Back-office automation and reporting still a priority
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Back-office automation and reporting still a priority 27 September 2016Pittsburgh Reporter: Becky Butcher
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Asset management professionals continue to prioritise back-office automation and managing increased regulatory reporting, according to a new Confluence survey.
According to the 2016 Asset Management Industry Trends Survey, 61 percent of asset management industry respondents cited automating back-office processes as an important goal over the next two years.
The survey also revealed that back-office automation has remained the top priority in Confluence’s yearly survey since 2008.
In addition, 47 percent of respondents put managing increased regulatory reporting requirements simultaneously as a second priority and 44 percent noted centralising fund data as the third.
Almost all respondents, 91 percent, reported being concerned about manual processes and spreadsheets affecting the ability to control errors, while 81 percent were concerned about the ability to control costs.
However, the survey revealed that respondents reported that manual processes persist across the back office. Respondents noted that at least a portion of back-office regulatory functions was being managed manually.
This year’s survey found that the industry in increasingly focused on centralising fund data, with 71 percent of respondents suggesting it is important to consolidate fund data into a common database, up from 50 percent in 2008.
Over two-thirds of respondents this year said their firm had begun to centralise fund data into one database, again up from 50 percent in 2008.
Todd Moyer, executive vice president of global business development at Confluence, said: “Relying on multiple single-point solutions is especially problematic when it comes to regulatory reporting.”
He added: “It is inefficient, introduces the risk of error and makes process automation more challenging. As regulatory reporting pressures increase, data consolidation and process automation will become more important. It is imperative that the industry collectively begins to take more significant steps in realising their goal of automation now.”
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