Key Person Risk: Protecting Critical Knowledge Through a Fast Transition

The Challenge:

A global wealth management firm runs many technologies, operating platforms, and workflows across its advisory businesses. Its long-term goal is to consolidate them, but until then it depends on the people who know each environment. That risk became real at one of its advisory businesses, which managed several thousand client accounts on a heavily customized Advent APX environment. The key employee who ran its core reconciliation and reporting planned to retire, and cross training had never been prioritized because resources were stretched and few people knew the system. When the retirement date moved up, there was not enough time for a traditional handoff, and the firm needed a partner who could move fast.

The Requirements:

The firm needed a partner that could:

Maintain uninterrupted reconciliation, reporting, and client service through the transition
Capture system, workflow, and client-specific knowledge before the key employee’s departure
Review and document end client deliverables and update standard operating procedures
Work with firm managers to streamline processes and create efficiencies
Reduce reliance on any single individual for critical operations

The Solution:

STP didn’t wait for paperwork. Training began while contracts were still under review, through remote working sessions, workflow walkthroughs, and shadowing with the retiring employee, and STP was fully operational within four weeks. A dedicated team of four Advent APX professionals took over daily reconciliation, reporting, and workflow execution, so the knowledge was held by a team rather than handed from one person to another. STP then took a consultative approach: we reviewed the operations workflow, documented end client deliverables, rebuilt the core standard operating procedure, standardized reconciliation into a single daily process, and streamlined quarterly reporting.

The Outcome:

STP now reconciles more than 2,250 accounts daily across multiple custodians, representing nearly $5 billion in assets. The firm has completed three consecutive quarterly reporting cycles with zero missed deadlines while saving 20 to 25 hours per cycle. Key person risk has been removed, with critical knowledge held by a team and captured in an updated SOP. STP continues to support the firm as it works toward consolidation, with ongoing process and workflow improvement.

KEY ISSUES

KEY RESULTS

Key Person Risk: Critical operational knowledge was held by a single employee, leaving the firm exposed the moment they left.
Accelerated Timeline, No Cross Training: The retirement date moved up, and cross training had never been prioritized.
Unfamiliar Legacy Platform: The heavily customized Advent APX environment was outside the firm’s in-house expertise.
Inconsistent Reconciliation: Some accounts were reconciled monthly and others daily, creating gaps and added risk.
Outdated Procedures: The standard operating procedure no longer reflected how the work was actually done.
Manual, Confusing Reporting: Reporting was highly manual and hard to follow for anyone unfamiliar with the workflow.

SERVICES & PROCESSES

Daily Reconciliation: Cash and transaction reconciliation across multiple custodians.
Advent APX Support: Operational support within the firm’s existing Advent APX environment.
Client Reporting: Monthly and quarterly report generation and delivery.
Workflow Execution: Day-to-day workflow execution and monitoring.
Operations Review: A consultative deep dive into the operations workflow.
Deliverable Documentation: Review and documentation of all end client deliverables.
SOP Update: Review and rebuild of the standard operating procedure and its subsections.
Process Improvement: Working sessions with firm managers to streamline processes.

Key Person Risk: Protecting Critical Knowledge Through a Fast Transition

Key Person Risk: Protecting Critical Knowledge Through a Fast Transition

The Challenge:

The Requirements:

The Solution:

The Outcome:

KEY ISSUES

KEY RESULTS

SERVICES & PROCESSES

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