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In
most investment management organizations the monthly and
quarterly drill to create high-quality and customized client
reports is a chaotic process for operations, technology
and client management personnel. Because client reporting
information resides within multiple databases and systems,
firms struggle to create accurate and consistent reports.
As clients demand higher-quality reporting and commentary
in real-time, asset managers will replace existing processes
with more robust single source solutions.
Client Reporting Should Be a Value-Added Business
Function
Monthly reporting is one of the primary channels for
communicating with clients. Rather than a burdensome process,
it should be viewed as a value-added business process and
opportunity to:
· Provide customized client service;
· Differentiate and brand investment products;
· Integrate investment advice and market commentary;
· Cross-sell products.
Existing Processes are Manual and Prone to Error
While many investment management firms are producing
customized, graphical reporting packages for their largest
and most important clients, the process is manual, labor
intensive and subject to error. Managers have cobbled together
their own solutions, using multiple tools and data sources.
The result is inconsistent presentation of data, limited
report selection, poor scalability and limited customization.
Despite the large hidden cost of ownership of existing
processes, investment managers have been slow to adopt vendor
reporting packages or outsourcing solutions.
Changing Requirements are Challenging
In an age of real-time electronic delivery of information,
clients expect timely, accurate, customized and visually-compelling
reporting. The challenge for asset managers is to:
· Gather and assemble client and market information
from multiple sources;
· Provide robust, customized formatting and content
options;
· Support multiple output and delivery options including
hardcopy,
web-based, Adobe Acrobat and PowerPoint;
· Ensure quality control using workflow management
functionality;
· Automate scheduling, production and delivery.
Single Source
To meet these client expectations, leading asset managers
have abandoned their current, cobbled-together solutions
and are adopting single systems that support all client
reporting requirements (institutional and retail). Increasingly,
market leaders are meeting reporting requirements by combining
a centralized client data warehouse with a robust and highly
tailored reporting solution that includes web-based availability
of reports.
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