Zephyr Associates rolls out new product

I’ve been taking a deeper look at the defined contributions, defined benefits and 401(k) advisory application/technology space this week (read next week’s print column to find out why).
Only a handful of software and technology vendors cater to advisers in this space.
One of them, Zephyr Associates Inc., introduced a new product into its lineup late last month and also hired a new chief executive.
In response to clients asking them for report automation and distribution features the company developed Zephyr OnDemand (ZOD) [an aside: wasn’t ZOD the character in a science fiction movie?]
ZOD is a web-based platform for asset managers and advisory firms to create on-the-fly and compliance-approved reports. Using the product, firms can create templates that are in turn linked to required disclaimers.
Because of the program’s open architecture firms can make use of third party data in their templates.
In addition to ZOD, the company also rolled out version 8.0 of its StyleAdvisor product and version 7.0 of its AllocationAdvisor product.
StyleAdvisor is used by advisers for performance and risk analysis, peer group analysis, style attribution, manager search, asset allocation and custom reporting; while AllocationAdvisor is used for comprehensive asset allocation, optimization, and portfolio simulation.
A significant new addition is Report View, a document design and editing feature inside StyleAdvisor that allows clients to more easily create and format customized reports that combine qualitative information and data. New features for AllocationAdvisor include both a currency conversion tool and the ability to use tracking error as a risk statistic.
Zephyr’s new chief executive, Will Clemens, most recently served as vice president and general manager of the straight through processing business unit at Advent Software Inc.
“I am excited to join Zephyr, which has a long-standing history of innovation and an unsurpassed reputation in the financial software industry. We plan to continue Zephyr’s investment in its core products, and also to work closely with our customers and partners to develop new solutions and deliver more value to the industry. I am also thrilled to be joining the organization at a time when it is releasing new versions of its well-known desktop software and introducing its latest web-based solution,” said Clemens.
For more information visit Zephyr online.