How Rickard Luckin’s staff and clients benefit from Confirmations and Client Collaboration

BEFORE CIRCIT

Rickard Luckin currently uses Circit’s Confirmations and PBC Client Collaboration products. But what was their situation before they moved to Circit?

Amit: “Our existing portal wasn't fit for purpose anymore, as the system wasn’t as user-friendly. We had been looking at a few different portals, as we knew we needed to change the way we interacted with clients. Circit provided a great opportunity to do that. We really liked the demo that we had and the interface, the way it is so easy to use compared to what we had before.”

The goal was clear: to improve client interaction and collaboration, to ultimately create a more dynamic, efficient system for clients and staff alike.

“Requests to clients were generally done with a deliverables list in Excel or Word that we would then e-mail to our clients. Our clients would then upload on to our old portal system. The problem we had with that was that we were getting some information through emails and some through a less efficient portal system. That meant we would have some answers in email, some answers in the portal, and it wasn’t all centralised. That need for centralisation was one of the reasons for looking for a new solution.”

Not only did the team at Rickard Luckin feel this lack of centralisation, there was also an extra burden on staff to check and double check the completeness of the information received.

Amit explains: “From the client’s perspective, they might have dealt with some queries, but from our end, we would then need to check both emails and the portal to locate the information requested, before we implemented Circit. Circit has provided a clear transparency on what deliverables have been sent and what is still outstanding.”

Aside from client collaboration, Rickard Luckin was also looking for ways to improve their confirmations process. “We used a different platform to Circit as well as letters that were sent to the bank. Circit has definitely improved that process: I think it's fair to say that compared to sending bank letters or emailing evidence providers, having it all in one place has been really helpful.”

CHOOSING CIRCIT

Having seen a few platforms, what made Rickard Luckin choose Circit?

“We were just really impressed by Circit: how it looked, how easy it was to navigate, the tracker at the top with what's required, what’s with us, what’s in draft, being able to export the dates deliverables were requested and what has been received.”

The processes for scoping and implementing new vendors are well thought out at Rickard Luckin, with clear guidelines and checkpoints along the way. “I had written some protocols on how we were going to use the software and how we were going to interact with clients. We thought about all the possible issues that might arise, how we might use it, how it might impact our clients, etcetera.”

Amit then sat down with other members of the firm’s Technical Committee to further develop these protocols. “First, we advised our clients we were moving on to Circit. We would then set them up with guidance, for example on how to set up their account. We also had internal protocols to follow, so that everyone in the firm was using Circit in the same way, whether it was for PBC or bank confirmation requests.”

“The Circit team offered us training sessions on how to use the platform at the start. We've uploaded that to our internal systems so that new joiners can see how it’s all done. The training sessions helped to get buy-in, seeing how it is being used and how easy it is.”

IMPLEMENTATION

Implementing a new system, no matter how necessary or how well-perceived, comes with its own set of challenges: both staff and clients need to be made aware, onboarded correctly and guided through learning the new processes and workflows. Circit was recommended to Rickard Luckin by Amit, having seen a demonstration at an MGI conference. It was agreed that a number of Rickard Luckin team members would review the pros and cons of adopting Circit.

Circit was an easy sell to Rickard Luckin’s clients. “Some clients had already indicated that it would be great if we had a dedicated client portal. Other clients, having adopted it, said that it was brilliant and exactly what they wanted in terms of interacting with us.

The transition for clients that were on the old portal to this new portal was seamless. I drafted guidance for clients in terms of what Circit was and how they would set up their account and use it, and that helped them with the transition. It’s been really straight-forward and I'd say 99% of the clients have been really positive about the move to Circit.”

With the introduction of the new platform to the clients going smoothly, how did Rickard Luckin staff view this new piece of tech?

Amit explains: “It's like with any new piece of software, there's a little bit of hesitation at the start. But I think once they started using it, everyone picked it up quickly and everyone enjoys using it. It's been a game changer for us in the sense that everything is centralised, everything's uploaded to Circit in one place. The great thing is if a Senior is doing a job but can't finish it, then someone else can just log in and see exactly what's been asked and what's outstanding rather than having to ask what emails have been sent.”

While there was some hesitation at the start, staff at Rickard Luckin got to grips with Circit quickly and hit the ground running.

IMPACT

Rickard Luckin uses both Confirmations and PBC Client Collaboration products. What has the impact been so far?  

About Confirmations, Amit explains: “It's been brilliant, Confirmations has streamlined our processes. Prior to use of Circit, particularly where we sent out letters manually or via e-mail, we’d have to keep chasing and chasing to get a response from the banks, or sometimes confirmations received would be incorrect. Having it all in Circit means generally, things come back quite quickly: turnaround time has been a lot quicker than doing it by other means.”

And what was the impact on client collaboration using Circit’s PBC Client Collaboration tool?

“It has helped significantly in terms of communication with the client. Clients have fed back to us that everything is quite clear and there are no misunderstandings. There is a clear audit trail which means clients don’t have to reach out to us as often with questions as it’s all right there on the system.

CONCLUSION

Rickard Luckin has gone from the initial implementation of Confirmations and PBC Client Collaboration to having both products fully integrated in their processes, protocols, staff workflows and client interactions, with clear positive results.

Clients can be more discerning nowadays. “We find clients will now ask questions such as ‘How will you interact with us? Do you have a client portal?’”, says Amit.

To be able to answer with a resounding ‘Yes!’ is part of what makes Rickard Luckin an inspiring place to work, adding value for their clients with carefully chosen technological solutions.