After 16 years of working in law firms, 12 of those as a Trust Manager I’d decided it was time for a change. Little did I realise in my search for something different it would involve not only changing roles but a life change as well. Yes…I was about to become….a Southerner!!! So it was on 16 June 2014 that I duly presented myself at The Flour Mill aka thewealthworks’ head office – being the south, it was a hot and sunny day.
Having previously used Troika in my last role I had met some fellow Troikans at user groups, but did not have a full picture of the whole user base. Whilst I realised there would be accountants, lawyers and family offices using the products, I was taken by surprise that there would also be a university and a company specialising in equity release schemes as clients. Supporting clients that use Troika for private trusts, probate etc is fairly straight forward, but for those clients that use it in a different way, is certainly a challenge.
Over the course of the year I’ve also discovered lots of ways of using Troika Accounting I didn’t know existed! In some ways I would like to get into my Troika Tardis and go back and use all the fantastic features I’ve just discovered. As a practitioner you’re so busy trying to service clients’ needs that you don’t always have time to stand back and find out new features that are added to a product.
Another surprise has been the use that many clients make of Support. Some use it as a hub of knowledge – as has been the case with the introduction of FATCA. Others will contact Support to ask if Troika can do something in a particular way with the team often dialling in and running a quick instruction session with a user.
On reflection, I wish I had made more use of Support as I do believe it would have enhanced the use I made of Troika. Probably like lots of users I thought Support was just there for when the system wasn’t behaving. One thing I would urge users to do is to make full use of Support. For those that haven’t, a log-in for the support portal can be obtained, where there are useful “how to” articles. We are, of course, always keen to hear from users and you’re very welcome to phone and e-mail with queries.
My main role within thewealthworks is to enhance and improve the products. I’m always happy to meet with clients and discuss their requirements and take on-board any ideas and suggestions they have – so again, please call or e-mail me. Troika is here to help you in the best possible way, and that can’t happen if you don’t tell us what you need from the system. Although I can’t guarantee every new request will make the next release, if you never ask, you’ll never get.
A couple of projects currently underway are to revamp corporate events (hurrah I hear you say), and the other is to establish standard STEP compliant sets of accounts to ship with Troika (ably assisted by my colleague Pippa).
My first year has truly flown by and I suspect before I know it I’ll be writing about my second year at thewealthworks.
