0/4
Financial Advisory Launch Programme · Stage 5 of 10
Your Software Stack
Stand up the software a new advice firm runs on: the system that holds your clients, the platforms that hold their money, the tool that shows the plan, and the portal you share it through.
How long
~2–3 days
You’ll have
A back office chosen, platforms and research in place, cashflow modelling set up, and a secure client portal
Steps
4 steps
Resources
2 resources
-
01 Step 01
Step 01
Choose your back office and practice-management system
This is the operational hub of the firm, and the system everything else plugs into: clients, cases, income reconciliation and compliance records all live here.
Do it yourself
- Evaluate the market leader, Intelliflo Intelligent Office (iO), against newer alternatives such as Plannr, on cost, usability and integrations.
- Check what your network provides, since many bundle or mandate a back-office system.
- Prioritise built-in income reconciliation, the matching of provider payments to individual clients.
- Confirm it supports your compliance records, your suitability workflow and your client-portal needs.
Common mistake · An Appointed Representative paying for a second back-office system the network already provides, or a directly authorised firm under-investing and outgrowing a spreadsheet within months.
Time~1–2 days to select CostIndicative ~£130–£135 per user per month for a full wealth licence (verify current pricing) DifficultyMediumResource for this step
PDFBack-office selection checklist
Must-have features, an integration list, and an is-my-network-already-providing-this gate.
-
02 Step 02
Step 02
Set up platforms and research tools
Platforms are where client investments are actually held and administered, and research tools are how you evidence suitable product selection.
Do it yourself
- Understand the platform and wrap market, then pick one or a small number to work with (current names include Transact, Quilter, Aviva, AJ Bell, Fidelity, Aberdeen Wrap, Nucleus and Aegon).
- If you are an Appointed Representative, your network panel may define or constrain your choice, so align with it.
- Set up research tools that support suitability, for example FE fundinfo analytics and Defaqto research.
- Get your onboarding and agency codes set up so you can transact the day your first client is ready.
Common mistake · Not having platform agency set up before your first client is ready to implement, a delay that undermines the trust you have just built.
Time~2–3 days including account setup CostPlatform use is often free to the adviser (the client bears the platform charge), plus research-tool subscriptions (verify current pricing) DifficultyMediumResource for this step
PDFPlatform and research setup checklist
Shortlist criteria, agency-code setup steps, and a network-panel alignment check.
-
03 Step 03
Step 03
Add cashflow modelling
Cashflow modelling is how modern financial planning is shown to clients: it turns advice into a picture they understand, and it is central to the consumer-understanding outcome.
Do it yourself
- Choose a tool: FE CashCalc (indicatively £75 a month plus VAT per adviser, including a free paraplanner licence) and Voyant AdviserGo are the two most common.
- Learn to build a base plan and run what-if scenarios and stress tests before you sit in front of a client.
- Check integration with your back office and platforms so data flows rather than being re-keyed.
- Prepare a client-friendly output style you will reuse across every plan.
Common mistake · Buying the tool but not investing the practice time to model fluently. A half-built cashflow plan in a client meeting erodes confidence.
Time~2–3 days to get fluent Cost~£75/mo + VAT (CashCalc; verify current pricing) DifficultyMedium -
04 Step 04
Step 04
Set up your CRM and client portal
A secure, professional way to communicate and share documents with clients underpins both service quality and data-protection compliance.
Do it yourself
- Decide whether your back office’s built-in CRM and portal is enough, or whether you need a dedicated tool.
- Set up a secure client portal for document sharing and e-signatures, avoiding sensitive data over plain email.
- Configure your CRM around your niche and your advice workflow.
- Test the full client journey through the portal before onboarding client one.
Common mistake · Emailing sensitive fact-find and ID documents around instead of using a secure portal from the first client.
Time~1–2 days CostOften included in back-office cost DifficultyEasy to medium
What you’ll have after this stage
- A back-office system chosen and set up
- Platforms and research tools in place, with agency codes ready to transact
- A cashflow tool you can model fluently in
- A secure CRM and client portal tested end to end