Increasing Operational Resilience to Support Compliance and M&A Growth.

Background

7IM, a growing investment management firm, needed to strengthen operational resilience and efficiency while balancing regulatory demands and organizational changes. With multiple mergers and acquisitions (M&A) completed and more planned, they needed to document existing processes whilst taking individuals within the business on the journey.

7IM recognized the need to document processes perceived as being potentially high-risk to clients, leading to the adoption of BusinessOptix as their process insight platform. The Executive Committee drove this transformation, recognizing the importance of comprehensive process documentation for regulatory compliance and improved governance. A dedicated team of risk, compliance, and operational experts were assembled to implement the platform, and updates were shared at the Executive Risk Management Committee (ERMC).

Challenge

As 7IM scaled through growth (organic and inorganic), the firm faced several challenges:

• Regulatory environment: It is increasingly considered best practice to have processes documented, particularly those impacting clients.
• Evolving business structure: A constantly shifting target operating model requires adaptable processes and a centralized way to manage these.
• Integration of acquired firms: Standardizing processes across acquired entities is crucial for ensuring compliance and operational efficiency.
• Fragmented tools: Many teams relied on tools like Visio or even PowerPoint for process documentation, creating inefficiencies and inconsistencies.

Solution

7IM selected BusinessOptix for its process intelligence features like simulation and scenario testing, ease of use, exceptional service support, and ability to support compliant growth. The platform’s capabilities addressed the firm’s immediate needs while offering opportunities for future insights and optimization. The implementation process followed a clear strategy:

• Prioritization of high-risk processes: The team began by consulting with the Executive Committee to identify the top ten processes across each business function that posed the highest impact and risk to clients. This approach ensured that critical workflows, such as complaints handling, vulnerable client management, and risk controls, were addressed first.
• Operational lifecycle mapping: The firm mapped its end-to-end operational lifecycle, spanning onboarding, distribution, investment, advice, and offboarding. This created a clear structure to guide future process improvements.
• Engagement with SMEs: Subject matter experts (SMEs) collaborated in workshops to refine process maps and link them to work instructions, SOPs, and procedure data.
• Technology integration: BusinessOptix’s integration with tools like Visio enabled quick and easy migration of legacy processes. Processes previously documented in different formats, such as PowerPoint, were mapped and added to the platform’s centralized repository.
• Best-of-breed functionality: BusinessOptix stood out for its versatility, offering capabilities that provide impactful process insights, simulation, and key risk controls.

Results

The implementation of BusinessOptix has delivered significant results in the early adoption stage and will continue to support 7IM as it matures its operations.

• Evidencing best practice: BusinessOptix enabled 7IM to document 95% of processes identified as high and very high-risk client-impact processes. 7IM can now evidence that high-risk processes are mapped and documented, evidencing a clear focus on client outcomes.
• Centralized process repository: Over 200 processes have been consolidated into a centralized repository, acknowledged internally at 7IM as the “golden source” for all governance-related procedures.
• Improved oversight: Processes include clear RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed) frameworks, clarifying accountability and fostering consistency.
• Process improvement champions: Twenty trained champions across the business act as advocates for the BusinessOptix platform, driving adoption and providing ongoing support.

Future Plans

Looking ahead, 7IM plans to continue to use BusinessOptix to:

• Improve process maturity: Finalize process maps with SME validation and executive sign-offs to ensure all workflows are standardized and ready for audit and operational needs.
• Restructure repository to align with business goals: Enhance the entity-level view of its repository to restructure this into independent and restricted advice categories with various sleeves, aligning with 7IM’s strategy and processes.
• Expand reporting and deepen process insights: Leverage process insights to identify overlaps, bottlenecks, and dependencies, supporting resource allocation and compliance efforts. Analysis and insights will also be focused on reviewing supplier overreliance and assessing critical areas like minimum liquidity ratios.
• Strengthen risk-based governance across M&A: Further align the risk management framework with M&A activities, embedding key controls sooner and setting best practices for process consistency.
• Establish BusinessOptix as the company-wide operational tool: Transition more operational responsibility to business analysts (BAs), ensuring ongoing governance and updates through the platform.