Small advisory firms and sole practitioners, especially those just starting out, often don't know where to turn for expertise in selecting technology and software.
To address that need, nine experts have formed the Virtual Solutions Consortium, which this week is launching a website (virtualsolutionsconsortium.com) to act as a gateway to reputable service providers.
According to the site's creators, the goal is to free up an adviser from having to do the legwork involved in selecting outsourcing partners and making sure any software they buy can be integrated with the technology they already use.
Members of the new group include Jennifer Goldman, founder of My Virtual COO; Cindi Hill, founder of Hill Financial Advisors, who specializes in compliance software; and Naomi Scrivener, principal of Back Office Solutions LLC, which specializes in providing financial planning support services to advisers. The members have invested $20,000 to develop the website and market it at upcoming conferences.
“Our goal is to be a one-stop shop,” Ms. Scrivener said.
There is no charge for initial exploratory calls to the site or its members, or for e-mail responses. Financial advisers will pay for services only after they have engaged a particular outsourcing provider; costs vary from provider to provider.
At least one adviser, while a proponent of outsourcing, thinks that sufficient technology guidance already is available.
“The industry already has something like this in the form of Technology Tools for Today (virtualofficenews.com). Not only do they have the monthly newsletter, but they have listings of providers and vendors that they have evaluated and who they think are a good fit for those things — and it comes from two people respected in the industry,” said Craig DuVarney, a solo certified financial planner who manages $52 million in assets.
He was referring to the efforts of David Drucker and Joel Bruckenstein, who put out the T3 newsletter (formerly Virtual Office News) and host a conference.
Ms. Scrivener pointed out that while some may view T3 and the consortium as competitors, her group is fundamentally different in that its website offers more than just a list of available vendors, and its members aren't selling subscriptions or offering teaser services.
“The consortium, in its initial work with an adviser, takes a big-picture macro approach in examining an adviser's needs. It really is more of an educational and service-oriented focus,” Ms. Scrivener said.
“Let's see what can happen if we take a unified approach in offering our solutions to advisers,” she said.
Some of the consortium members are, in fact, competitors, but they have agreed to put aside differences to help advisers make choices best suited to their particular practice, Ms. Goldman and Ms. Scrivener said.
Specialists are available to help with Advent reconciliation and reporting, PortfolioCenter reconciliation and reporting, managed-account providers/technologies, financial-plan preparation, marketing, and hosted-server and software management. The consortium also can help with non-technology problems such as finding a good outsourced administrative assistant or receptionist.
Referring to a 2007 study by J.D. Power and Associates which found that the average adviser spends more than one workday a week on compliance tasks alone, Ms. Goldman said that her group's bottom-line goal is to help advisers become as efficient as possible through outsourcing.
“Operational tasks can easily take up just as much time as compliance, leaving the adviser with only three days to work with current clients, follow up with referral sources, market yourself to new clients and follow up with prospects. Outsourcing a lot of these tasks can free you up to work with more clients,” Ms. Goldman said.
AN OUTSOURCED SERVICE
Mobile Assistant, a dictation service for physicians from U.S. Transcription Inc., is now going after the financial advisory market.
Using the service, mobileassistant.us, an adviser can dictate client notes or a client memo and receive a transcribed report via e-mail on the same business day.
“Currently, we have a team of transcriptionists who are dedicated to Mobile Assistant financial adviser transcription, as a well as a backup staff of 175 medical transcriptionists who can be trained quickly on the financial vocabulary,” said Corey Westphal, president of the company, which has served physicians for a decade and guarantees 98% accuracy.
Prices for the service range from $49.99 for 40 minutes of dictation per month to $89.99 for 80 minutes of dictation per month. Unused minutes can be rolled over for 60 days, and the company provides a free trial for 40 minutes of dictation.
Mobile Assistant has two main competitors: Copytalk LLC (copytalk.com), which offers another monthly subscription package with similar offerings and pricing, and Nuance Communications Inc., which offers a PC-based software dictation package sold under the name Dragon NaturallySpeaking.
The company's Version 10 Professional voice re-cognition software sells for $900, while a simpler, home-oriented version costs $200. The software must be installed and requires a fair amount of training to use effectively.
E-mail Davis D. Janowski at [email protected].
