Don’t be alarmed, be Alerted
By Mark Bolatian, Senior Advice Technology Consultant, Enzumo
At Enzumo, we see many instances where advice practices are under-utilising their Xplan software. Whether they have their own installation or a hosted solution, we still find this to be the case.
It usually starts from a lack of implementation or customisation for the business, and they don't have the right processes to support their workflows. It gets worse with team members not understanding the system's full capabilities, which often arises due to limited training and support.
Before you know it, your team is using just a fraction of the usefulness of your valuable software.
One of the features of Xplan that we see underused regularly is the 'Alerts' function. This feature provides a way to create email notifications for when specific events occur within the software. For example, the system will inform you when a compliance obligation is due or a deadline has passed.
The Xplan system requires you to create a set of 'rules' within the Alerts settings. Then, when Xplan examines your data overnight, it will notify you when the rule or criteria has either failed or succeeded.
How to use Alerts for practice efficiency and risk management
The Alerts feature enables the Xplan system to scan data all across areas, which means you can create rules around client data and business management.
To explain the feature in more detail, here are some common examples of alerts that can be created and will provide your business with valuable information:
Portfolio monitoring – monitor the balance of the overall client’s cash balance, manage changes to asset class allocations, or watch the performance of a particular investment option or share
Client data changes – create a rule to search for any clients with lapsed or missing information. Examples include ID expiration, insurance policy renewals, missed or blank client review dates, and client birthdays.
Compliance watch – set up a rule to alert when an advice document is created via the Advice Builder Wizard when a file note has been added to the advice document or for any upcoming FDS and Fee Consent Renewals.
Invoice management – be notified when an invoice for a client has been paid or is still outstanding.
How Alerts can improve business workflows
The beauty of creating Alerts within Xplan is that they don't stand alone in their effectiveness - you can now incorporate workflows when alerts occur. With this feature, advice firms can implement actual practice efficiencies.
Once an Alert is triggered, it can create a domino of actions to follow if enabled. As a result, it reduces the room for error within your business and ensures your internal practice procedures are followed correctly. All tasks within Xplan will have a consistent approach to completing client tasks.
How does the Alert notification feature work?
When the criteria for the Alert you created have been satisfied, the system will send an email to the recipient nominated (might be a general email address that the team monitor). It will be a list of all the affected clients, with the email subject showing the name of the Alert to help your team.
You can also run an Alert report at any time to produce a list of all the clients affected, which can assist with monitoring rectifications. In addition, these reports can help identify potential improvements needed with your internal procedures and guide the need for any client engagement.
Are you ready to start using Xplan more effectively?
Using the Alerts module can be a powerful tool for your business in identifying and applying process improvements, compliance breaches, overall client data monitoring, and maintaining update to date and accurate data.
If you're part of the Enzumo community, you can access our MasterXplan training modules, which offer significant training material. You can also speak to our team of experienced consultants to get you started.
Need to partner with an Xplan partner to up your software capabilities? Reach out for a discussion with our team to learn more about how we can help.