Envestnet | Tamarac to update its integrated platform for RIAs

With integration emerging as a huge theme at this year's T3 Technology Tools for Today conference in Anaheim, Calif., Envestnet | Tamarac got things rolling Tuesday by announcing a new version of its integrated platform for registered investment advisers. In May, Envestnet | Tamarac will launch an updated version of its Advisor Xi integrated customer relationship management platform, said Brandon Rembe, the firm's senior vice president of technology. The new CRM will include the Advisor Xi suite of products, including Advisor View and Advisor Re-balancing, and Mr. Rembe noted that the new platform incorporates many third-party integrations, including real-time custodial feeds, document management, form fill and financial planning. “It's a whole new user interface with different workflow design and more in-depth integration,” he said. During his presentation Tuesday morning, Mr. Rembe said that while 30% of advisers don't integrate their tech, those that do spend 30% more time in front of clients and 30% less on operations. Further, he said, advisory firms that use back-office integration have double the wallet share of those who don't. With the new version of Advisor Xi, Envestnet | Tamarac will streamline the most common back-office workflows for its RIA clients, Mr. Rembe said. Currently, he said, advisers using the CRM's workflows need to do a lot more clicking, and they see a lot of screens popping up. Turning to another big trend watched by T3 conference-goers, Mr. Rembe said the end client experience has become a big focus at his firm because the consumerization of technology is driving change. “Envestnet | Tamarac is focusing very heavily on the end client experience,” he said. “We really feel that with all the new technologies that are out there, such as [online personal finance tools] Betterment and Mint, we want to allow our advisers not just to compete with those offerings, but offer a more comprehensive and customized experience than those tools can offer.”