“Technology will change the parameters that need to be patrolled by company management as well as regulators over the course of the next decade”
— Matt Bower, allen & overy
The better Licensees know that the right regulatory technology, properly deployed, is the key to their sustainability.
The challenge they had was separating the performers from the pretenders.
The latest, and profound, iteration of OpenAFSL gives them an affordable option for the management of regulatory requirements in an intuitive and flexible platform with effective data security and management.
We could talk to you about machine learning, underlying algorithms and blockchain, but we prefer substance over sophistry and have evolved our platform to help our users to prosper in the new regulatory regime.
Everything we do, and everything we’ve done, is designed to free our clients from the burden of compliance and equip them with the data and insight to transform obligations into opportunities.
As we expand internationally, we’ve maintained our focus on equipping our clients to optimise their existing compliance obligations, anticipating change and ‘future proofing’ their businesses.
We think we’ve done a great job and, if you’re grappling with significant change, we want to highlight how a well-designed regtech solution – like OpenAFSL – can help you thrive.
OpenAFSL: beautifully simple
“Enhanced technologies and tools will inevitably lead to more questions and additional regulatory scrutiny.”
— Rod Francis and Mate Naletilic “4 Key Developments Likely to Keep Compliance Professionals Busy in the Future”
You might not have realised (if you’ve overlooked the looming regulatory changes) that ASIC have heavily invested in improving their systems and upgrading their technology.
They’re not the only ones.
This should explain, if any explanation is needed, why we’ve worked so hard over the last few months to re-engineer our platform.
While the new iteration is much more visually engaging, don’t let the extensive bodywork distract you from noticing what’s under the hood.
We’ve previously argued that traditional monitoring and supervision regimes were largely ineffective in either promoting professionalism or improving the client experience. Instead, they promoted inefficiencies, homogeneity, conformity and bureaucracy.
Our innovative approach to monitoring and supervision incorporates more behavioural nudges. We’re also applying more weight to ethics and conduct as well as to construal elements (environmental and structural considerations).
Remember that the new legislative changes (complaint audits, provision of complaint data, reference requirements, misconduct and breach reporting) mean that data will be the key to your ongoing compliance.
When you use the new interface, you’ll notice it’s dynamic, flexible and even more purposeful.
OpenAFSL focuses on the client experience and creates a formal demarcation between formal and substantive compliance issues; we consider matters in context and are therefore better able to differentiate between intent, process and outcome.
I’d like to Schedule Review(s)
Algorithms, Analytics and Reports
- Catalysts and effects are differentiated and presented in a way to equip an adviser how they would have performed if the root cause had been properly addressed. In simple terms, it highlights for the adviser the benefit of resolving the Catalyst and shows the effect this would have on the file score.
- Issue, Incident and Remediation analytics have been enhanced. You can report by channel, adviser, practice, severity and frequency (or any combination). Plus, you can directly and easily compare different time-periods using the same criteria.
- The complaints module has been enhanced to provide even more capability. Exceeding the requirements of RG271, you can track and separately report on the stages of the complaint, link similar complaints by theme or adviser and track and report on due dates.
- The Obligations and Risk Register (compliance framework) is fully searchable and, with the addition of tags and workflow, provides increased customisation for retail and wholesale licensees.
- The Conflicts module has been expanded to identify the precise category of conflicts, their source and prioritised. Identified conflicts can be linked together and tied to advisers and/or practices.
- Mentoring and coaching has been separated to allow clearer demarcation between development and training.
- The Advice Assurance Report has been redesigned to streamline content and highlight key take-outs. You can also choose to group observations by file instead of grouping them by issue. You can even do both or vary your approach according to the recipient’s preferences and learning style.
- To help advisers improve their advice processes, or increase the quality of their advice, each report contains a range of practical steps the adviser can take to improve their results.
- The standard report now includes trend analysis and a comparison to the industry standard derived from our sample of over 9,000 files reviewed. The mean (adviser and licensee level) is updated every quarter to reflect the current environment.
- To assist advisers contextualise their results, their report will now identify whether they sit in the top 40% of advisers, the top 30%, the top 20%, the top 10% or the top 5% of our sample.
- If you’re interested in understanding your top issues, or the most common issues in a particular period, you can now generate these reports simply. We’ll also now highlight the total number of observations made grouped by consequence and impact.
- If you’re demonstrating behaviours and practices that exceed legal requirements and industry standards, these will be prominently highlighted in the report as a congratulatory note to the adviser.
- The FASEA Standards have been integrated into our review methodology; you can easily link Code issues to a specific observation, a specific file or general conduct.
- Compare Reviewers across key performance measures to ensure consistency AND run validation tests to assess their individual approaches.
Remediation, Root Causes and Effects
- It’s now even easier to identify the cause and origin of the issues to be remediated. We separate root causes from direct consequences which means you can remediate them differently.
- We’re recognising ‘catalysts’ in the new system – which should provide our clients with new perspectives of their conduct and regulatory risks.
- Remediation actions can be sent to advisers directly and, as they execute the required steps, OpenAFSL records, highlights and escalates their activity.
Instruction, Advice and Coaching
In this new iteration it’s even easier to:
- Deliver (and record at) interactions at either a Business or Adviser level. So debriefs, education and ad hoc interactions can be effectively recorded, managed and reported.
- Follow the recruiting and appointment steps that have been coded into OpenAFSL to operationalise these requirements. Documents can be updated and validated before the prospect can be appointed.
- Provisional Advisers, and the details of their supervision, can be managed through OpenAFSL.
- The compliance manual has been integrated into OpenAFSL – which means it can be referenced in the reviews, allocated in remediation and linked to the registers and policies you’ve uploaded.
Pricing
If you exclude the advice review module from your system, you can obtain access to a reg-tech platform built by, and supported by, compliance experts.
For a relatively low licensing fee (based on user numbers) you’ll secure the data, systems, training and support the Regulators expect you already have.
Pricing is flexible and customised to your needs. From as little as $240 per user per month you can access a compliance platform that can free you from the burden of compliance.
Contact me if you have any questions or want to arrange a demonstration.
