Transformation time: rethinking asset management operating systems

As investment managers assess challenge and growth opportunities, operating model transformation is becoming a top priority. With the traditional dividing lines between front, middle, and back office becoming increasingly blurred, asset managers are looking for ways to gain a reliable, centralized source of investment data.

This can prove challenging as today’s complex operating models rely on a combination of proprietary in-house systems, third party providers, and technology-enabled solutions.

The reality is that most firms have challenges that cut across the boundaries of their middle office investment focused processes, impacting the front office, the market, and back-office operations.

While these processes require different information at different times, it is important to know that the data is accurate and fit for purpose.

Market challenges

Almost every asset manager we speak to sees increasing complexity, challenging integration across the market, and no silver bullets. They are investing significant resources into ensuring the information they provide to their clients, regulators, and other stakeholders is accurate, accessible, and meeting high standards for accuracy and control.

This can be complicated by several factors:

• Legacy technology stacks, even if they’ve been continuously enhanced and maintained over time, continue to lag and can have foundational challenges that can be costly to overcome.
• Market and data integration and normalization are complex. An increasing appetite to blend public and private assets and fund structures can create hurdles to achieving a strategic, future-proof operating model.
• The flexibility to combine in-house proprietary solutions and outsourced specialists is ideal, but having a complete view of positions in real-time is impossible without seamless connectivity.

How can managers adapt?

The key is timely access to accurate, fit-for-purpose data across the operating model. This requires robust data integration and normalization, with direct connectivity to operational systems to eliminate fragmentation.

To support ongoing change, managers should focus on scalable infrastructure – specifically connectivity, data flows, and system interactions – to reduce friction and enable adaptability.

Fit-for-purpose technology can provide an integrated, front-to-back view of the value chain. Consolidating disparate data into a single source of truth enables faster identification of exceptions and more effective root-cause analysis between middle-office and back-office.

Managers should also ensure their platforms can support future asset classes, fund structures and business changes, such as acquisitions, without requiring major rework.

While traditional, fully integrated front-to-back solutions can deliver data integration, they often require significant time and resources to set up and limit flexibility and adaptability. These should not be compromises that managers still need to make.

We see significant potential in modern, tech-enabled solutions that reduce implementation time, minimize data mapping and reconciliation, and preserve flexibility. This allows managers to retain existing capabilities and integrate new providers with minimal disruption.

Operational efficiency is now a competitive differentiator. Managers need greater oversight and control of their operations to support growth, without adding complexity or manual effort.

Chris Richmond joined BBH in 2025 to oversee middle office solutions for BBH Investor Services. He has spent his career at asset servicing and management firms, helping them and their clients identify operating model challenges and implementing solutions to address those challenges and achieve scale.