Q&A with Rob Mallernee of Eton Solutions

In the current landscape, we are called upon to harness the most powerful thing – data. How can we take that data and turn it into information that you can use to make important decisions on a daily basis? Family offices strive for this goal, but with outdated technologies, the lack of SME oversight, disparate spreadsheets, multiple instances of software per entity; it is easy to get bogged down with unscalable processes which will lead to data that a user cannot turn into information.
Moving family offices from a monthly and/or quarterly process to a daily process gives the power to convert data to information for clients / family members. Clients can see their updated net worth, assets, transaction history and performance all without asking. Utilizing automated workflows, we can drive efficiency and eliminate the need for unnecessary communication and time wasted.
It’s time for family offices to be able to anticipate questions and over deliver to their clients’ expectations. Eton Solutions’ AFO offering can streamline many obsolete processes to provide users with access to the information they need to make prudent decisions. Converting data into information is what we do!

A large percentage of family offices use a combination of accounting software, portfolio management software, a tax system, CRM, a document and project management system, and even spreadsheets to track all of their data! This siloed approach to technology results in a difficult life for office staff with many efficiency pain points and reduced value for the families they serve. The two main pain points gravitate around the need to enter transactional data into multiple systems. Why would you enter and keep data reconciled in multiple systems? The second main pain point highlights the headaches that arise when an amount needs to be changed historically in any one siloed system. WHEN you have a discrepancy, the impact could be very significant to you or your clients!
Eton Solutions’ AFO offering utilizes state of the art APIs to streamline initial transaction entries into your various ledgers (accounting, portfolio, and tax). Our solution is also capable of handling any historical changes to an initial transaction. Imagine only having to change 1 historical entry and having that flow to all parts of your system!
Using an integrated technology platform that can simplify complexity, ensure transparency, streamline reconciliations, and finally deliver one genuinely reliable source of the truth for all data - this is the future of family offices!

When statements are aggregated to review investment performance, wealth owners may be finding themselves having to compare apples to oranges and it is difficult to fairly determine which manager is most successful? Imagine getting a month end statement for your Goldman Sachs brokerage account and another statement for your JPM brokerage account. Each custodian could very easily tag different attributes to the exact same security you hold in both accounts. How could you ever get a clear picture of your exposure if your custodians are classifying securities as they see fit?
The solution is to aggregate all the data across your various custodians, normalize it across a time period and accurately view the performance. This is a strategy proven to work and help wealth owners make informed decisions. This process would be accomplished by using a service provider that can take in many data feeds and present it in a consumable way on a regular basis.
Eton Solutions’ AFO offering can provide you with a clear and insightful “Apples to Apples” view of your investments and holdings!