Ultimately, advisers want to grow their business, and having the right technology in place for both operational efficiency and client experience plays a part in that. Opinion on whether technology is enough of a game changer to make someone jump ship or attract them in the first place is mixed - although generally, it is considered an important piece of the overall pie.

The size of that piece does vary, and respondents vary in their attempts to modernize their systems, communicate with their employees, and encourage the adoption and use of technology as a part of the recruitment process.

This will likely change going forward as the industry becomes more engaged with the next generation, a cohort whose needs and expectations are very different from those currently holding wealth. To effectively service this client base, advisers will, therefore, need to adjust their technology provisions accordingly to enable advisers to do the best job possible. Not doing so will represent a challenge in retention and recruitment terms – advisors will not want to work with backwards-looking firms that cannot provide the tools to do the job. Indeed, doing so would be akin to working with one hand tied behind their back. The direction of travel is clear. Only the speed is in question. By and large, participants know that.

We’d like to thank our sponsor Bill and our partner, Pirker Partners, for their support in this whitepaper in the WealthTech Insight Series. You can access the full report, read it online or download, here.