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"We try to target all service providers, particularly those most affected by the changes," explains Paula Olson, senior manager, operations. "Some providers may do back office administration for as many as 100 dealers, so with this approach, we know many of the dealers will be ready."
Some companies, such as CIBC and BMO, have multiple lines of business. For these companies, FundSERV holds one meeting and addresses multiple business lines, manufacturers, distributors and intermediaries.
To date, no red flags have been raised by customers.
"This year more people seem ready. I believe this is largely because of the introduction of an enhanced concept review process and greater cost benefit analyses on all potential changes, which resulted in several items being moved out for consideration for future releases," explains Olson.
FundSERV staff also visit any customers who prefer an informal discussion to the town hall meetings.
"One-to-one meetings give us a better understanding of how individual customers' systems and processes work day to day, which we would never get otherwise," explains Harry Gundy, senior manager of customer relations and business practices.
"Things come up in these meetings that we have a solution for, or that we can put on our overall agenda for review. For example, last year one customer mentioned a need for consolidated settlement reporting. We spoke to several other customers and found they also had a need for this service, which led to the addition of this feature in our solutions," explains Gundy.
Onsite visits allow FundSERV staff to learn first-hand how customers' systems and processes work, what problems they are experiencing, how existing solutions can be applied and where FundSERV can work to create new solutions by putting issues on the table for industry review.
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