Tag Archives: Orion Advisor Services

Orion integrates reporting options from AdvisoryWorld

Posted on August 31, 2011 by in Portfolio Management Software

Yet another integration announced by Orion Advisor Services this week is one with AdvisoryWorld, enabling access to the reporting company’s extensive library of fact sheets, analytics, and comparison tools.

AdvisoryWorld provides a large universe of reports, all supported by data sourced from Lipper, Morningstar, Standard and Poor’s and Zacks Investment Research. For a comprehensive view of AdvisoryWorld’s report options, see their PDF by clicking the following link: http://www.advisoryworld.com/ice/AdvisoryWorld_Sample_Reports_Full.pdf

Sample Report from AdvisoryWorld

Sample Report from AdvisoryWorld

Michael Wilson, Chief Operating Officer of AdvisoryWorld, said that the company is finalizing a reseller agreement with Orion over the next week, so the integration should be available to Orion users shortly. Pricing starts at $45 per month per advisor for AdvisoryWorld’s basic reporting module and $95 per month per advisor for an extended version.

With the integration active, advisors using Orion’s platform will be able to automatically pass position and holding information from Orion into AdvisoryWorld. There won’t be any need to re-key position information in order to generate reports with up-to-date holding information.

Orion Advisor Desktop updates include performance screens and file sharing

Posted on August 31, 2011 by in Portfolio Management Software

After a fantastic afternoon of activities including a golf tournament and a tour of the Denver Botanical Gardens, attendees of the Gemini + Orion Advisor Forum looked forward to the final day of sessions.

Prior to departing for outdoor activities, Orion provided an update of their Advisor Desktop suite, including a discussion of enhanced performance screens, end-to-end trading processes, and new integration with the Dropbox cloud file sharing and synchronization service.

Enhanced Performance Screens

New additions to the performance screens include two “gadgets,” where performance can be displayed using heat maps or bar graphs. The heat maps are a very slick addition, where they show performance information in shades of red and green (much like the daily return grid on the MorningstarAdvisor.com homepage), and can be configured to show performance by style, model, account, household group, and more.

Dropbox Integration

Big Guns at the Orion Advisor Tech Panel

Big Guns at the Orion Advisor Tech Panel

During the Tech Panel discussion, Orion revealed that its working on an integration with the popular cloud file storage service Dropbox. Orion president Eric Clarke commented that its the company’s first attempt at supporting such a service and aims to simplify the process of sharing documents and information between Orion’s service team and their advisor clients.

Advisors who currently use Dropbox with their clients for other purposes may be able to leverage this new integration and deliver certain reports and data generated from within the Orion system directly to the end client’s shared folder.

Look for the Dropbox integration to be available in the next major release, scheduled for December 2011.

Orion announces integration with Salesforce/AppCrown CRM

Posted on August 30, 2011 by in Portfolio Management Software

In his State of the Company address to Orion Advisor Forum attendees, Orion president Eric Clarke announced that the company will be releasing an integration with Salesforce/AppCrown CRM by December of this year.

Orion president Eric Clarke

Orion president Eric Clarke

The announcement wrapped up a series of highlights how Orion is investing in its own business and in the business of its advisor clients.

New for Orion this year is a hardened server facility in Nebraska, an eProfile system designed to streamline the account creation paperwork process, and an Advisor Voice feature on the web, where advisors can submit their votes on top desired features they’d like to see released in the future.

At the conclusion of his address, Clarke described Orion’s vision to fully integrate the Advisor Desktop platform into the Salesforce/AppCrown platform by January 2013. This, according to Clarke, will allow advisors to manage major components of their business, including CRM, portfolio management, billing, and trading, all from within the CRM environment.

Orion aims to impress at its annual Advisor Forum

Posted on August 29, 2011 by in Portfolio Management Software

As afternoon thunderstorms rolled off the Rocky Mountains, the Gemini + Orion Advisor Forum 2011 officially kicked off in Denver, Colo.

According to Kyle Hiatt, VP of Business Development for Orion Advisor Services, I’m attending the event with roughly 300 other clients, prospects, and interested parties of Gemini Fund Services and Orion. The majority of my time over the next few days will be spent on the portion of sessions conducted by Orion.

Tech Lab

Orion’s session today featured a Tech Lab, open to any and all who wanted to learn more about the platform, see new features demonstrated, and interact with many of the engineering and support staff on site. What impressed me about the Tech Lab was its light footprint.

The Orion Advisor Services Tech Lab

The Orion Advisor Services Tech Lab

There were five lab stations in all, running off of either 11″ MacBook Air ultra-portable laptops or 13″ MacBook Pros, each connected to 27″ Apple Cinema Display monitors. The occasional iPad made an appearance as well to demo Orion’s mobile app.

All systems were running Orion’s Advisor Desktop portfolio management system through the Citrix Receiver application. The Orion Web Access components were demonstrated on Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers. Three of the five Macs were running Lion, the latest version of the Mac operating system.

The conference facility did provide a hard-wired Internet connection for the Tech Lab, though a local Wi-Fi network was created to connect the MacBook Air laptops to the Internet.

Nevertheless, it was quite impressive to see how Orion’s platform (in use by firms that manage billions of dollars) could run off a laptop computer that fits inside an inter-office envelope. It really demonstrates the power and flexibility of hosted services and the cloud computing model.

As with most conferences today, attendees are encouraged to share their thoughts via social media. Forum tweets are tagged with #GOAF11 and the official Twitter account for the event is @AdvisorForum.

I look forward to attending sessions over the next two days covering many of the new features and additions to the Orion platform and will update FPPad as time permits.

FPPad Bits and Bytes for July 15

Posted on July 15, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

I’m flying with the family to Portland, Oregon tomorrow for business and pleasure. I’ll be speaking to the FPA of Oregon & SW Washington on Wednesday and visiting with a technology provider on Thursday. Outside of those commitments we’ll be touring the natural wonders of Oregon and relishing in the temperate summer weather (in contrast to 14 days of 100+ degree temperatures we’ve experienced here in Dallas!).

[Photo used under Creative Commons from camknows]

Now on to this week’s stories of interest:

Interactive Advisory Software joins the horse race with VC funding, a new look, and new CEO from RIABiz.com

[You’ve probably never heard of IAS unless you’re a user. They ranked far below competing platforms in the 2010 Financial Planning Technology Survey, so will their refresh and new marketing initiatives result in larger adoption by RIAs?] Based out of Atlanta, Ga., Interactive Advisory Software is stepping out of its “hidden gem” history with new investment, a new CEO, and a brand new look.

Fidelity adds trading to WealthCentral Mobile from InvestmentNews.com

[I suspect advisers are not too inclined to submit trades in client accounts from mobile devices. But from a marketing perspective, saying your app supports mobile trading is a nice checkbox in the functionality matrix] Financial advisers on the WealthCentral platform can now add trading to the list of things they can do from their iPhones and later model Android smart phones.

Social Media Archiving Meets the Back Office – a Cloud Computing Solution for Registered Investment Advisors from Arkovi.com

[Anyone heard of WinWeb? It’s new to me, and I have no clue how well they serve the adviser marketplace.] Arkovi and WinWeb Announce Integrated Partnership Bringing CRM, Social Media Archiving and Operations into One Solution for Registered Investments Advisors.

Orion Welcomes Advance Capital from PRNewswire.com

[Orion, the popular web-based portfolio accounting and service bureau, keeps gaining users and assets reconciled through their platform] Orion Advisor Services, LLC, a comprehensive portfolio accounting service bureau, is pleased to welcome new client Advance Capital Management, Inc., a Broker-Dealer and Registered Investment Advisor with almost $2 billion in assets under management including its own proprietary funds. Advance Capital Management joins a rapidly expanding roster of premier investment firms to utilize Orion’s innovative back-office solutions.

Read this month’s column for Morningstar Advisor, Save Time, Reduce Errors with Text Expanders. You might benefit tremendously from using tools like TextExpander and PhraseExpress.

And if you’re convinced your clients aren’t texting, you need to read my post this week for Blueleaf, Your Clients Are Leaving You In The Dust.

FPPad Bits and Bytes for June 10

Posted on June 10, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

I’ve spent the week catching up on a backlog of work, vendor demos, phone calls, and reading due to May’s busy travel schedule. Tungle.me deserves recognition for helping me keep my sanity while scheduling all the calls and demos this week. If you haven’t heard of Tungle.me, read my column for Morningstar Advisor A Simpler Way to Schedule Meetings and try it yourself.

Now on with this week’s stories of interest:

Cabinet NG Creates New Class of Web-Based Document Management with CNG-WEB from CabinetNG.com

Cabinet NG, an on-premise document management software application, extends its functionality to the web with its latest release of CNG-WEB, making document capture and access from remote locations easier than ever.

One RIA’s unvarnished views on Advent, Black Diamond, Tamarac, IAS, Orion and Schwab PortfolioCenter after an odyssey of test drives from RIABiz.com

Take six portfolio management applications, drop them in a bucket, shake it around with a dose of trials and due diligence, and out comes one winner (in theory). Here’s one adviser’s perspective on hashing out a portfolio management solution for his practice.

Choosing Software That Works for Your Advisory Firm—Part 7: The Keys to Success from AdvisorOne.com

The seventh update in a series by Spenser Segal of ActiFi designed to present best practices to advisors on how to choose, implement and monitor new technology for an advisory firm.

Advent Brings APX to Pershing NetX360 from Marketwire.com

Advent Software, Inc., a leading provider of software and services for the global investment management industry, today announced that Pershing’s introducing broker-dealer and independent registered investment advisor (RIA) customers will now have access to Advent Portfolio Exchange® (APX) through NetX360™, its innovative, open-architecture technology solution.

 

Get the Latest FPA-ActiFi Technology Report on Portfolio Management Software

Posted on March 15, 2011 by in Portfolio Management Software

Next to Client Relationship Management (CRM) software, portfolio management software is one of the tools most used by financial advisers. Such software is the lifeblood of any asset manager, where all the details of asset allocation, tax lot detail, and performance history are contained.

In its latest edition of its reports, FPA and ActiFi today released the “FPA-ActiFi Adviser Technology Reports: Portfolio Management Edition” highlighting 10 different software solutions in use by advisers. Soltuions reviewed include the following:

  • Advent Portfolio Exchange (APX)
  • Advisors Assistant (Client Marketing Systems Inc.)
  • Albridge Portfolio Management (Albridge – Pershing)
  • AssetBook (Major Technology)
  • BlueSky (Black Diamond)
  • FinFolio Workstation 2010 (FinFolio)
  • Morningstar Office (Morningstar)
  • Orion Advisor Services (Orion Advisor Services)
  • PortfolioCenter (Charles Schwab)
  • Solution 360° (Interactive Advisory Software)

Like previous FPA-ActiFi reports, FPA members have free access to the comprehensive research. The report is also available for purchase by non-members for $495 through the FPA Research Center.

Click here to view the report (FPA member login required).

FPPad Bits and Bytes for March 4

Posted on March 4, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

Due to a change in plans, we’re monitoring FPA Business Solutions 2011 from the Twitter back channel (follow the #BizSol11 hashtag) instead of live blogging from the conference.

Despite this setback, we’re still here to provide a high-value Bits and Bytes offering the best in this week’s stories on financial planning technology. Here they are, in no particular order:

Junxure Announces Cloud Strategy from eReleases.com

(Bill’s note: Junxure in the cloud has been a long time coming, but a 2012 release? We were hoping for something this year…) Junxure announced today its strategy for delivering a Web-based CRM product to meet the needs of financial advisors. Junxure will release its cloud product, which has been several years in development, in 2012.

Hitting the Tech Target at Financial-Planning.com

(Bill’s note: While Bruckenstein highlights technology challenges advisors face today [lack of integration, embracing mobile devices, and committing money to technology purchases], I wish FP’s editors had allowed room in this article for some tangible solutions.) What are some of the major technology challenges advisors are facing today? To upgrade their technology, they need to create a budget for that purpose, figure out how to integrate the software they choose and sign on to the power of the mobile revolution to transform their practice.

Solving the Software Compatibility Puzzle from Registered Rep

These days, in addition to the service that reps come to expect, custodians also offer multi-layered technology platforms that can make the difference between a well-honed office and one that is constantly trying to pick up the pieces. But independents are a fiercely self-sufficient crew, and they often like to cherry-pick their own technology applications. So it’s crucial that all these technology tools talk to each other.

2011 Tech Trends at Financial Advisor

Veteran financial technology writer Andrew Gluck posits on six technology trends for 2011.

Seeing Opportunity In Smart Technologies from the Financial Adviser blog by Dow Jones

Next-generation wealth-management clients are miles ahead of the investment industry in their adoption of smart technologies. Wealth firms will have to catch up, fast, or lose ground to nimbler and savvier rivals.

 

 

FPPad Bits and Bytes for February 11

Posted on February 11, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

We’re taking today off (psst: it’s Bill’s birthday!), but before we go, here are this week’s stories of interest in financial planning technology:

Navigating the CRM labyrinth from InvesetmentNews.com

It’s obvious from my recent conversations with advisers that customer relationship management software still causes plenty of confusion.

Socialware Secures $3 Million in Funding at Marketwire.com

Socialware, the leader in social media compliance and engagement, today announced that it has secured $3 million in additional funding from existing investors, including FLOODGATE, G-51 Capital and Silverton Partners.

Fidelity® Unveils New Technology Strategy to Meet Rapidly Evolving Needs of Advisors and Investors at Fidelity.com

National Financial®, a Fidelity Investments® company and the nation’s 2nd largest provider of clearing services to broker-dealers1, today unveiled a comprehensive new technology strategy that will focus on making significantly larger investments in key areas its broker-dealer clients have indicated would best support their overall growth and efficiency objectives.

And Bill’s column Hop on the Mobile Bandwagon at MorningstarAdvisor.com

Orion’s MobileAdvisor provides another reason to embrace mobile computing.

FPPad Bits and Bytes for February 4

Posted on February 4, 2011 by in Bits & Bytes

The mega-storm that blew across the Central and Eastern United States glazed the streets of Dallas with ice, so we’ve been juggling our schedule this week with primary care responsibilities for our two-year-old son.

We’ve postponed four days of work, but we still made the time to monitor the industry’s best tech-related stories for your education. Without further ado, here they are:

Silent Partner at Financial-Planning.com

(Bill’s note: If this testimony isn’t enough to make advisers want to run out and sign on to Tamarac Advisor X, I don’t know what is.) As breakaway RIAs, we also knew that our business would not survive on investment acumen and our new independent business model alone. We knew that our operations could make-or break-our dreams.

Third-party vendors vouch for TD Ameritrade’s API at first general session at RIABiz.com

Three third party vendors sat on a panel at the first general session of TD Ameritrade’s 2011 national conference at the Manchester Grand Hyatt in San Diego and explained why they’re buying into the custodians’ approach to creating a big ecosystem of technology in the RIA business. The company is making its data readily available to all legitimate comers.

The Lab at Financial-Planning.com

As custodians battle for the hearts and minds of advisors in the years ahead, Fidelity possesses a weapon that no other firm can currently match: The Fidelity Center for Applied Technology, known as FCAT.

Tamarac is a Microsoft Dynamics CRM Partner and a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner at TamaracInc.com

Tamarac Inc., a leading provider of integrated portfolio management software and services, today announced being awarded Microsoft Gold Certified Partner status with competencies in Microsoft Dynamics CRM and hosting for its Advisor CRM offering.

BlazePortfolio announces release of Atom Align 1.3™ at BlazePortfolio.com

BlazePortfolio today announced the public release of Atom Align 1.3™, the web-based portfolio rebalancing and trading solution for investment professionals