Ameritrade Institutional today introduced a Veo advisor platform integration with Salesforce CRM and other third party systems. The customized CRM app offers advisors flexibility, automated workflows and easier access to client data to help improve efficiency and client service.

Pershing Expands Anytime, Anywhere Account Access for Investment Professionals and Advisors With the Launch of Web-based NetX360.com from PRNewswire.com

[You knew lots of announcements were coming now, just days before Schwab IMPACT next week. Here’s an update from Pershing, which is in the final testing phase of rolling out a 100% web-based solution for its NetX360 platform. Notably, the platform supports multiple browsers, including Chrome and Safari, which I feel is a very wise decision.] Pershing LLC, a BNY Mellon company, announced today that it has expanded its leadership of anytime, anywhere account access with the introduction of a browser-based version of its innovative, open-architecture NetX360® technology platform.

Turning planning on its head from InvestmentNews.com

[Davis Janowski covers a new entrant into the financial planning software space. Free, web-based inStream from inStream Solutions, headed up by McLean Asset Management’s Alex Murguia, looks to be a streamlined challenger to the established, high-maintenance software applications traditionally used by advisers.] Planning tools that predict a client’s future needs, advanced financial calculators and an integrated contact management system make inStream a robust, cloud-based product.

EISI strikes a deal to cash out its shareholders from RIABiz.com

[A property and casualty insurance software provider bought the maker of NaviPlan. Add this to the Financeware patent-infringement issues from a few months back, and you have some “what’s next?” thoughts with respect to the future of financial planning software.] Faced with an innovation challenge and increased competition, Emerging Information Systems Inc., North America’s biggest financial planning software company, responsible for NaviPlan and Profiles financial planning software, announced yesterday that its shareholders have reached a deal to sell EISI.

Download the Schwab IMPACT® 2011 mobile app

Posted on October 19, 2011 by in General

Schwab IMPACT® 2011, one of the industry’s largest conferences, is set to kick off in less two weeks. On Thursday November 3, I’ll be appearing on a panel along with Daniel Bernstein of MarketCounsel and Mike Byrnes of Byrnes Consulting in a session titled Building a Compliance-Friendly Social Media Strategy.

While preparing for the session, I discovered that Schwab just released a mobile app for the conference for iPhone and iPad. The mobile app contains some useful resources such as the entire conference agenda, maps of the venue and expo area (though they open websites when clicked, so one will need an Internet connection to view maps), and exhibitor and sponsor information.

Conference attendees with a valid login can view and update their personal schedule from within the mobile app (though I personally had issues removing events from my schedule while testing the app). Session surveys can also be completed using the mobile app, eliminating the need to drop paper forms at the back of the room at the conclusion of a session.

Click here to open the Schwab IMPACT® 2011 mobile app in the App Store.