The pace of technological change is unrelenting. The Internet of Things and the rise of the gig economy are changing the way that businesses and consumers interact with each other. It is therefore incumbent upon the asset management industry to embrace technological change and reimagine what is a tried and tested business model. More than ever, fund managers are having to innovate to operate more efficiently, more transparently, and in closer harmony with their end investors. 

In the first of a five-part series, SEI discusses the impact of five disruptive technologies and how they can be applied to the financial industry. The first of these five trends relates to IBM Watson, and the power of cognitive computing. 

Asset management has always been an information-based business and as such, managers are not immune to facing innovative and disruptive forces making inroads in other industries.  

One of the clear benefits to the increased proliferation of platforms, which offer infrastructure-as-a-solution, is that it is helping start-up and emerging fund managers compete on a level playing field with larger entities. 

Sat here writing this article in one of London’s many coffee shops there are at least half a dozen others tapping away on their MacBooks. By 2020, it is estimated that 40 to 50 per cent of the global workforce will work for themselves, in a freelance or independent consultant capacity, collaborating with people on platforms to deliver a particular service or solution. 

Meaningful conversations create value. With the proliferation of information sharing and communications platforms, ranging from Vine and Instagram to Snapchat, Dropbox, Pinterest and, of course, Twitter, individuals and businesses (think fashion houses, advertising agencies, media organisations) have many ways to connect and interact across the globe.