There is no integrated solution to help wealth management advisors serve their clients and run their businesses more effectively, although single-purpose applications are proliferating.

According to a report from consultants Spectrem Group and Destiny, the number of Internet-based financial advisory tools is expanding rapidly. Technology providers have now begun to focus on specific, generally narrow aspects of advisor needs. However, no single provider offers a holistic solution that incorporates all of the capabilities outlined in the study.

Additionally, the report points out a number of issues that financial institutions face including: a lack of universal internal agreement regarding the critical needs and requirements for advisors to be effective with their clients; how to implement the solutions broadly within the organizations; and how to implement the solutions in a staged and iterative manner.

Spectrem Group and Destiny collaborated on the report to evaluate the technology needs of financial advisors and determine whether the solutions provided by the increasing range of emerging online tools actually meet advisors’ needs. The consulting firms surveyed 25 advisors in the wealth management industry and interviewed 30 firms that have developed various online tools and capabilities for financial advisors.

“Wealth management today has become an increasingly complex business for financial advisors,” said Scott Slater, a director at Spectrem and co-author of the report, “The business calls for a comprehensive set of capabilities, including financial planning, asset management, tax planning, risk management and estate planning that require advisors to be supported by teams of specialists both within the financial institutions they represent, as well as through outside networks.” As a result, said Slater, advisors increasingly need technology tools, including internet-based solutions, to serve their clients and assist in their core business activities.

“Although advisors have a clear vision for the information they want to share with customers and plenty of online tools, we found that the tools are not integrated, processes are fragmented and data is trapped in organizational and technological silos,” said Surya Kolluri, vice president, strategy for Destiny and co-author of the report. “This makes it nearly impossible for advisors to easily pull together information and analysis for their clients.”