The effects that the Covid-19 pandemic have shone a light on the operational efficiency and inefficiency by some fund operators have been multiple. The effects also highlighted how this inadequate operational infrastructure can have a serious effect on getting the best from talent within a business.

Clear Path Analysis’s recently released Fund Technology, Data & Operations, Europe 2022 report, saw industry leaders from companies including Northern Trust Asset Management and Storebrand Asset Management address key concerns related to technology and how to use it to better bring out the best from talent. 

The pandemic changed the company’s operations and made them focus on what talent they already had

Marc Russell-Jones, Managing Director of Sales at fintech company Broadridge, said the lockdown and remote working conditions meant new challenges were made apparent, which also needed quick solutions

He says the pandemic changed much of the company’s day-to-day operations and made them focus on what talent they already had. “The company spent time helping our clients free up internal resources through technology offerings to enable them to better manage their product,” he explains, but often didn’t take stock of their own resources.

The change to working from home highlighted qualities and skillsets that needed to be fostered amongst team members

However, when the pandemic came, that all changed. The change to working from home highlighted qualities and skillsets that needed to be fostered amongst team members to achieve value-added tasks amid remote working and other operational changes.

“What we have done is what we call the A, B, C, D of leveraging technology,” says Russell-Jones. “The A being AI, the B is using Blockchain capabilities to deliver solutions to clients, C is using the Cloud in a more meaningful way for clients, and finally D, going back to digital, how we are enabling our clients to distribute their products in a digital format.”

According to recent EY studies, data and technology implementation were the asset manager CEOs’ biggest concern for the future and 28% of firms said they were now actively looking to recruit in more digital skills.

There were ideas coming to the table that you weren’t getting through your digital conversations over Zoom

Russell-Jones says that teams acted well throughout the challenges presented by the pandemic. “The [way the] teams performed, it felt good, but what did suffer was innovation,” he says. “What we have seen, is that when we did meet, with most of us having never met before, there were ideas coming to the table that you weren’t getting through your normal digital conversations over Zoom. Bringing people together is essential.”

But this could be harder than it looks – a PWC survey showed 86% of financial services employees wanted to keep hybrid working or working from home.

To learn more about this issue and others facing fund operators, read our report Fund Technology, Data & Operations, Europe 2022 here.

 

Please Sign In or Register to leave a Comment.