Total 611 words used.
In the investments industry, brokerage firms changing platform providers is commonly referred to as a conversion event. Providing a positive conversion experience requires significant planning and excellent execution. The goal of every event is to minimize customer disruption, however, when firms convert due to a change in corporate structure (moving from commission-based brokerage structure to a fiduciary registered investment advisor) work is required with each account holder to obtain new account agreements.
Historically the process to facilitate obtaining new account paperwork needed to convert the accounts was manual, paper-based and time consuming. Typically, a team of analysts work with the converting firms to re-format and clean-up client data. This process required several iterations spanning several weeks. Ultimately the team then populated forms using this data. Pre-filling and printing forms streamlined the process, eliminating data entry but still required mailing forms or meeting individually with customers to review the documents and obtain signatures.
Fidelity’s Client Conversion Services and Quality Solutions team worked to transform this process. The team developed an automated process mapping data into the forms. Forms are then provided to the converting firm for data validation. This process reduced the effort to re-format and map data, now taking 2-4 days, rather than several weeks, to deliver pre-filled account forms to our clients. In 7 months, this process saved 460 hours internally.
Rather than print account documents for client signature, most are now delivered via an electronic channel supporting eSignature which reduces costs associated with printing and mailing documents. This also helps streamline the process, allowing financial advisory firms to communicate with clients en masse and be available to answer individual questions as they arise. Streamlining the creation and delivery of account paperwork positions Fidelity to meet client’s needs.
The actual conversion event occurs when accounts move to the new platform. Quickly moving accounts and establishing all needed features including banking links is critical to delivering a seamless client experience. For that reason, the team also focused on automating the account set-up process including the establishment of banking links. Manually entering banking information which establishes a link between the investment and bank accounts takes 6 minutes. Using robotics, the team automated the process allowing bank links to be established and utilized faster. Embracing robotics saved over 139 manual processing hours the first half of 2023.
Because account establishment does require some manual processing the Quality Solutions team developed a robotic process automation (RPA) solution to compare customer data after an account is established against files used to generate the account documentation. This RPA based solution identified discrepancies allowing processors to quickly research and address any potential key-stroke errors. Through June 2023 this robotics-based solution reviewed 24,000 accounts saving over 2,100 manual labor hours. While the labor savings are impressive, the true benefit of this solution is ensuring data accuracy as accounts are established which is critical to delivering a positive customer experience.
Associate satisfaction has increased because of this automation. Associates no longer need to spend hours copying and pasting data into forms and can now spend time on more value-add activities.
This new process transformed Fidelity’s approach to cross-platform conversion events positioning the firm to expeditiously execute conversion events at scale while delivering industry leading quality. While the labor savings are impressive, we are most proud of the client benefits resulting from this work. Reducing client effort, event duration, facilitating eSignature and embracing automation during account set-up and quality reviews helps our clients focus their energy on helping their investors meet financial goals rather than conversion related operational tasks. This success story is one example of Fidelity’s creative and innovative approach to delivering an industry leading client experience.
Nomination Title: Driving a Better Client Onboarding Experience through Automation