Investec Asset Management

Transforming Investec Asset Management’s digital strategy: 45% cost reduction and real-time data at speed.

Increasing capability with the cloud

Investec Asset Management wanted to improve the way that information and resources were delivered to users. Ensuring that data could be made available quickly and reliably was therefore a fundamental consideration – and one that guided all decisions made by our bespoke software consultancy team.

Unlike the majority of investment banking organisations, whose sites are hosted on traditional steel server environments, we implemented a cloud-based framework using Amazon Web Services. This, combined with a language stack specially selected for its intelligence and flexibility, increased the speed with which users are served data, as well as providing Investec Asset Management with the ability to rapidly scale the system as required – not to mention delivering annual savings of 45% compared to previous hosting costs.

Relevant. Personal. Valuable.

With such a large volume of data available though – including 530,000 mandatory Key Investor Information Documents – the project was about more than simply providing access. The information presented needed to be truly valuable – which meant making it more relevant, and more personal. At the same time, the strict regulations of the financial industry needed to be adhered to. To achieve this, we restructured the underlying data model to provide Investec Asset Management with greater flexibility in how they delivered data to global markets, while building in geographical and role permissions to ensure that users only see information that’s appropriate to them.

This activity was supported by a new site structure, navigation and interface, aimed at increasing completion rates for key tasks by:

• Highlighting important calls to action and next steps
• Reducing the length of crucial conversion paths
• Surfacing relevant and valuable content

Connecting with customers

While Investec Asset Management’s website is a critically-important channel through which they communicate with users, it certainly isn’t the only one. So we worked to improve their customer service capabilities. Integrating MyInvestec – the bespoke self-service area of their site – with their Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system provided them with the understanding of client behaviour they needed – enabling them to build closer personal relationships with their customers by enabling them to instantly react to preference updates and send relevant information as and when it is required.

Out of the ordinary

Investec Asset Management is committed to being ‘out of the ordinary’, and as a result of our work, their site now is too. It’s not just us who thinks this though – leading industry bodies have said the same. The project was shortlisted in the “Best Use of IT in Wholesale & Investment Banking” category at the FStech Awards, and the Investment Marketing and Innovation Awards shortlisted it for their “Open Category Innovation Awards”.

Talk to one of our digital experts

Pete Withers-Jones

Head of Development

Do you have an idea or a project you need support with?

Pete Withers-Jones leads Box UK’s Development Practice, and has over 20 years of experience in software development, working across various industries and technologies.

Book a meeting with Pete

Or call us on 020 8098 2093