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Embracing the Cloud

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Read the entire MorningstarAdvisor article by Bill Winterberg

More advisors are ditching their servers in favor of the cloud, minimizing IT costs and freeing up more time for client service.

Bill Winterberg, 02/09/2012

The average financial advisor's office contains a hodgepodge of hardware infrastructure to support a wide array of ordinary business activities. It's not uncommon to find a combination of servers, varying in age and performance, responsible for all of the firm's e-mail traffic, database access, and file storage. Then there are a variety of peripherals connected to the servers, like external tape or USB backup devices and network firewall systems, all adding to the complexity of maintaining a reliable and functional environment.

Most advisors acknowledge they are not experts in managing their information technology, so they either hire dedicated employees for day-to-day administration or contract IT management and support to an outside service provider. However, finding IT professionals with practical knowledge of the financial services industry--and its obligatory regulatory requirements--is an undertaking with long odds. 

Read the entire MorningstarAdvisor article by Bill Winterberg

Cloud Computing - The Basics

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Category: Technology Articles
What Is Cloud Computing?
By Judith Hurwitz, Rpbom Bloor, Marcia Kaufman, and Fern Halper
Cloud computing is the next stage in the Internet's evolution, providing the means through which everything — from computing power to computing infrastructure, applications, business processes to personal collaboration — can be delivered to you as a service wherever and whenever you need.
The “cloud” in cloud computing can be defined as the set of hardware, networks, storage, services, and interfaces that combine to deliver aspects of computing as a service. Cloud services include the delivery of software, infrastructure, and storage over the Internet (either as separate components or a complete platform) based on user demand. (See Cloud Computing Models for the lowdown on the way clouds are used.)
Cloud computing has four essential characteristics: elasticity and the ability to scale up and down, self-service provisioning and automatic deprovisioning, application programming interfaces (APIs), billing and metering of service usage in a pay-as-you-go model. This flexibility is what is attracting individuals and businesses to move to the cloud.
The world of the cloud has lots of participants:
  • The end user who doesn’t have to know anything about the underlying technology.
  • Business management who needs to take responsibility for the governance of data or services living in a cloud. Cloud service providers must provide a predictable and guaranteed service level and security to all their constituents.
  • The cloud service provider who is responsible for IT assets and maintenance.
Cloud computing is offered in different forms: public clouds, private clouds, and hybrid clouds, which combine both public and private. (You can get a sense of the differences among these kinds of clouds in Deploying Public, Private, or Hybrids Clouds.)
Cloud computing can completely change the way companies use technology to service customers, partners, and suppliers. Some businesses, such as Google and Amazon, already have most of their IT resources in the cloud. They have found that it can eliminate many of the complex constraints from the traditional computing environment, including space, time, power, and cost.

Cloud Computing Models

Cloud computing models vary: Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS). Manage your cloud computing service level via the surrounding management layer.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).

The IaaS layer offers storage and compute resources that developers and IT organizations can use to deliver business solutions.

Platform as a Service (PaaS).

The PaaS layer offers black-box services with which developers can build applications on top of the compute infrastructure. This might include developer tools that are offered as a service to build services, or data access and database services, or billing services.

Software as a Service (SaaS).

In the SaaS layer, the service provider hosts the software so you don’t need to install it, manage it, or buy hardware for it. All you have to do is connect and use it. SaaS Examples include customer relationship management as a service.

 

Deploying Public, Private, or Hybrid Clouds

Cloud computing happens on a public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud. Governance and security are crucial to computing on the cloud, whether the cloud is in your company’s firewall or not.

  • Public clouds are virtualized data centers outside of your company’s firewall. Generally, a service provider makes resources available to companies, on demand, over the public Internet.
  • Private clouds are virtualized cloud data centers inside your company’s firewall. It may also be a private space dedicated to your company within a cloud provider’s data center.
  • Hybrid clouds combine aspects of both public and private clouds

 

Technology Strategy

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Category: Technology Articles

Developing a Technology Strategy

by Ed McCarthy, CFP®
You've finally got your firm’s technology under control. The software supports your business efficiently, the hardware is working reliably, and you can concentrate on serving clients instead of servicing servers. Then the problems begin: two vendors that supply critical software packages just announced major upgrades and you’re not convinced the upgrades are critical or cost-justified. A server is showing signs that it’s headed for a crash, and your compliance officer just noticed that you might need a new e-mail review procedure and monitoring software to avoid potential problems with regulators. In the space of just a few weeks, your neatly wrapped technology system is coming undone, and it looks as though it will cost considerable time and money to get back on track.
 
You can’t run a financial planning or wealth management business without the right technology. But for some advisors, technology is as much a source of aggravation as profit. Their frustration is understandable because it seems they are always reacting to unwanted tech changes that are beyond their control.
In contrast, other advisors are satisfied with their systems. Although they often wish their software could perform some tasks differently and they suffer the same mechanical problems as their peers, they mostly get what they need from technology. It supports their businesses but doesn’t require an inordinate amount of expense or attention. This article explores how these advisors have mastered their systems and shares their insights for getting in front of the tech curve.
Starting with the Business Plan
Firms satisfied with their technology share a common element. First, they develop and adhere to a strategic plan for their business. They then support their strategic plan’s overall business objectives with a technology strategy. They recognize technology’s importance to their business, but it plays a supporting role.

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