Iress has launched the Connectivity Network, an “efficiency-boosting” platform designed to streamline and optimise the advice execution process.
Iress announced that the platform would connect participants, both advisers and clients, together and increase the size of advisers’ client base.
The creation and design of the Connectivity Network would see collaboration between super fund Colonial First State (CFS) and life insurance MetLife Australia, who have both signed Memorandums of Understanding for the project.
Xplan Affinity, a new cloud-based infrastructure, underpinned the delivery of the program. The emerging technology would seamlessly integrate insurance providers into the process, Iress said.
The platform would support the following functions:
- Client onboarding;
- Trading;
- Insurance applications;
- Advice execution;
- Client maintenance; and
- Reporting by advisers, licensees and support teams.
Geoff Rogers, commercial director of Iress, identified challenges the industry had faced in providing affordable and efficient advice to Australians.
The cost of providing advice had continued to rise, which was currently averaging at $3,280 in 2022 compared to $2,500 in 2017. This increasing figure had left approximately 40% of Australians without access to financial advice.
“For those consumers that do get advice, the experience is often time-consuming, taking months from the first meeting with the adviser to when the advice is actually implemented,” he revealed.
The commercial director also described the digitisation of manual features currently present in the advice process.
Operations which were frequently prone to manual errors would be simplified, such as data collection during the client onboarding process which would now be automatically populated into application forms.
“The efficiencies gained from [Xplan Affinity] can then be reinvested by advisers into client growth and help them to reach more Australians with quality and affordable financial advice,” Rogers added.
Bryce Quirk, CFS group executive, said: “We understand the value of making quality advice affordable, and we believe we can help achieve this by providing advisers with the flexibility to work how they want, when they want”.
MetLife chief insurance officer, Meray El-Khoury, also highlighted the efficiencies present in the new system: “We know that emerging technology can create end-to-end frictionless experiences and are dedicated to exploring how these technologies might reimagine their interactions in the digital environment”.
And before you know it CFS and Metlife have ALL your client data in their hands. The next step is “why worry about having an adviser, just come and deal with us direct and save yourself the adviser fees”. I wouldn’t be so cynical if I hadn’t seen this with the types of communication going to our clients over the years from CFS, BT, etc to that effect. Worked out so well for them, didn’t it?