Introduction
Efficiency and scalability are paramount for investment management firms in today's competitive landscape. This case study explores how WCM Investment Management, an independent fund and investment manager, overcame time-consuming challenges and achieved remarkable growth by embracing Gresham’s Managed Services. By automating and optimizing reconciliation processes, WCM reduced reconciliation time by 60% while scaling from $3 billion to $107 billion in AUM, all without the need for additional operations staff.
The Challenge: Time-Consuming Tasks Amid Rapid Growth
- Inefficient Infrastructure: WCM grappled with an inefficient infrastructure involving manual data scraping, spreadsheets, and portfolio management systems. As assets under management (AUM) surged, this approach became unsustainable and prone to errors.
- Lean Operations: Despite significant growth ambitions, WCM sought to maintain a lean operations team. The firm's portfolio had grown from $3 billion to $30 billion in AUM by 2018, emphasizing the need for efficient processes.
- Scalability and Data Accuracy: WCM's exponential growth necessitated scalable solutions that ensured data accuracy, minimized risks, and streamlined reconciliation processes.
The Solution: Embracing Gresham’s Managed Services
To address its challenges, WCM adopted Gresham’s Managed Services, a comprehensive solution for data aggregation, reconciliation support, and system hosting. The results were transformative:
- Efficient Scalability: WCM's adoption of Gresham's Managed Services played a pivotal role in scaling its business from $3 billion to $107 billion in AUM. This was achieved within a decade without the need for additional operations staff.
- 60% Reduction in Reconciliation Time: By automating reconciliation tasks and leveraging Gresham’s expertise, WCM significantly reduced reconciliation time, increasing efficiency and productivity.
- Constant Improvements: Gresham's Managed Services ensured that WCM's efficiency levels remained on an upward trajectory. The firm benefited from Gresham's continuous enhancements and optimization of processes.
Benefits and Results
- Data Integrity and Accuracy: With Gresham’s Managed Services, WCM achieved enhanced data integrity and accuracy throughout the reconciliation process, mitigating risks associated with manual approaches.
- Lean Operations with Scalability: The solution allowed WCM to scale its AUM from $3 billion to $107 billion without adding operations staff, effectively utilizing Gresham as a growth partner.
- Efficiency Enhancement: WCM experienced a remarkable 60% reduction in reconciliation time, promoting better efficiency and resource allocation.
- Streamlined Reporting: WCM’s daily reconciliation process enabled faster and more streamlined month-end processes, translating to quicker client reporting, enhancing client satisfaction.
- Continuous Improvement: Gresham’s Managed Services consistently enhanced WCM’s operational efficiency, ensuring that the firm can adapt and scale to future growth.
Conclusion
WCM Investment Management's success story showcases the transformative power of Gresham’s Managed Services. By replacing manual processes with automated workflows, the firm achieved remarkable efficiency gains and scalability while maintaining data integrity and accuracy. This strategic partnership allowed WCM to navigate exponential growth, reduce reconciliation time, and enhance client servicing. The collaborative journey with Gresham’s Managed Services underscored the value of technology-driven solutions in fostering operational excellence and driving success in the investment management sector.
Unlock the potential of Gresham’s Managed Services for your investment management needs. Contact us today to explore how our solutions can optimize your workflows, enhance efficiency, and ensure data integrity.