Letting go. It’s one of the hardest things to do in business, but doing so at the right time can be key to entering a new chapter of growth and opportunity.
Today’s generation of broker-dealers are great at holding on. They’ve held on through changing business models and new fee structures. They’ve held on as RIAs and hybrid models have grown increasingly popular. But there comes a moment when “holding on” is really more like “holding back.”
If you’ve been wondering whether you’re outgrowing your technology, you probably already are.
Legacy portfolio construction and trading systems may be familiar, and seem like a safe bet, but relying on old software and yesterday’s workflows is more likely to be costing you business than bolstering it. Nearly two of every three advisors have reported losing business from clients or prospects because of outdated software, and 39% of advisors acknowledged that their firm needs to upgrade its infrastructure.
It’s time to shake your outdated perspectives on integrations, the investment products you’re offering, and the caliber of advisor you want to attract and retain within your workplace.
Operating with materially better trading tools, a more advanced and robust set of product offerings, and a centralized data source with up-to-date information for advisors and traders is key to positioning your firm for years of reliable and healthy growth.
Holding on to what’s holding you back can end up costing you, after all is said and done. For firms looking to amplify their competitive advantages, such as a well-trained team of advisors and an offering of investment solutions that puts other firms to shame, operating with the latest trading systems and portfolio construction capabilities is paramount.
Ditching your old legacy software can have a major impact on your firm, especially when it’s weighing so heavily on your success. Switching to the right platform will allow your team to focus on strengthening existing client relationships, plant seeds of advice that blossom into next-gen assets, and build up a robust business that’s squarely aimed at growth for the long haul.
Making Your Technology Materially Better
In the quest for better service, you can’t afford to simply swap one mediocre technology for the next. Your trading systems and portfolio construction capabilities need to be materially better. That means they need to easily manage customized portfolios and be capable of executing more trades. You’ll need a platform that excels at specific tactical household adjustments, while smoothly upshifting for effortless, strategic large-scale rebalances.
Flyer provides those capabilities. In the 2024 T3 / Inside Information Software Survey, no trading and rebalancing tool ranked higher than Flyer. We offer real-time automation, open APIs that integrate with a wide range of top vendors and partners, and provide a level of flexibility that’s unparalleled in the broker-dealer space.
Provide For Today and Build For Tomorrow
With digital assets seemingly setting higher highs each day and some of the biggest names in investing buying up alternative asset managers, it’s just another sign that investors are interested in a variety of asset classes that haven’t traditionally been available. When firms steadfastly stick to the status quo, they send the message that they aren’t up to the task of bringing fresh ideas and investments to the table.
Today’s investors are demanding access to everything from crypto to private equity to alternative assets. They expect their broker-dealers to have systems in place for handling everything from portfolio construction to management to execution, with the latest capabilities and the broadest, deepest trading network.
Attracting next-gen clients and the best advisors to serve them means providing the latest capabilities. Equipping your team with the most advanced trading APIs and integrations allows you to modernize your capabilities and product offerings, without building them from scratch or maintaining them in-house. They also allow for near limitless customization, making your firm stand out in a broker-dealer landscape that’s full of lookalikes.
Hiring is Hard: Attract and Retain the Best Talent
Advisors who identify their technology as “modern” are 50% more likely to report an expansion in new client assets and 33% more likely to get client referrals, both indicators of growth, compared to advisors who said they needed updated tech. On the flip side, advisors who don’t get the support they need — especially when it comes to technology — are likely to look for somewhere else to work.
Holding onto outdated tools and non-integrated applications is costing some firms their best employees, even if their primary differentiator isn’t investment management. For 79% of advisors, technology was a “key factor” when considering whether to switch firms. In fact, it was a more important factor than better pay or a career that offered better opportunities. And 83% of those advisors were happy they switched firms.
Centralizing your trading, and providing your advisors with the very best technology, is an easy way to solve your most complex problems and provide more time for advisors to better care for their clients.
Simple, elegant trade tracking and execution makes for a better advisor experience. When you let go of your legacy technology, and allow your best advisors to grow, instead of holding them back, they’re happier and better at what they do best.
Meanwhile, consolidating your orders on a high-caliber platform, one that’s designed to expedite advisor communication and manage countless complex trades, opens the door to the type of opportunities that attract the best in the business.
Fly to the Future
At Flyer, we provide broker-dealers with the tools they need for success.
With advisor talent in short supply and clients increasingly demanding access to new asset classes, you need a solution that’s suited to serve. You deserve a platform that reduces the operating overhead — and headaches — you have today. You stand to benefit from automation and seamless integrations with custodians, planning tools, and a host of additional third parties. And you can finally brag about software that does what it says it will, and more.
In short, you need Flyer, with our future-oriented trading systems and portfolio construction technology. To learn more, contact us today.
