Expert Says Financial Compliance Can Lead to Individual Profitability

July 26th, 2004 Comment on this article

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Sharon Chai
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Long Beach , CA - A financial industry expert is traveling around the U.S. advising broker/dealer and financial planning groups not to fear the many compliance regulations facing them, but embrace them as a way to make their businesses more productive and profitable.

Jeffrey Green, Director of Compliance for Financial Solutions at Long Beach-based Laserfiche Document Management, is an outspoken advocate of using digital archiving as part of a compliance program. He asserts digitizing essential records will improve customer service, enable brokers to work “on line” out of the office, cut office space and help support employee morale and retention, all while being in full compliance.

Green’s presentations to the Million Dollar Round Table, Financial Planning Association (FPA), the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) and the American Banking Association (ABA) always start with the admonition that “compliance is a process, not a product.” But he frequently surprises listeners when he says complying with regulations can be profitable.

“Compliance gives every office an opportunity to reorganize and run smarter,” Green said. “It provides a compelling reason to get records out of file cabinets and into an inalterable electronic format where they can be kept safely, accessed instantly and always in a method that meets Sarbanes-Oxley, Patriot Act, HIPPA and other standards.”

Green reminds financial services professionals of the wasted time and frustration of looking for missing documents. He cites the thousands of dollars spent renting space for filing cabinets. And he tells brokers that client retention can be improved by being able to answer questions instantly, rather than playing “phone tag” for days.

“Digital archiving of records is just as practical and productive for individual practitioners as it is for large firms,” Green says. “Today’s software is scalable, so financial services professionals can select a system that matches their current needs and expand as their practices grow. And financial professionals can learn to use it in hours.”

The advantage of being able to access digital records while away from the office is a frequently overlooked benefit. Green says financial professionals can work “online” while at clients’ offices, at home or even on vacation. No longer are planners tied to their offices, they can go to those Little League games and school events they used to miss. This, he adds, helps organizations retain key employees.

“Look at it this way: everyone working in this industry must comply with the full range of regulations,” Green said. “It makes sense to take advantage of this opportunity to adopt a system of digital archiving that will streamline your operations and ultimately put money in your pocket.”

Green is available to speak at financial services conferences on how compliance ties to productivity and profitability. Online Webinars and in-office presentations on the subject are also available. For more information, call 800-985-8533.

Laserfiche Document Management, headquartered in Long Beach , is a worldwide leader in developing software to manage records in over 21,000 government agencies, schools, law offices, financial services companies and other businesses.

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