SEI and Redtail Collaborate on DOL Fiduciary Compliance Solution

The SEI Advisor Network and Redtail Technology have partnered to create a toolkit that aims to help financial advisers comply with the Department of Labor’s (DOL)’s fiduciary rule, which takes effect in April 2017.  

The DOL Workflow Toolkit will provide financial advisers with systematized workflows that help assess business readiness and demonstrate compliance with the DOL rule through a variety of processes, such as moving from commission- to fee-based investments, the firms say. 

The solution implemented through Redtail interacts with other customer relationship management (CRM) software as well as tools outside this technology to help advisers navigate the changing regulatory landscape, while also driving strategic business visions. It uses four total workflows with accompanying resources to help track advisers’ progress, while also creating an auditable business by documenting client interactions in their CRMs.

The package also offers full-workflow diagrams, process templates, and training resources.

“Everyone is talking about the DOL rule in our industry, but we still have advisers asking what it truly means, what they should be doing, and how they can get help,” says John Anderson, managing director for the SEI Advisor Network. “There has always been value in holistically using a CRM for both advisers and clients, but there’s a compliance reason for advisers to do so now, and there is no better time to prepare for the upcoming implementation of the DOL rule. It’s vital for advisers to have the workflows set in place to execute a plan for their clients and demonstrate compliance with the rule.”

SEI Advisor Network and Redtail’s DOL Action Plan process begins with a planning meeting, which advisers are recommended to complete by the end of 2016. Afterward, advisers should be able to identify their DOL fiduciary rule strategies, and audit and segment each household into an appropriate scenario which may include holding an account in a product/solution using a best interest contract (BIC) exemption, or orphaning an account.

To learn more about the toolkit, visit SEI DOL Worklflows.

SEI and Redtail are the latest firms to offer solutions designed to help advisers navigate the regulatory playing field that will grow out of the DOL’s implementation of its fiduciary rule. Others include PCS, Impact Financial Systems (IFS), Envestnet, and fi360.