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Month: May 2024

CES PrimeShield – SAP Managed Support Services

Posted on by Ces_creative

Application Maintenance Service (AMS) serves as the lifeline of the company’s technology stack, ensuring its continuous functionality. In the realm of enterprise relying on an ERP system, numerous challenges may arise, necessitating the intervention of experts or subject matter experts (SMEs) to deliver solutions. While some issues can be addressed within the existing ERP system, others may require custom solutions tailored to specific customer needs. At CES, our team of solution experts is dedicated to promptly identifying and providing resolutions or workarounds to minimize downtime and enhance cost-effectiveness for our clients.

CES places particular emphasis on various areas to ensure customer satisfaction, which are integral components of our service portfolio aimed at alleviating customer stress:

1. Single Point of Contact (SPOC)

At CES, we recognize the challenges customers face in navigating multiple contacts and channels for SAP system support. We understand that running a business leaves little time for searching through documentation to find the right person to assist with specific issues.

To address this challenge, we introduce a Single Point of Contact (SPOC) solution, embodied by our Service Delivery Manager (SDM). The SDM serves as the dedicated and accountable point of contact for the customer, streamlining communication and simplifying the support process. With the SDM in place, customers can efficiently reach out for assistance, even outside of the designated support window, without the need for extensive search or confusion.

2. Maintenance of a Customer Factsheet

The Customer Factsheet serves as a comprehensive dossier, providing a holistic overview of the customer’s profile and requirements. It includes:

  • Business Overview and Process Flows
  • Ticket Handling Procedures
  • Primary Stakeholders
  • Third-party Basis Support & Infrastructure Team Contacts
  • Cheat Sheets for Specific Tasks and Monitoring Activities
  • Knowledge Transition Links
  • Self-Service Guides for Ticketing Tools and VPN Access

This wealth of information is invaluable for us as a service provider, as it not only outlines tasks but also facilitates a deeper understanding of the customer’s business landscape. At CES, we firmly believe that grasping the intricacies of our customers’ operations is essential for delivering exceptional service. This knowledge enables us to:

  • Enhance service quality by aligning tasks with business objectives
  • Serve as technology partners, offering strategic guidance for future endeavors
  • Empower our SMEs and experts to swiftly comprehend business nuances and propose tailored solutions
  • Expedite issue resolution through informed decision-making

By maintaining a robust Customer Factsheet, we ensure proactive and effective support, fostering a strong partnership with our clients

3. Periodic Service & Business Reviews

At CES, we prioritize the implementation of periodic Business Reviews, which ideally occur on a monthly or quarterly basis, with additional reviews scheduled as needed. These reviews serve multiple purposes:

  • Providing Leadership Insights: These reviews offer leadership teams visibility into ongoing activities and developments.
  • Continuous Improvement Opportunities: As service providers, these sessions afford us the opportunity to assess what’s working well and identify areas for enhancement.
  • Building Mutual Trust: Engaging in these discussions fosters mutual trust and strengthens our relationship with clients, positioning CES as a trusted partner in their journey to success.
  • Strategic Road mapping: Leveraging our technical expertise and experience, CES can offer valuable insights and assist in devising a robust roadmap, ensuring the customer remains future-proofed against technological advancements.

By conducting regular Service & Business Reviews, we aim to drive collaboration, transparency, and innovation, ultimately delivering exceptional value to our clients.

4. Flexibility and Scalability

As our customers’ businesses evolve, whether through organic growth, acquisitions, or external factors such as the recent pandemic, their operational scope undergoes changes. These fluctuations inevitably impact the technology resources supporting them.

To effectively respond to these evolving demands, CES offers flexible resource plans that can swiftly scale up or down as needed, even on short notice. Our adaptable approach ensures that we can seamlessly adjust our resources to accommodate changes in customer demand, thereby supporting their evolving business requirements with agility and efficiency.

5. Usage of AI and Chatbot

CES maximizes the potential of AI and chatbots to optimize Application Support Services by:

  • Automating the ticketing process
  • Analyzing tickets using AI algorithms
  • Providing automated status updates and notifications
  • Offering solutions based on knowledge base, FAQs, and past incidents.

This initiative is geared towards enhancing service delivery, enabling quicker and more efficient assistance for our valued business users.

6. Transition Methodology and Tools

At CES, we pride ourselves on our robust transition methodology, supported by a comprehensive array of tools and templates for each module. Our methodology is meticulously structured to ensure minimal oversights, with every aspect of knowledge transfer meticulously planned.

To effectively respond to these evolving demands, CES offers flexible resource plans that can swiftly scale up or down as needed, even on short notice. Our adaOur transition plan encompasses a day-by-day breakdown of activities, including shadowing, reverse shadowing, independent issue handling, and adherence to SLAs. This systematic approach leaves no room for error and ensures a seamless transition process.ptable approach ensures that we can seamlessly adjust our resources to accommodate changes in customer demand, thereby supporting their evolving business requirements with agility and efficiency.

Thanks to our foolproof system, we’re able to complete transitions in record time – typically within just two weeks. This not only alleviates stress for the customer but also minimizes downtime, allowing the system to be up and running with minimal disruption.

The Vital Role of Investor Operations in an Alternative Asset Management Company

Posted on by Ces_creative

The titan in the investment world, Warren Buffett, once said,

‘It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.’

CFOs and senior leaders in the financial sector recognize and understand the value of fostering relationships with investors. This is especially true for Alternative Asset Management companies and their Investor Operations and Investor Relations.

Alternative asset management is complex due to its unique structures and data needs. As a niche specialist partner with extensive experience in financial services, CES brings vertical expertise and commitment to delivery excellence to help navigate these complexities. Investor Operations is the bedrock of trust, reputation, and confidence in any financial endeavor. These departments are dedicated to facilitating visibility, ensuring clients receive unparalleled attention and assistance.

Let’s delve into some of the key challenges asset management firms face.

Common Challenges in Managing Investor Operations in Alternative Asset Management

Effective investor operations are crucial for long-term success in alternative asset management, despite the focus on returns. However, managing them requires specialized skills to overcome unique challenges.

  • Efficiency Bottleneck: A high volume of investor inquiries creates response delays. Delayed responses to investor questions can affect investor confidence and damage relationships, ultimately impacting the ability to attract and retain capital.
  • Data Integrity Challenges: Maintaining meticulous and organized client data such as investments, tax documents, client subscriptions, and CAQ documents is vital. Inconsistent or outdated data can lead to numerous errors, raise compliance concerns, and leave investors frustrated.
  • Collaboration Mismanagement: Coordinating meetings with geographically dispersed clients and busy investors is overwhelming. Inefficient scheduling not only wastes valuable time but also hinders consistency in communication.

By addressing these challenges head-on, a dedicated Investor Operations team enables firms to navigate and grow with confidence.

We will now explore how CES addressed these challenges to simplify and enhance the investor experience.

Image of Investor operations

Streamlined Investor Inquiries: How CES Can Help with Inquiry Management

Our team acts as a bridge between your internal teams and investors, ensuring timely and precise information on a wide range of topics. The efficiency boost benefits investors by allowing for faster and more accurate responses to their inquiries.

Here’s how we can optimize your inquiry management process:

Inquiry Resolution

Our team fields inquiries from investors and authorized third parties, encompassing:

  • Account details: Investment performance, NAV, commitment details, account statements, tax reports, fees, etc.
  • Fund details: Fund performance, investment strategy, quarterly letters, risk controls, regulatory compliance, etc.
  • Firm details: Investment Team, top-level management, Annual report, etc.

Our dedicated team is a central hub for investor inquiries. We seamlessly route inquiries to the appropriate team for resolution, including- Account maintenance, Audit confirmations, Accounting inquiries, Tax inquiries, Client questionnaires/RFIs, Legal requests, Reporting inquiries, Portfolio inquiries, Compliance requests, etc.

Empowered Investor Operations: Client Data Management with Expert Team

CES provides client data management for alternative asset firms, securing accurate and up-to-date client information for informed decision-making. Let’s peek;

  • Centralized Client Management: We handle efficient client onboarding within Salesforce/Investran (CRM modules). By updating client’s contacts, wire instructions, email IDs, addresses, fund details in which they want to invest, commitment amount, etc., we leverage the same CRM modules for effortless reporting on AUMs, transactions, and investor profiles—maintenance and updating all crucial client details within the platform. This centralized approach fosters a holistic view of each client relationship.
  • Targeted Investor Communication: We focus on targeted investor communication through Salesforce Pardot. This includes personalized mailers, onboarding materials, and fund updates tailored to each investor’s needs. We also manage efficient email distribution of regional fund performance reports and other relevant information. Furthermore, our team facilitates communication with investors regarding capital calls, distributions, and any payment-related issues. This can involve generating customized reports to ensure complete transparency and understanding for investors. By leveraging Salesforce, we create an informed experience for all investors.
  • Secure Client Portal: CES provides a dedicated client portal that empowers secure access to relevant information. This portal features controlled access management, ensuring only authorized users can view specific data. We also maintain the portal by uploading standard reports and promptly addressing any access issues or requests for additional reports.

Our partnership offers a committed expert team focused on maintaining clean, secure, and accessible client data. This helps asset management firms optimize operational efficiency, mitigate risk, and bolster security measures

Systemized Collaborations: Meeting Management Made Easy with CES

Scheduling investor meetings across teams and time zones is a challenge for large asset management companies. CES offers a solution that simplifies the process, optimizing scheduling, promoting clear communication, and providing relevant materials. Our solution handles this collaboration problem by simplifying the meeting management process with the following advantages:

  • Eliminate scheduling headaches with effortless scheduling: Our team manages the entire process, determining attendee availability and facilitating smooth coordination across teams and time zones.
  • Save valuable time and resources with enhanced productivity: We prepare meeting invites and gather, and attach relevant background information, marketing materials, and investor data.
  • Foster transparency and engagement with consistent collaborations: We ensure successful investor meetings through consistent collaboration, achieved by clear communication with all attendees before and after each meeting. In the pre-meeting stage, we share relevant materials such as agendas, presentations, and resources to ensure everyone arrives informed. Post-meeting, we distribute meeting minutes, presentations, webcasts, and action items on request, keeping everyone aligned and on track with the next steps.

In alternative asset management, nurturing strong investor relations and investor confidence are essential. We help you with expertise and innovative solutions to streamline operations, manage data effectively, and ensure seamless collaboration.

You can focus on what truly matters – generating superior returns while building lasting trust with your investors. Connect at sales@cesltd.com to discuss how we can elevate your investor experience.