Other enterprise features include:
An imaging application that allows you to receive faxes or add documents as needed to a queue. These documents can be tied into work-flow items for approval.
An ID management feature that allows you to administer user IDs and manage roles and entitlements.
A composite reporting feature that allows you to create portfolio groups and manage insert/removal logs for composite group reporting.
The ability to create an in-house system. The application can be installed locally, giving the firm greater control over features and customizations when it is dealing with larger customers. (These features include file posting, reconciliation, and the management of securities and accounts, etc.)
A message center that can be used to post the status of cashiering and new account paperwork to advisors for their particular book of business or to the client portal if needed. It can also coordinate alert e-mails whenever new information comes in.

Although it's not readily apparent from the demo, Portfolio Pathway offers a decent library of reports that advisors can link to individual user IDs (attractive for individual advisors, who like to create custom on-demand reports). The company has expressed a willingness to create additional reports as requested by its clients. The document vault is another plus, as is the robust, configurable client portal.

Portfolio Pathway seems to have a good ongoing relationship with Pershing, so the firm can offer some particularly attractive integration options for those on the NetX360 platform.

What's Not So Hot
The Portfolio Pathway application has a lot of features that can't be directly accessed by most users. This can be an advantage or disadvantage, depending on your level of sophistication. The advantage is that it allows Portfolio Pathway to keep the user interface clean and simple. But on the downside, a job that you might want to do yourself might require intervention from the Portfolio Pathway staff. For example, Portfolio Pathway runs batch custom statements at regular intervals. You don't need to do anything; they do it for you.

The performance reports are a different story. Advisors can run as many individual reports as they want from the Web site, but there is no way to run the reports for all clients as a batch. Whenever you require a batch report, you must e-mail the company, which runs the reports and posts them securely to your Web site. Miller tells me that clients are satisfied with the status quo, so giving advisors self-service batch reporting is not a high priority for the company at the moment.

It's the same for transaction reports. You can run a report for a client or household, but not for all clients. Though the system can do it, the advisors can't. If you require a full global transaction report for a date range, you must e-mail Portfolio Pathway and they will generate it for you.

The company does not currently offer as broad a selection of reports as its competitors do, and the graphics are not as visually pleasing, even if they are competitive with those of other systems priced for value. The same can be said for some of the online reports. They are completely serviceable, but they overwhelm you.

Pricing
The price for Portfolio Pathway is attractive. For a typical small RIA or start-up, the package is $300 per month. This includes one of three statement templates, which can be customized for an additional setup fee. The package also includes the client portal with unlimited log-ins, the advisor-facing Web site with all the functions we've described, and the service bureau to handle data management. If the advisor needs non-standard requirements or a high number of custodial feeds, the company may apply a surcharge.

For larger firms, Portfolio Pathway usually offers a blended rate based on both the number of accounts and the advisor's assets under management. To give you a rough idea about the cost, an advisor with $200 million and 800 accounts on the system would pay $1,000 to $1,100 per month. Miller says his pricing for broker/dealers and turnkey asset management programs is competitive with Albridge and Investigo. He says that the price per advisor per month generally falls in the $150-$200 range, depending on the volume.

Portfolio Pathway also offers data conversions from other systems. The base price is $0.10 per account per month with a $1,000 minimum. The company can convert from most competing systems, including Albridge's.