Service is the name of the game

Nick Eatock, chief executive of IntelliFlo, explains the basics of the company’s software solution, Intelligent Office.

Q. What made you decide there was a space in the market for Intelligent Office (IO)?
A. We were driven into the market six years ago after realising there were dozens of other players out there only offering desktop based software.

We thought a web-based solution was the only way to deliver sufficient IT efficiencies into a business. It means that we, as a company, manage the solution, the back-ups, performance and so on, leaving the advisory business to concentrate on what it does best.

Another benefit of being web-based is that whenever we release an enhancement (and we do 1,000 per year) every IO system out there will be updated automatically. We are in a position where the technology can evolve as rapidly as the industry.

Q. How can the right software increase efficiency within a firm?
A. One of the key concerns in the marketplace, and even more important under RDR, is being able to provide your customers with up-to-date valuations of their portfolios.

Traditionally, an administrator would call the provider of each policy and ask to be read the valuations. Where we typically see one administrator to every two advisers, this would be a time-straining task.

We automate all of that. So, having entered the customer onto IO you can select an option to value the policies automatically at points throughout the year. At a client meeting, the adviser pulls up the portfolio reports on the system and will find updated valuation, asset allocations and so on. We account for 70% of the UK’s entire electronic valuation traffic.

Q. What other ways can technology help back-office staff?
A. Administrators or paraplanners would traditionally receive stacks of paper commissions from providers. With IO, that is all automated too.

The system automatically retrieves the statements electronically, uploads them into the back-office system and reconciles the commission. This year we hit £1.5bn of reconciled commission.

Processing commissions has absolutely zero benefit to the client. These automations allow admin staff and paraplanners to concentrate on real value-add factors and enables the firm to be more customer service led. With the RDR, that is the name of the game.

Q. Talking of RDR, how can IO help a firm keep on top of compliance?
A. Our solution allows a business to do three things:

• Set a product gate on an adviser by adviser basis. For instance, if one is qualified to do a pension but not a high-profile investment, the solution will prevent this automatically.
• When processing new business, staff can configure checklists to ensure everything is done correctly on each product. Importantly, it alerts staff on particular aspects they should be looking out for.
• Risk-based file checking can be configured to automatically pre-check a certain amount of business, separated by product. This information is then passed to the compliance office, flagging up certain cases. Since it has already been validated, the compliance officer is able to check the quality of advice, rather than the process, making it a qualitative, rather than quantitative screening.

Q. Can the software assist with the more intrinsic parts of an adviser’s role, such as investment research?
A. Yes, we have a pretty sophisticated full fund analysis module that allows whole-of-market research. We also do full asset allocation reporting, which is accurate because of the up to date valuations. We do not provide risk-profiling data but we do provide technology which is fully configurable to meet any risk profile you want.

This is important bearing in mind the FSA’s recent papers on the subject; it means an adviser firm can use whatever risk-profiling data they want, and still have it on IO.

Q. What would you say to the more traditional advisers worried about making the most of technology for fears of upheaval or the safety of data?
A. The process is simple, and migrating client data to us actually makes it safer. Even some of the large providers have been fined millions of pounds for data breaching when it has been left on a laptop and left on a train, for example. With a web- based solution the data never sits on the laptop; it always sits up in the clouds, and that is a huge benefit.

We even employ professional hackers four times a year to try to break in and find where the flaws are. Because we have people whose sole job it is to make sure there are no issues, the hackers have never been successful.