LOST IN EMAIL
Looking back to find information contained in emails can be very time consuming especially when agreed filing and archiving procedures have not been followed.
For a generation, email has been used as an essential means of communication for businesses.
It is hard to envisage running an outsourced operating model without it. Email is easy to use and offers flexibility but it has two main drawbacks, you need to establish the context and it has at least two copies.
Fund Element's App provides chat functionality built into your operating model. It means you will never have to file an email again. In 14 days, we will deliver a meaningful Operating Model and enable context based chat for your Governance and Operations Teams. Go to www.fundelements.io and click the 14 Day Free Trial to get started.
For every email, you start with a blank page and the context needs to be added by the sender and understood by the reader. In business mail, most of the context is already known and the patterns of communication are predictable as it is aligned with an agreed Operating Schedule.
In addition, for every email, at least two copies exist each of which should be filed and archived. In a busy and complex operating environment, filing emails after the fact, is a chore that isn't at the top of your 'To Do' list but you know that accurate filing of records is key for future retrieval.
Let's take a look at an alternative, where chat based email is used and the context of your fund's operating model is pre-defined and accessible.
Approving the Net Asset Value
The Review process in the fourth step in the Fund Accounting process Calculating the Net Asset Value ("NAV").
It involves a point in time review of the draft NAV Financials, the NAV pack that provides back for each line item, the completion of a check list and consideration of any issues that have arisen. The final sign-off is often in the form of an e-mail authorising the Fund Administrator to report the NAV. The sign-off email provides evidence of a key control process between the Fund's Management and a Delegate.
Books and Records
The main deliverable of the Fund Accounting process is the NAV Financials.
In the example shown, the fund's Operating Schedule involves a monthly production of the NAV Financials. The entry in the Books and Records is hyperlinked to the location where the document is saved allowing click through access for your Governance and Operations Teams.
Context Based Chat
Each Books and Records entry is a channel for the in-app chat functionality.
The request to review the draft NAV Financials uses @mention. This generates an email notification to start the discussion about the review. The chat status is moved from Open to Resolved when sign-off is achieved.
Consolidating and Searching Chat
Chat across all of the channels is consolidated into a single report.
The report shows active chats and has been filtered for the NAV Financials for 31st December 2020. The chat for prior NAV dates is available under the CLOSED option.
If you are concerned about the risk of data leakage the other significant advantage of chat is the use of hyperlinking with each subject item. This avoids the need for attachments. Chat can only be sent to and accessed by team members who you have invited into the App.
To see what an Operating Model looks like for one of your funds on the Fund Elements App, go to www.fundelements.io and click the 14 Day Free Trial.
