The mobile revolution, which has seen computers jump from desktops to laptops, then from laptops to cellular phones, is far from over, as personal computing now moves onto watches, glasses and armbands.
Advisors and clients are now demanding the ability to securely access information and communicate via mobile devices. Financial firms, meanwhile, require additional security measures to keep data secure and compliant. That is where New York-based External IT’s updated software suite comes in.
“We create an ecosystem for our clients in terms of all of their IT needs,” says Sam Attias, vice president of External IT’s financial services practice. “We are a wrapper around all of it in a cloud-based environment. So in addition to providing a cloud desktop, which is our featured product, we are also a help desk and a relationship manager.”
External IT has integrated Microsoft Office 365 and its constituent programs into its OS33 Desktop Platform, which provides all of a user’s applications in one place. Office 365 is Microsoft's software-as-a-service solution to allow users to access their programs from any device and in any location.
“The most important aspect of all of this is keeping up with the technology,” Attias says. “The trends are that there will be more applications out there, and there are going to be more tools, a real proliferation of devices. The challenge is how do you control the information without locking-down your users—because this younger generation, both advisors and clients, wants the technology. If you tell them they can only use these apps in the office or on their home PC, then your firm is not going to be an attractive place to work or do business.”
The update gives users of External IT’s platform access to Microsoft Office applications while protecting information with built-in controls that limit how sensitive information is shared, complying with requirements by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
“Office 365 is a platform, it’s more than just Word and Excel,” Attias says. “Microsoft is expanding, focusing more on security and compliance, especially around e-mail. They’re also working on compliance in web conferencing tools similar to Skype and Lync.”
Financial firms’ complicated technology combined with rigorous regulatory requirements requires set-up and continued support from industry specialists like External IT.
“The holy grail, the real goal, is to integrate the remainder of a firm’s IT tools and applications within Office 365 and allow them to have everything in one world where it is secure, visible and trackable,” Attias says. “We’re not there yet. Over time, we are going to integrate more and more of what is out there into our platform.”
The SEC also requires five years of document retention, so External IT’s platform maintains a paper trail of documents and a timeline of their revisions. Data is stored redundantly in two different cites and in formats where all documents are unchangeable.