LA VISTA, Neb. - June 23, 2011 - Securities America Inc. is pleased to announce the release of a fullyfunctional application that allows advisors mobile access to business enterprise systems using smartphone or tablet technology.
Just weeks before Securities America's National Conference, the company rolled out its mobile access solution for smartphone and tablet technology, including iPads, iPhones and Androids - free to all Securities America advisors.
"Securities America made the strategic decision to absorb the cost of e*Office Mobile access to remove any hurdles to our advisors getting started with this technology immediately," said Doreen Griffith, Securities America chief information officer. "We have heard many success stories from our offices that use iPads, Android Tablets and other devices to conduct business, work with prospects and offer the highest possible level of service to their clients. We feel that effective use of this technology will grow and retain business for our advisors."
A group of Securities America offices began testing e*Office Mobile earlier this year. "I have found access to e*Office Advantage on the iPad to be an extremely valuable tool," said advisor Dan O'Leary of Colorado. "I love having access to client accounts wherever I go. Clients have been very impressed with how tech savvy we appear, and it is changing the way we do business. My clients consist mainly of seniors, and as my clients age, I have found that we are doing more business outside the office.
The iPad allows us to access client data in a very modern and convenient way. It is easier to transport than a laptop and seems less intimidating to my clients." Securities America has encouraged the paperless office movement for many years now by leveraging its in-house WORM-compliant imaging solution and extending that functionality through the Virtual Office document management system of e*Office Advantage, the company's advisor work station, Griffith said, referring to the regulatory requirement that documents be stored on a write-once-read-many (WORM) system.
"Thanks to the new e*Office Advantage Mobile application, any images scanned by the home office or uploaded by advisors can be securely retrieved on mobile devices from almost anywhere," she said. "Extending these paperless options through mobile devices will increase efficiency and provide ondemand access to those documents."
The application also allows full access to National Financial Services and Pershing clearing platforms through the Securities America server. "Pershing has made great strides building powerful applications and mobile access that works on Android phones and tablets, Blackberry, iPhones and iPads," Griffith said. "These tools are all available right now to Pershing offices for a minimal monthly support charge. National Financial has plans to offer MyStreetscape and Streetscape over mobile device applications in the near future. The new Securities America e*Office Mobile access solution, however, provides full functional access to Streetscape and NetExchange Pro Web right now, at no charge."
Although the primary objective was to deliver access for business growth purposes, Securities America kept a strong focus on data security, Griffith said. "As devices are evaluated, some show promise from a functionality standpoint but do not completely address the need to prevent sensitive client data from being at risk of the device was lost or stolen," she said. "A big component of the decision for this e*Office Mobile solution was because no data is transferred directly onto the device. Because of the secure method of delivering access, we have confidence that client data will not be at risk through use of the application."
About Securities America
Headquartered in La Vista, Neb., Securities America Inc. is the nation's eighth largest independent broker-dealer (as ranked by Financial Planning magazine, June 2012, based on 2011 total revenue). For more than 25 years, Securities America's mission has been to foster the success of financial professionals so they can provide quality, objective counsel and services to their clients. Advisors benefit from the firm's industry-leading programs in practice management, advisory services and retirement income distribution, supported by state-of-the-art technology. Founded in 1993, Securities America Advisors Inc. is an SEC-Registered Investment Advisory firm that offers investment management, financial advice and financial planning through a national network of independent financial advisors. Securities America Financial Corp. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. (NYSE MKT: LTS). Securities America received the inaugural Thought Leadership Award from the Retirement Income Industry Association in March 2011. Additional information is available at www.securitiesamerica.com.