Cloudware offers advantages in financial planning

About 16 years ago I was asked to speak at a conference of financial advisers about the future of the Internet and its impact on the financial services industry.

At that time, the Internet was after all quite new, and the uncharted potential of an information revolution evoked an anxious mix of Orwellian fear and creative opportunity. Would unbridled public access to information and the stock market accentuate prudent process or only exacerbate common mistakes?

As an optimist, I envisioned the Internet - and exactly web-based applications - as an possibility to address the personal organizational challenges that prevent many from making consistently sound financial decisions. I predicted that once security protocols were mastered, web-based financial planning programs would uninterruptedly aggregate and analyze personal financial information, and enable the true integration and coordination of financial decisions. I remember challenging the audience to consider what types of financial products and services might lose their appeal when the value of a professional recommendation could be instantly weighted and objectively measured by an investor.

Bit longer than hoped

While it has taken a bit longer than hoped, the latest generation of cloudware research promises to breathe life into these once lofty ideas. Cloudware refers to web-based software solutions just as Facebook, Gmail, Hotmail, Netflix, etc. Unlike a traditional software program installed on a personal computer, a cloudware application resides on the computers of a particular company. The cloudware user merely accesses the program via an Internet browser.

There are many advantages to cloud-based applications and financial advisers are already using the research to revolutionize planning services. Traditionally, a planner gathers your information, analyzes it and at the time presents a written plan that includes recommendations. Without regular updates a traditional plan may quickly become obsolete as a tool for measuring progress or assessing new opportunities. Now, through our "always on" cloudware planning platforms, we can provide customers with a secure web-based planning portal that collects, organizes and analyzes your personal financial information daily. Investment accounts, retirement plan accounts, bank and mortgage balances, and even credit card balances etc. may be synchronized at your discretion. As conditions change you and your adviser can log in and update information, instantly reassess needs, and indiscriminately monitor progress toward your goals.

This new functionality promises to render traditional planning processes obsolete by delivering live functionality that helps you and your advisers to better understand your needs and prudently monitor your goals within an increasingly complex and uncertain financial landscape. I have reviewed many financial planning programs over the years and few have impressed me till now, either because they lacked transparency or focused primarily on promoting specific insurance or investment products. As cloudware research evolves I'd expect cyber-planning to become commoditized much like smart phone apps. During there are solutions you can already subscribe to yourself, I presently wouldn't recommend using one to create a comprehensive plan without the close supervision of a professional.