NorthStar extends the value of your firm’s wealth management platform by providing a set of platform-level services, including an integration framework, workflow engine, alerts, security and entitlements, proposal generation and a persistence manager.

Security

The NorthStar application architecture has well-defined security zones separated by firewalls. For instance, application clients reside in an untrusted environment, the Web tier and authentication reside in a separate DMZ, and the application components, data and existing systems reside in a trusted environment. SSL may used to secure any communication conduit. NorthStar also supports multiple authentication environments including peer-peer and true single sign-on integration via CA eTrust/Netegrity, or Oracle Oblix. NorthStar provides the entitlements layered on top of the authentication solution – all via the security and entitlements platform service.

Application Workflows

NorthStar provides team-based application workflows based on best practices so tasks can be assigned based on job function and entitlements. The modular design of NorthStar workflows enables clear hand-off of the workflow from one user to another at well-defined decision points. The flexible, XML-based metadata-driven process definitions allow for customization. Task-level entitlements govern firm control over who can do what. NorthStar workflows automate the compliance approval process and maintain full audit trails.

Alerts

NorthStar provides robust alert and event notification capabilities giving advisors a reason to call their investors with actionable and relevant information as well as provide timely and useful information directly to the advisor’s desktop. Alerts can be pushed to multiple subscribers including the NorthStar Client Wealth Management Dashboard, e-mail, and other third-party applications. Alert publication can be based on events, scheduled, batch, or created by end users. Alerts can be actionable and linked to a task for the advisor or informational only. To jump start the use of alerts, NorthStar provides out-of-the-box alerts as well as an SDK to customize existing alerts or create new ones.

Proposal Generation

NorthStar enables the generation of firm-specific custom proposals, tailored for the client and the firm. Proposal generation supports both Microsoft PowerPoint and Adobe Acrobat PDF output including both dynamic and static content. Advisors have the flexibility to pick and choose slides to include/exclude, while the marketing team can customize the look and feel and branding elements. Proposal generation can be integrated to a firm’s content library to leverage existing content.