Safe Computer

Investment Bank

After a short break, I was invited by my latest employer to join their investment bank, which had around 20 employees at the time. For the first six years, I was the sole IT person, responsible for almost everything IT-related. When the company acquired part of another firm, the number of employees grew to 30, and the job became more demanding. Another IT professional was hired, allowing me to focus more on database challenges. Six years later, another acquisition increased our staff to 70, and our IT department expanded to four employees. My primary responsibility then became serving as the link between the IT department and our main software, the Portfolio Management System. This role required extensive work with our database system.

Responsibilities and achievements

My job involved purchasing hardware, maintaining hardware and network infrastructure, managing databases and servers, and repairing computers—a task I particularly enjoyed, though nowadays it’s often cheaper to replace a computer than to repair it.

Shortly after I started, the company moved to a new building. The person organizing the move was unavailable, so the task fell to me. Despite not having been involved in the planning or seen the new building, the move went smoothly. We disconnected everything in the old building, moved it, and reconnected it in the new one. Although the cabling was old, it worked until we could replace it during a quieter time.

Throughout my time, I acted as an in-house consultant, leveraging my knowledge of banking and regulatory requirements. This expertise was invaluable when working with external Portfolio Management System programmers, especially as new programmers who lacked this knowledge were brought on. I was responsible for ensuring the bank’s needs were implemented in the software, from initial specifications to testing and production.

Functionality testing was a significant part of my role as in-house consultant. Every update required thorough testing before being deployed to production. I quickly realized that data displayed on the screen didn’t always match the database. From then on, I verified that every database change conformed to my notes and instructions, which meant spending a lot of time examining the database.

When we upgraded our Portfolio Management System, it lacked a report writer. I created all our reports from scratch using Crystal Reports. Despite multiple attempts to phase out Crystal Reports, it remains in use today, and the reports I created nineteen years ago are still in use. Building effective reports requires not only a deep understanding of the database but also knowledge of what the bank needs.

Note

Maintaining a clean computer room is an underrated yet crucial job. It involves removing unnecessary cables, disconnected hardware, empty boxes, and trash. A clutter-free environment ensures that only essential equipment is present. While this might seem like a minor task, it’s significant enough to warrant multiple blog posts. Not everyone agrees, but I believe a tidy computer room is essential.

Key achievements

Developed comprehensive reporting in Crystal Reports

Initiating the complete quarterly reporting for our clients in Crystal Reports. In addition, the day-to-day business reporting was developed using this software. The fiscal reporting for our clients, needed for their end-of-year fiscal breakdown, was also developed with this software. As you can see, we developed and maintained these reports in-house. In a later phase, when the developers of our banking application had more time, some reports were migrated to the banking platform. However, many reports are still in use today in Crystal Reports.

Streamlined data importation for acquired client portfolios

I played a crucial role in importing client portfolios from acquired companies. The data was delivered in CSV format, which we easily imported into our banking application. The data mapping between the two systems was relatively simple since both needed to deliver the same information to government departments. Once the data mapping was complete and the CSV files were received, our software developer created an import function. While we could have done this ourselves, the timeframe was too short. We implemented numerous checks for internal and external auditors, such as verifying that all clients were fully imported, all cash transfers were accounted for, and all received information matched what was sent by the other company. This process, from receiving and importing the data, took about five hours. Verifying paperwork, checking autographs, and performing all required checks took almost the same amount of time. Thanks to good preparation and procedures, the effort required after the import was minimal.

Consultant for a management company

It was time to move to another job with clients a little closer to home. Shortly after I left my previous company, more than half of the staff was taken over by a competitor. The company I joined supported the same Portfolio Management Software I had worked with before. With the entire helpdesk and consultants department gone, the new clients had to rely on me.
As a result, I ended up performing a similar role, but for around ten clients. Four of these clients were investment banks, while the others were stockbrokers.

Responsibilities and achievements

The investment banks, in particular, relied heavily on me. Not only did I prepare and submit tax reports, but I also ensured that the figures provided were accurate and accountable. To achieve this, I developed reports that detailed the breakdown of numbers presented to the tax authorities.

Without direct access to programmers, I helped clients articulate their needs in a way that programmers could understand. Precise communication was crucial to avoid prolonged yes-no exchanges that could delay projects.

One client undertook a complete system migration to a newly developed platform. This new system was still in partial development and was being built on-site. My role was to export data from the old system and present it to their SQL specialist. This required close collaboration; we worked side-by-side, comparing data dictionaries. He would explain his requirements, sometimes by pointing directly at the screen, and I would format and export the data accordingly.
Educating the client’s programmers was another significant part of my job. Despite a language barrier, their biggest challenge was a lack of understanding of investments.

Additionally, I managed migrations when clients acquired competitors. This involved importing all the client’s holdings and transactions into their system. Success depended on the other company having someone with in-depth knowledge of their system, which fortunately was the case, leading to a smooth migration.

With most of our clients within walking distance, I anticipated an easier job. And I was right. I knew the job well, having done it before, and the clients were familiar from my previous consulting role.

Key achievement: identifying and resolving duplicate client entries

During one of my routine data checks, I noticed a potential issue: clients seemed to have been entered multiple times in the database. Initially, it was just a hunch. The system and database lacked mechanisms to prevent such duplications, especially since multiple individuals with the same name and residing in the same area can legitimately exist. However, proper procedures should have been in place to detect and handle such cases, but they were absent.

The problem was triggered by a promotional campaign offering free securities trading for one month. After the promotional period, users were required to register as customers, but instead they simply reapplied for another month of free trading. Without proper training and procedures to intercept these multiple registrations, it was easy to end up with multiple entries for the same person.

Realizing the potential for duplicate records to disrupt data integrity, I took the initiative to develop and implement a process to identify and merge duplicate entries. This not only streamlined our client database but also improved the accuracy of their records, ultimately enhancing their operational efficiency and client service. Unfortunately, the issue had already led to significant financial losses for the client. My intervention helped prevent further losses and restored trust in our data management practices.

Consultant for a software company

My next job was with a small software company that developed Portfolio Management Software. This was the same type of software I worked with in my previous jobs. As a consultant, I was responsible for demonstrations, client installations, training, and support, though I did not handle sales directly. Instead, I assisted the sales team by addressing technical questions from prospects.

Responsibilities and Achievements

Customer visits and requirements gathering: I visited customers to understand their needs and wishes for the software. I translated these requirements into a format that programmers could use to develop new features.
Testing: after programmers completed new features, I tested the changes. Depending on the impact, this could involve testing significant portions of the entire software system.
Training and documentation: I wrote training materials and large parts of the software manual. We organized annual training sessions to demonstrate how to use the software to solve specific client problems.
Installation and updates: I installed the software at customer sites and managed regular updates. Customers received updated versions of the software annually, which included new government requirements provided for free.
Helpdesk support: I handled customer inquiries and complaints. Over time, I specialized in addressing the most challenging questions and dealing with problematic customers.
Regulatory compliance: staying updated with government regulations was a significant part of my job. I read and interpreted government guidelines and ensured our software met or exceeded these requirements.
Each week brought new challenges. Whether reading new government publications, installing software for a customer, or flying to another country to provide training, no two weeks were ever the same.
Interfaces and integration: there was a growing need to interface with external systems. We developed interfaces to send information to a variety of these external systems.
One of the formats we supported was SWIFT. At that time, there were rumors that SWIFT would be replaced, but it remains in use today.

A Bit of Nostalgia
Does anyone remember Kermit? Kermit is a file transfer and management protocol that was widely used in this period. It facilitated file transfers between different types of computers and over various types of communication links.

Asset Management companies

My first two jobs in the investment industry were with asset management companies. This was a while ago, back when floppy disks, telex machines, plotters, and Lotus 1-2-3 were common tools. The first company I worked for was a joint venture between a local bank and a European investment firm. The second was a Far East investment company. At both firms, we managed investment funds listed on the stock exchange, as well as portfolios for pension funds and wealthy individuals. Interestingly, the reports we provided every month were the same as those we supplied in 2023.

Updating investment prices was done manually, often by going through newspapers to find the necessary information. Instructions to our settlement bank were sent via fax, as email did not exist. Information was gathered from newspapers or obtained through phone calls. Keeping a close eye on our settlements was a major part of our job, and reconciling accounts with our custodial banks was the second largest task. Without the internet, everything was done through printed reports and phone calls.