Five Private Equity Resolutions for 2017

New Year’s resolutions represent an opportunity to review areas where we can improve and then plan to make ourselves the best we can over the course of the year.

In the same vain, couldn’t we make some resolutions in the private equity sector to frame up a great year? Here are five private equity resolutions to get you started:

• Make increasing transparency a focus this year.

  As a sector, we’ve been talking about transparency for a long time. As 2017 hits its stride, we have more ways than ever before to move toward a more open industry so that investors have the data they need about their funds. Rising to the transparency occasion could become a differentiating factor in how you deliver the client experience, too, so don’t let your competitors beat you to the punch.

• Get involved in the industry-wide conversation about data standardization.

  With the private equity sector growing at a rapid clip, we are seeing more and more market participants point to data and valuation standards as an area for sector-wide improvement. In fact, in our recent global research, over 85 percent of our respondents told us they think data standards could unlock more efficient ways of working and sharing information, resulting in gains such as improved portfolio visibility.

• Lessen the regulatory burden with technology.

  We know that private equity professionals are feeling the pressure of complying with new regulations. Meanwhile, they also want to enhance transparency and client service for investors. Take a hard look at the emerging regulatory landscape this year to confirm you have the approach and the tools in place to efficiently and accurately meet compliance rules and guidelines.

• Consider better integration.

  It’s 2017, and there’s still no true ‘silver bullet’ to automatically solve every challenge and complete every task associated with private equity operations. So, when you are selecting best-of-breed solutions that are fit-for-purpose across your middle and back office, integration will become increasingly critical. Our recent global research found that 72 percent of firms are exploring APIs and integration solutions bring data together to inform smarter investment decisions.

• Increase your firm’s data security.

  Next year, we may look back and say that for private equity, 2017 was the year of the great cloud migration. Our clients are exploring cloud technologies to shore up security in a world where cyber threats and hacking has become an unfortunate new normal across the financial services industry. In fact, 91 percent of our research respondents see cloud-based computing playing some role in improving cybersecurity, where external hosting of data and applications by dedicated providers is seen as more secure than in-house solutions.

With technological innovation driving new strategies, a heightened focus on security, and a sense of uncertainty stemming from geopolitical and regulatory change, we’ve kicked off what could be quite an interesting year for the private equity sector.

Resolve to improve the health of your business, and invest in solutions and strategies that will increase your security, efficiency, and client experience. That could make for a very happy 2017 for you and your clients.

Have your own private equity business resolution for 2017? Drop me a note to add yours to the list.