Wealth manager scales up online

WHEN wealth management business Modoras wanted to expand, it needed a flexible IT infrastructure with national reach and scalability.
The privately owned company, based in Brisbane, decided to outsource its infrastructure.

"We were experiencing rapid growth and we were looking at opening up interstate offices as well," Modoras associate director Jita Sarai said.

The company needed a system that enabled it to grow, and do so efficiently.

The company, which has 30 staff, was using an internally managed infrastructure, with six physical servers delivering a range of document, email and custom software services.

"As we started to hit growth," the physical infrastructure ran into limitations, Mr Sarai said.

The company, established in 1984, offers strategic advice to individuals, small and medium businesses and organisations looking to make smarter choices about their money.

"We are a small team" so the company also wanted a system that gave people accountability for their own actions, Mr Sarai said.

Modoras approached Brennan IT, which already provided the business's internet service. It presented the service provider with a detailed explanation of its infrastructure needs.

Brennan proposed a private cloud, using infrastructure-as-a-service. The comprehensive system provides email, document management, accounting and financial software services throughout the business using Citrix clients.

A private internet protocol wide area network securely connects Modoras's sites and offices, while an Ultimate Care agreement provides around-the-clock support, with proactive monitoring.

"We did go to one other organisation," Mr Sarai said. "While they were quite comparable in everything and also a little bit cheaper, we just didn't know whether they could actually deliver the service, support and reliability" in multiple locations interstate.

Set-up of the new system was completed early last year.

Since going live, the IaaS virtual platform has been highly reliable, while redundancy built into the service, coupled with stringent service level agreements, guarantees reliability.

Modoras, which has an office in Melbourne and will open one in Sydney in April, has developed its own fully integrated wealth management tool, known as Evolution, also supported by Brennan.

Before and during the Brisbane floods, Brennan IT provided regular calls and updates to ensure the infrastructure was not threatened, Mr Sarai said.

"That reassurance was very much appreciated."

The company's infrastructure performance has improved without increasing IT management time and costs.

"It also enables me to focus on my core business knowing that I have got an IT partner that is going to make sure the job gets done,"Mr Sarai said.

Modoras is also developing an online client advice portal for the wealth management sector which is expected to be released this year.

Modoras pays a monthly fee based on its usage.

Mr Sarai estimated the cost to be in the "hundreds of thousands" for a year.

"One thing that I like with infrastructure-as-a-service is you pay for what you use," Mr Sarai said.

"From a capital outlay perspective, it makes a lot of sense for businesses.

"I am able to scale up my business appropriately."