Michael Kinens describes how, by using one of the many Apps available for the iPhone, advisers can automatically file notes against clients and initiate a number of follow-on activities directly in XPLAN.
The idea
Speaking at the Association of Financial Advisers (AFA) 2011 National Roadshow, Vice-president Adam Smith highlighted how advisers are increasingly looking to technology to provide operational efficiencies within their businesses. Adam, by way of example, outlined how he uses his iPhone to take a photo of the discussion notes and diagrams from the meeting-room whiteboard at the end of every client session. The images are emailed to the client and also to himself so that he is able to easily add same as a file note against the client’s records. Adam’s innovative approach is perhaps somewhat not unexpected given he was also 2008’s AFA Adviser of the Year, and this rather simple procedure also manages to ensure that both the compliance and client service boxes are ‘checked’ without any major effort.
But technology continues to evolve and businesses can benefit from the efficiencies delivered. By utilising one of the many Apps available for the iPhone, advisers can now automatically file their notes directly against the respective client and initiate a number of activities such as emailing the whiteboard images.
The process
The ability to create a document containing the images taken and transfer same directly to the client’s file notes requires a visit to the Apple App Store and a spend of around $5. Whilst there are a number of Apps which will provide this capability, the following guide is based on the functionality found in DocScanner 5.0 developed by Norfello Oy. DocScanner also comes in variants for the Mac, Android, Qt and Symbian platforms so non-iPhone owners need not feel disadvantaged.
1. Pre-meeting
One of the many advantages that technology brings to the table is the execution of mundane and low-value activities. Whilst the value of having an actual agenda and other meeting artefacts in the client meeting is recognised, the administrative effort required to compile this manually isn’t – so outsource it. Specifically, utilise your systems to generate this material in a ‘just in time’ fashion. The meeting agenda, for example, should include details of all the activities you have completed for the client since your last meeting, and all the activities planned until the next. This information should simply be extracted from the client management system (CRM). Most importantly, the ‘Agenda Pack’ will also include 2 bar codes. One will be utilised to facilitate the client’s acceptance of any recommendations (including your service fees), the other will act as the ‘driver’ to manage the ‘processing’ of our file notes. The most important element to understand here is that once built, all of this just happens. When you get into the office in the morning, your Agenda Pack has either been emailed to you (if your inclined to use an iPad) or is ready to be printed (you might have a version for yourself and another for your client).
2. At the meeting
The meeting would largely follow your usual structure, possibly now further supported and guided by the content contained in the Agenda Pack.
3. Post-meeting
At the conclusion of your meeting, photograph the bar code and any notes written onto the whiteboard using your mobile phone. If you tend to use the whiteboard extensively, and generate multiple ‘pages’, you might photograph the bar code before you walk into the meeting (although you need not panic if you haven’t, as images can be easily ordered as required within the DocScanner App). Then, using the DocScanner App, the images are conveniently packaged into a portable document format (PDF) and automatically sent off to XPLAN. Once received and processed, any pre-determined steps associated with the Agenda Pack, such as sending the client a copy of the PDF containing the whiteboard notes, are automatically carried out. Easy!
Naturally, for those practices providing clients with access to their ‘online filing cabinet’, all these records could be ‘tagged’ as part of the process to readily allow access in a highly secure fashion from any web enabled device (such as Apple’s iPad).
The technology
DocScanner is relatively simple to set-up and use. A key feature of the App, which is leveraged here, is its ability to work with WebDAV folders. WebDAV or Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning are simply a set of methods which facilitates the management of documents and files between users on the web in a secure fashion.
XPLAN introduced the ability to ‘read’ and ‘process’ bar codes in version 1.30 of the software. It is an integral component of ActionManager which is a feature found in the Client Focus module.
The ability to ‘drag and drop’ emails into the client’s file note area within XPLAN is enabled by utilising a standard feature found in most email clients such as MS Outlook. By employing IMAP folders (Internet Messaging Access Protocol) users are able to mirror all the note folders (across the entire document management library, incorporating both clients, users, and the user defined categories) within the email client. Whilst this feature creates the option of offline access to client’s notes, it most importantly provides users with the ability to easily drag an email from their inbox across to a generic folder to be automatically filed away against the respective client.