Tag Archives: iPad

Laserfiche CEO kicks off annual Empower conference to record attendance

Posted on January 25, 2012 by in Software


The CEO of Laserfiche, a leading Enterprise Content Management, provides an update and identifies plans for the future.

Nien-Ling Wacker, Laserfiche Founder & CEO welcomed a group of over 1,600 attendees to Empower 2012, the company’s annual conference held at the Anaheim Marriott in Southern California. Wacker provided updates on the company’s accomplishments and future goals to a mix of users, resellers, vendors, integrators and media.

Wacker began by comparing the economic climate of the last four years to the Humpty Dumpty nursery rhyme. No matter how many people are assigned to fix the problems du jour, nobody seems to be able to put things back together again. But despite the severe economic headwinds, Laserfiche managed to buck the trend and continue to grow and expand.

Accomplishments in 2011

Wacker noted that the company continues to hire to meet demands on all levels, adding 137 new Rio installations in 2011. Laserfiche hired 56 people in 2009, 56 in 2010, and 73 in 2011, and has always offered a 50% match to employees’ 401(k) accounts. “Maybe you should join us!” said Wacker jokingly.

Looking ahead to 2012

Wacker then provided a sneak peek into what Laserfiche is planning for 2012. First off is the rollout of a Solution Exchange, a web-based network of users that can interact with one another and share best practices of using the system. In addition, there will be online calculators that can illustrate the ROI of adopting ECM, identify workflow scripting, optimal business processes and more.

Laserfiche is also growing the Certified Professional Program (CPP), adding a Gold certification to the list of skills Laserfiche vendors and integrators can earn.

Finally, Wacker alluded to a sneak preview of a Laserfiche app for iPad, and there’s a video currently available on Laserfiche’s conference website you can view. Click here to view it.

Obviously more will come as the conference continues, so when I have an opportunity for a break, I’ll do my best to share new insight and information with you.

Maximize Your Technology Spending in 2012

Posted on January 4, 2012 by in Efficiency, Software, Technology

My contribution schedule to the Journal of Financial Planning has changed for 2012. Instead of columns in the May and November editions, look for my articles in this year’s January and July editions.

To kick off 2012, I highlight 13 products and services you can purchase in 2012 that are sure to increase your firm’s growth and your personal productivity.

And you don’t need to spend big bucks to benefit from these ideas. There’s something for everyone with budgets ranging from as little as $100 up to $5,000.

So read January’s column at the Journal of Financial Planning now, Maximize Your Technology Spending in 2012.

Fidelity WealthCentral Mobile now available for iPad

Posted on December 19, 2011 by in Technology

In February this year, Fidelity released its WealthCentral Mobile app for iPhone and iPod touch. Ever since, advisers have been eager for an iPad app that fully utilizes the larger screen of the popular tablet.

Today, the Fidelity WealthCentral app is now available for iPad.

Click here to view the app in the Apple app store.

You can view several screenshots of the app’s features in the store listing.

FPPad Bits and Bytes for December 2

Posted on December 2, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

It was a slow week in financial planning technology news, but thankfully, December marks the release of the annual Financial Planning Technology Survey. Joel Bruckenstein’s review of what tools and technology advisers are using dominates this weeks update. Otherwise, companies must be entering that post-Thanksgiving quiet period in advance of the December holiday season.

Here are this week’s stories of interest:

Tech Survey from Financial-Planning.com

[Redtail leaps ahead of CRMs, advisors flock to iPads, and firms still operate without any form of real document management. Read this and other insights in Bruckenstein’s annual review.] From iPads to Androids to cloud providers, technology evolves oh-so-fast, and FP’s annual tech survey reveals that advisor technology usage is changing rapidly too.

Advisor Tech Survey: Tablets Are What’s Hot Now from Financial-Planning.com

[When I spoke to a room full of advisers at NAPFA Connections in Dallas last month, over 80% of them raised their hands when asked if they owned an iPad. How much more proof does one need?] For financial advisors, the introduction of iPad over the past year has changed everything. Notoriously resistant to new technologies, advisers have become envious of the remarkable advancements taking place in the consumer tech market.

UBS Gets Serious About Mobile With iPad App Test Drive from Financial-Planning.com

[Financial advisers affiliated with UBS Wealth Management Americas will soon have access to the UBS FA Mobile app for iPad. Perhaps the intro sentence would be better if the hope was to create more effective engagements with clients. AUM growth is just a side effect of that.] Some 60 UBS Wealth Management Americas financial advisors will kickoff a three-month test drive this week of an iPad application designed to make it easier to interact with clients and access research reports — all in the hope of generating more assets under management.

The Mitigator from Financial-Planning.com

[How do you manage $300+ million AUM with just a staff of three? Get Tamarac Advisor X and leverage ByAllAccounts.] When a Midwestern regional bank bought the independent firm financial planner Marc Henn worked for in 2002, his clients questioned where their interests ranked on the firm’s list of priorities. “My clients encouraged me to start my own firm,” Henn says. In 2008, he did, founding Harvest Financial Advisors of West Chester, Ohio.

FPPad Bits and Bytes for November 25

Posted on November 25, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

I hope you and yours had a Happy Thanksgiving!

If you find yourself in a turkey-induced coma or in a daze from midnight doorbuster shopping, you might want to take a moment before you dive into this week’s stories of interest:

Endorsing B.Y.O.D.: Save Money, Gain Productivity from Securities Technology Monitor

[As an adviser, you are probably already using your own personal mobile device in your practice. But this excellent article explores your options for encouraging your employees to bring their own devices into the fray (and what you can do on the technology side to protect and secure device communication).] iPhone 4S sales are off the charts, even with its battery issues. iPad sales are similar. Android now is the most popular operating system for mobile phones. So why aren’t you encouraging your employees to bring their own devices to work?

Impeccable Timing is One Sign of a Mature Firm from Financial-Planning.com

[Here’s a vignette of ARGI Financial Group with some interesting takeaways:

    • According to the article, they clear about $6 million in revenues. On their Form ADV Part 2, they list assets under management of $207 million. Do the math and the average fee collected across all accounts is 2.9%. Wow. They disclose fees of 2.5% for accounts under $1 million and 2.0% for accounts between $1 and $5 million. There must not be much competition in Kentucky if they can easily charge 2+% on assets.
    • Next is their change of custodians. Note that under TD Ameritrade, they’ve been fairly successful in growing to the point where they are. Ok, no surprise.
    • But the third’s the kicker. ARGI uses Interactive Advisory Software, or IAS. It’s been a long time since I’ve heard of firms with revenues of this size who are actively using IAS. Wow.]

Louisville, Ky.-based ARGI Financial Group’s business is running smoothly now. The firm has two other offices in Bowling Green, Ky., and Cincinnati. It serves about 800 families, with an average net worth of about $1 million. But it wasn’t easy to get to this level — the firm had to overcome some operational hurdles before business really took off.

FPPad Bits and Bytes for October 14

Posted on October 14, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

Today I’m giving my latest presentation on using the iPad in business at CabinetNG Collaborate 2011. Another version of this talk also adds ways financial advisers and wealth managers can use the iPad in their practices. I’ll be unveiling that one at NAPFA’s Practice Management & Investments 2011 conference in two weeks. All the details are on my speaking page.

As I wrote in prior weeks, we’ve had the calm before the storm of technology news for financial advisers. Fidelity broke the ice with announcements I highlighted in Bits and Bytes for September 30. This week, RIABiz unloaded two good articles, making up for the recent absence of news.

Now on to this week’s stories of interest:

Once good for a few million, TD Ameritrade’s foot-in-the-door strategy is starting to net billions from RIABiz.com

[Dominant custodians Schwab and Fidelity have a sizable lead in assets over TD Ameritrade, but the RIA-friendly custodian is consistently closing the gap.] Ever upwardly mobile, TD Ameritrade Institutional has courted – and won – some high-octane RIAs this year as well as capturing an increased share of the prized breakaway advisor segment.

Long a tech innard for Schwab, LPL and TD, Advisor Software is looking to push its own brand with new product from RIABiz.com

[Tech innard? How about tech core instead. Goalgami actually started as a consumer product marketed as a personal balance sheet solution. Now the Pro edition by Advisor Software leverages the tool’s unique features for advisers.] After years of offering its rebalancing software under the private labels of big-name firms, Advisor Software is launching a new planning product and selling it directly to advisors.

 Tamarac Named to 2011 Microsoft Dynamics President’s Club at Tamaracinc.com

[It’s one thing to customize a generic CRM like Microsoft Dynamics, but it’s far more important to demonstrate one’s support and commitment to customer service to ensure users’ success on the platform. Tamarac appears to be doing both exceptionally well.] Tamarac, Inc., a leading provider of integrated portfolio and customer management software for financial advisors and wealth managers, has been named to the 2011 Microsoft Dynamics President’s Club for its Advisor CRM solution.

FPPad Bits and Bytes for July 1

Posted on July 1, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

Originally I was going to forego this week’s Bits and Bytes, but a few articles popped up in the latter half of the week that are worth sharing.

I’m still on vacation through next week, so let’s move on to week’s stories of interest:

How one RIA is running his practice on a Mac and finding it totally doable from RIABiz.com

RIABiz’s Nevin Freeman highlights how one adviser, Sunit Bhalla of Ft. Collins, Colo.-based OakTree Financial Planning, has successfully centered his practice’s technology entirely around the Mac platform.

 

FPPad Bits and Bytes for June 17

Posted on June 17, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

Now that summer is here (where it won’t go below 75 degrees here in Dallas for another two months), the typical slowdown is upon us. I’m taking the opportunity to focus on several projects that I put off this spring and build up a library of topics for future blog posts and columns.

So is there something you’re dying to learn about in the financial adviser technology world? Perhaps a vendor tool or web-based productivity plugin? Contact me and let me know. I get my best content from advisers like you.

Now on to this week’s stories of interest:

An adviser dives into video stream from InvestmentNews.com

Davis Janowski had a hard time tracking down advisers using video and screen sharing software with clients and prospects. But when he identified one, he learned of the many ways this technology is helping one adviser grow his business.

What one big RIA has to say about its switch from Advent Axys to Advent Portfolio Exchange from RIABiz.com

How much better is APX over Axys, and it is good enough for a firm to want to stay on Advent’s platform? Read about one firm’s process of evaluating their options and APX conversion experience.

Think your millionaire clients aren’t e-media savvy? Think again from InvestmentNews.com

[Bill’s note: You shouldn’t be surprised by the results in Fidelity’s survey. The question is, what are you doing to deliver service to clients over their preferred media?] According to a Fidelity Investments survey released today, 85% of millionaires use or are willing to use electronic media, such as e-mail, social-media sites and text messaging, compared with only 43% of financial advisers and brokers.

SEI Quick Poll: 1 in 4 Top Financial Advisors Use Electronic Tablets for Client and Prospect Meetings from Marketwire.com

According to a survey of 150 top financial advisors at SEI’s National Strategic Advisor Conference in May, one in four respondents indicated they currently use electronic tablets for client and prospect meetings. Additionally, nearly half (46 percent) of advisors are thinking about using electronic tablets for work.

Securities America Jumps on the Social Media Bandwagon from RegisteredRep.com

[Socialware will be Securities America’s compliance technology solution] During its National Conference in Orlando, Fla., this week, independent broker/dealer Securities America announced its new social media program, which will allow all of its 1,800 reps to access and post content on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter in mid-July, said Leia Farmer, deputy chief compliance officer.

 

Technology Sure to Delight Your Employees

Posted on June 5, 2011 by in Technology

If you’re struggling to identify how to best reward your employees for their extra effort during the Great Recession, one adviser tells what he did that received overwhelming enthusiasm.

While attending the FPA NorCal 2011 Conference last week, I sat in on a presentation titled Technology Developments Over The Past 10 Years—Time Sinks & Time Savers by Dr. Dave Yeske of Yeske Buie in San Francisco, CA and Vienna, VA. Yeske offered terrific insight on a variety of technology tools his firm employs to systematize financial planning services and help all employees be as efficient as possible.

One of the takeaways from his session highlighted an employee incentive Yeske Buie provided to everyone that drew an overwhelmingly positive response. Yeske Buie offered its employees $599 plus tax to purchase an Apple iPad2. The award is enough to purchase a 32GB WiFi iPad2 outright and just $30 shy of a 16GB WiFi + 3G model.

Instead of making a bulk purchase of iPad2s, Yeske Buie’s award allowed employees to upgrade their units to ones with more space and 3G capability and pay for the difference out of pocket.

Yeske was amazed by the employees’ response to the award.

“I’ve never, EVER, seen them so excited about an incentive provided by our firm,” he told session attendees.

Yeske commented that the firm has paid out bonuses and other incentives in the past, but the award of an iPad2, “made our employees’ eyes light up!”

What’s even more interesting is what the employees have done after receiving their iPad2s. Yeske added that employees now use the FaceTime app as a video intercom to chat with their colleagues, both in the local office and in the office located across the country.

With the iPad2 paired with the firm’s voice over IP phone system, Yeske said the firm, “effectively has a 2,400 mile long hallway between the two offices.”

So if you’re seeking an incentive that will have a similar effect on your employees for the hard work they put in, look no further than your local Apple Store.

Pershing Brings NetX360™ to the Android Market

Posted on May 24, 2011 by in Technology

Pershing LLC continues to expand its mobile offerings to advisers by releasing NetX360™ for the Google Android™ operating system.

We wrote in June 2010 about Pershing’s support of an iPad app for its NetX360 portfolio management platform. The app was finally released to the App Store in December, taking almost six months to complete the final development and review process. Using NetX360 for iPad, advisers can view client portfolio balances, access account statements, submit trades for equities and mutual funds, and more.

This week, Pershing is expanding its support of mobile access to NetX360 with the announcement of an Android-compatible app.

“The availability of NetX360 on mobile devices provides our customers with the ability to utilize all of NetX360’s capabilities no matter where they are, and provides them with the same level of security and encryption as their desktop NetX360 application,” said Suresh Kumar, chief information officer of Pershing, in a company press release.

Click here to read the full press release at PRNewswire.

And click the image below to view NetX360 Mobile in the Android Market

NetX360 Mobile - Android Market