OpinionMar 31 2021

Remote working has been easier for some of us than first thought

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It is a phenomenon that is transforming the way many sectors function, and a business model that is likely to remain, to some degree, long after the vaccines have taken effect.

According to one McKinsey study, more than 20 per cent of the workforce could continue working from home between three to five days a week. The effects on everything from travel to infrastructure could be huge.

Despite an unprecedented 2020, it actually felt like business as usual in the fund administration world

While there is no doubt that being able to speak to colleagues and clients face-to-face can never be fully replaced by online platforms, the fears that employers may have once had about staff working remotely should, to a large extent, now be dispelled.

Of more concern is the welfare of staff who are used to and genetically programmed to be sociable and to interact with others. 

Despite an unprecedented 2020, it actually felt like business as usual in the fund administration world because the level of service experienced by clients did not really change.

The only significant difference is the personal interaction with clients, which has always been so important in an industry where relationships are enduring due to the long-term nature of private equity funds.

However, with the age of Zoom upon us, technology has meant that staying in touch within a team as well as externally with clients remains straightforward. 

With client and investor movements still heavily restricted, the methods of communication that were relied upon earlier in lockdown remain necessary for those important cross-border relationships. 

It also comes as no surprise that platforms geared toward supporting remote work - such as MS Teams and Zoom - not only recorded record growth in 2020, but are now rolling out ever more updates to streamline the process.

With that in mind, even large scale events and conferences have been able to move into the virtual realm with relative ease.

For example, Guernsey’s Sustainable Finance Week in 2020 was conducted entirely online, and is just one of many large scale financial events that took place virtually.

The fact that clients can convene from around the world without the freezing of screens and dropping out of audio goes to show how much technology has improved in the past few years and how the industry has adapted.

One thing is certain - last year proved that the outsourced model is sufficiently robust to continue despite the challenges we continue to face.

Indeed new funds are still being launched, successor funds are still being planned and services are able to go on uninterrupted with little or no change aside from the international travel.

There is no doubt that the world changed last year and some of those changes will remain once Covid-19 has finally receded. Representatives of our businesses are no longer racing to the airport before sunrise for a long day in the City, meeting lawyers, corporate brokers and other intermediaries.

This, I am sure, will return one day but in my view it will never be quite the same. 

I would be lying if I said I did not miss the travel and the friends and business relationships that I have built over the last ten to fifteen years.

However, working from home is now pervasive in the City and a relaxation of lockdown rules does not necessarily mean that London’s financial districts will be teeming with workers again any time soon, particularly those who have reclaimed hours of their lives by cutting out the daily commute.

While the City will one day awaken from its current ghost town state, I also welcome the increasing focus on workers' wellbeing and I am hoping that is set to stay.

The industry is adapting. I sit at my desk reflecting on the technology that I have to hand, allowing me to keep pace with the industry and to keep in touch with my clients. All that is missing now is the opportunity to meet once again in person, which I hope will happen soon.

What are some of the remaining challenges?

  • To take the best of what we have learned and developed in 2020, such as the new methods of communication and virtual meetings, and continue, where feasible, to promote these innovations in a bid to reduce our carbon footprint;
  • Fund administration is a business which necessarily forges long-term client relationships. We must continue to adapt and learn how to stay in touch effectively and maintain the personal relationships required to ensure that business continues to flow.

The outsourced fund administration model is mature, tried and tested, and Covid-19 has given us the opportunity to demonstrate how flexible and adaptable the industry can be and will continue to be as we move towards the next “new normal”.

 James Christie is senior client relationship manager at Oak Group