Fragmented systems
Rising regulatory requirements and associated costs, among other developments, have of course made wealth managers more aware of how technology can help boost efficiencies. Firms are increasly under pressure to review their infrastructure and look closely at how they manage various systems, as well as how they aggregate data.

But many players are still relying on various systems for individual processes, as highlighted in SEI’s Legacy of Legacy Systems report, for example, which warned against the use of technology “quick fixes.”

Similarly, Watt argued that “when you try to assemble these pieces they don’t glue together very well,” adding that “you can see this challenge to an extreme” with consolidated reporting.

“Everyone is producing the data in a different format and it’s not easy to consume - that’s where I think the industry has a long way to go,” he said.

Moving on to the topic of data management, Turner said his firm finds that clients have “very little control or understanding” as to how clean their data is. He believes that “the software industry as a whole is very immature with respect to componentisation,” although data as a service is “starting to evolve as the more standardized way of doing things.”  

“I think it depends very much which area of the technology stack you look at, but we need to drive better accessibility and better standards at all levels,” he said.

For example, Bolstad mentioned that, without a “consistent process or flow,” efficiency cannot be measured.

Indeed, earlier this month, SEI said that systematic workflows “create the culture that ensures integration works” and are critical to boosting a wealth management firm’s value and client service experience.

Finances
Besides regulatory and technology-client pressures, there is, increasingly, a third pressure on the chief financial officer to say “we’ve got to do all of this - and cheaper,” Sutcliffe noted.

Watt said RBC breaks technology projects down into four components, using the analogy of project management spend as a “portfolio of funds that has to have a return as a balance.”

The first – risk – considers compliance, regulatory and safety factors and “doesn’t return a lot” but “keeps you in business,” he said. The second relates to efficiency, or operations, which “focuses on reducing the cost of current operations.”

Then there is the growth aspect, he continued, “which looks at how to develop existing products and services, and potentially push them into different markets.” Lastly, the innovation component “takes into account what isn’t being done today but should be a focus in the future, as well as how that aligns to the overall strategy.”

But how do, say, family offices make big buy decisions responsibly?

“For family offices, the decision is huge and can take a couple of years from start to finish,” Carroll said. He added that it is usually justified by three perspectives: quality, security and the level of control the firm needs.

Constant change
Sutcliffe emphasised that it’s “important not to get trapped in technology for technology’s sake.”

“The industry is full of examples of technology-led projects where you lose sight of the real business case and the value - in the banking industry as much as any other. You’ve got to constantly ask yourself what it’s going to do for the firm and the client, and not get stuck in the ‘whiz-bang’ technology,” he said.

It is also worth mentioning that firms in the wealth management space are increasingly placing a bigger emphasis on enterprise culture and ensuring the “right fit” – certainly when it comes to technology but also in areas like recruitment.

Watt highlighted that a key aspect to keep in mind is the cultural change that big technology projects generate. “Change management becomes as important, if not more important, in our projects than the technology itself,” he said.