Set up for success – the journey of joining Ascentric

Ian McGough, Head of Platform Adoption, takes us through what to expect as we expand our service model to focus on how you sign up to Ascentric and the support we’ll offer you.

I was delighted to join Ascentric in April, as head of our newly-created Platform Adoption team. For me, it was a new beginning in more ways than one, as I also relocated from Edinburgh to Bath.

The excitement of a new venture, new proposition and new team brought enjoyable challenges. But the relocation posed some unique hurdles. The rather unusual circumstances of lockdown meant I wasn’t able to view any accommodation before I relocated. My letting agent sent me some videos of my apartment, demonstrating their expertise in making property appear a lot bigger than it actually is…

But after just a few short months, I’m pleased to report that Bath already feels like home. I feel very privileged to be leading this new team of highly committed, customer-focused platform experts. You can read more about the team here – our existing platform users will recognise a few familiar names!

As with the build of everything new, laying strong foundations has been key to success. The team and I spent a lot of time analysing how Ascentric have worked with new firms in the past. We spoke to our current platform users to understand their perspective and we collaborated with our Business Development Managers (BDMs) to gather their views on supporting our advisers. Collecting this information meant we could build a service model with a smooth joining process for all future users and collaborative support for existing firms where it’s needed.

The result is a commitment to deliver on ‘Our Promise’. We’ll make sure we fully understand your needs, use your time and resources wisely, and give you all the support you need to become platform experts. Simply put, the hard work stops with us.

We’re happy to say we’ve already received some excellent feedback from firms currently joining the Ascentric platform.

But we won’t be resting. We’re always looking to improve and we welcome your feedback.

Firms joining Ascentric will be assigned a dedicated Platform Adoption Consultant. They will lead, own and deliver your experience. Fully responsible for understanding your business needs, your Platform Adoption Consultant will deliver bespoke training to meet your requirements. They'll introduce you to a colleague in our customer service team who will process your initial applications and payments as you get more comfortable with the processes.

Once you’re happy that you know how to use the platform, we’ll put you in touch with your ongoing key contacts in the servicing team. We’ll make sure that they know everything about you and the way your business likes to work.

Three months in, the Platform Adoption team will check in with you. They’ll make sure things are ticking over nicely, and give you the opportunity to feedback on how we’ve delivered against ‘Our Promise’.

Our new model is part of a wider commitment to service and support and as I mentioned earlier it absolutely includes the existing adviser firms we work with.

The latest Investment Trends findings told us existing users want more training. We’ve listened and are putting initiatives in place to help support this. Working with your BDMs, we’ve been identifying firms that would benefit from our ‘MOT‘ approach. Just like a real MOT, it’s about looking under the bonnet to check things are OK or find out if there’s anything we need to help solve.

The MOT gives you the chance to tell us how the platform integrates with your business and talk us through your processes, from new business and investment strategies, to client reviews.

Firms who have gone through the MOT process tell us they feel empowered. They come away knowing everything they could possibly need to know about the platform, so that it really works effectively to integrate and help their business performance.

We also know that there may be times when one person in your firm may need some training. For example, if your key platform user moves elsewhere or maybe someone new has joined your business and would benefit from a training session.

Whatever it is, we’re happy to help. We’ll check in with you regularly, but if you would like some additional support, please don’t hesitate contact your BDM and we’ll work together to help deliver what’s needed.

We’re currently working on creating a new Adoption Hub. This ‘one stop shop’ will feature a straightforward roadmap for joining Ascentric with handy tips and ‘what to remember’ sections to make sure you’re fully supported and understand what you need to do on an ongoing basis.

We’ll also be looking at ways to improve what we do and also question why we do it. We’ll be speaking to our firms and users as often as we can to make sure we’re capturing your valued feedback.

The team and I are looking forward to working with you to help grow your business and continue to fully deliver against you and your client’s expectations.

Find out more about the platform adoption team