Question:
1. Tell us about your first three jobs (e.g., First: waiter; Second: cashier; Third: credit analyst)
Answer:
My first job was a janitor in a shopping mall. I went around the mall emptying garbage cans and sweeping up trash. Second job(s) were in restaurants ' everything from washing dishes to bartending. Third job was as a Customer Support Representative at Advent Software.
Question:
2. Recall your journey in the financial services domain (when, where, how). What attracted you to the financial advisory world?
Answer:
My degree was in computer science and I was trying to get a job as a software developer. I had zero experience in the financial services when I first started at Advent in 1987. It was just luck ' I actually interviewed for a sales position, and had almost no experience in sales, which was apparent. But they must have thought I was suited to technical support, because they asked me back for another set of interviews for that position.
Question:
3. Please, introduce us to your firm.
Answer:
BaySys Technology provides data management and outsourcing services to advisors using specific Portfolio Management Systems. We also have created a dedicated Billing and Fee Management system called BARS, which stands for Billing And Reporting Solution. BARS is a cloud based system that is quickly gaining traction with some marquee firms, due to it's sophisticated and powerful capabilities, as well as it's integration with Addepar, Advent, Schwab, Fidelity and other systems. It was architected to be an open system that will work with just about any Portfolio Management System ' as well as custodial data system. It is system agnostic, and since it ONLY does billing\invoicing, it doesn't compete with any other companies. This has made it easy to integrate with other companies' systems.
Question:
What turning points in your professional life significantly shaped your career?
Answer:
I realized that my upside would be limited as an employee of a firm. In addition, I would have less control over my destiny. That is why I started my own company ' to have the freedom to do things the way I wanted to, including how I treated my employees. BaySys has had miniscule turnover. The first several people I hired are still with me, and love their work.
Question:
What kind of financial activities do you undertake for your esteemed clients (e.g., tax, 401K, estate planning)?
Answer:
Data Management\Reconciliation\Outsourcing for advisors that are using one of Advent's systems ' APX and Axys. We also provide billing through our BARS application as stated prior.
Question:
What is your "success mantra"?
Answer:
Treat others as you wish to be treated!
Question:
What is your favorite city, and why?
Answer:
San Francisco. It's unique architecture, beauty and proximity to other amazing places such as Lake Tahoe, Big Sur & Yosemite.
Question:
Where do you see your firm in the next five years?
Answer:
I see more growth in the billing product side of the business. Advisors spend far too much time calculating their fees in Excel or using their portfolio management system which might have limited capabilities. We continue to add new features every quarter to our billing system, and it is very rapidly acquiring the capabilities of much more expensive systems.
Question:
When do you plan to retire? Since you recommend retirement planning, where and how are you planning your retirement?
Answer:
Not sure, depends on many factors. I am planning to retire by saving and investing as wisely as possible and not spending money on expensive material things that I'll wind up selling or will be useless in retirement. As to "where' ' hopefully in multiple places, because my wife and I love to travel.
Question:
What future technology do you think could change lives entirely?
Answer:
Access to health care technology that can monitor one's health in real time, and also self driving cars.
Question:
What do you see as the biggest challenge facing the asset management industry over the next one to two years?
Answer:
Security, increased competition from online resources\robo advisory, trends towards lower management fees, keeping up with technology.
