What should I consider when selecting a back-office administration system?
You will need to consider not only whether the most important areas to your company are catered for, but also whether that system will allow you to improve and develop the process itself.
The key to an efficient back-office system is the ability to access a single view of your clients' data. This requires a system that stores all data including personal details, policies held, contact history and documentation. Customer relationship management (CRM) functionality should enable you to interrogate your client database to ensure you can better serve existing as well as new customers.
Opting for a system that streamlines key administration processes can reduce costs. For example, the ability to use automated workflows that provide a checklist for each stage of your business process can ensure accurate completion of each activity without the need for manual checking.
Compliance is a key area and a flexible back-office system should allow you to demonstrate that key compliance tasks have been performed and also flag up business that requires auditing.
The technology available should make access to these services more affordable to IFAs. To buy this type of system and host it on your own servers will be costly and perhaps more applicable to larger IFAs with the internal resources to manage it. One alternative is to opt for a system hosted by a third-party supplier that gives you access via your internet browser for a monthly fee.
This hosted option can simplify your IT strategy, leaving you free to concentrate on your business, without worrying about maintaining an IT function.
Stephen Wynne-Jones
