Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - November 2007 - (Page 53)

Alpha Awards: Top Technology Providers vendors. Many have begun experimenting with OMS “lite” products — Web-hosted, stripped-down versions of fullfunction solutions aimed at smaller hedge funds that do not need the bells and whistles of a full OMS. In the wake of the restructuring of last year’s Trade Order Management category — which has since been broken into separate Execution Management and Order Management rankings — only two of last year’s topperforming firms show up in this year’s Order Management ranking. Eze Castle Software is the clear favorite in this year’s ranking, dominating both Support & Client Service and Technology & Architecture, helping the firm move up from its No. 2 ranking last year. The deft service and support Eze Castle provides for its Traders Console software shows up in client comments, with one hedge fund manager describing the firm as efficient, competent and extremely helpful. Rounding out this year’s overall winners in Order Management are newcomers Charles River Development and Advent Software, and Investment Technology Group, whose ITG Solutions Network was No. 5 last year. “Hedge funds are very demanding, and they want the most-advanced tools,” says Thomas Gavin, Eze Castle’s CEO. He says hedge fund managers are looking for more options, yet more simplicity — a product that can merge the advanced trading capabilities of an execution management system with the tracking and management functions of an OMS. To meet such demands, Eze Castle recently introduced an enhanced OMS with EMS functionality, which it touts as being easier to use than separate systems. But it remains to be seen how well the upgrade will fare. Although Charles River trails Eze Castle in this year’s ranking, the ﬁrm’s OMS receives high marks for its Software Functionality and Technology & Architecture. That is not surprising, considering that Charles River has 165 people devoted to research and development. “We tend to have the highest investment in technology, and we have the largest international presence,” says Spiros Giannaros, Charles River’s vice president of sales for the Americas. But the firm was hurt by voters’ ratings of its Support & Client Service — a fact that may be a reﬂection of the ﬁrm’s recent efforts that make the interface more complex as a result of increased customization ability. “We have tried to open up the technology so that in every instance where someone is looking for something — configuration or customization — clients can do it on their own,” says Giannaros. ORDER MANAGEMENT Rank 2007 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 2006 1 2 — — 5 Firm EZE CASTLE SOFWARE 2 CHARLES RIVER DEVELOPMENT ADVENT SOFTWARE INVESTMENT TECHNOLOGY GROUP 3 Rankings in 2006 were for the Trade Order Management category. Part of BNY ConvergEx Group. Ranked in 2006 as ITG Solutions Network. EZE CASTLE SOFTWARE Thomas Gavin, 35, Chief Executive Officer THOMAS GAVIN PREACHES THE GOSPEL of customer service. When a big order management system client recently outgrew the data-backup capability Eze Castle Software had provided for it, Gavin was quick to find a solution. Not only did he help find a third-party vendor to supply the backup, Eze Castle invested in the company and helped ensure that the product fit the OMS client’s needs. Such hands-on involvement has helped Eze Castle (part of BNY ConvergEx Group) land more than 300 clients. “The classic software system approach is that after the install team finishes, they hand you an 800 hotline number, and an account manager comes around every once in a while to see how you are doing,” says Gavin, who joined Eze Castle as chief operating officer in 1998 before moving through the ranks and taking over as CEO in 2005. “We have teams of up to eight or nine individuals who own the client from cradle to grave.”

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - November 2007

Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - November 2007 Contents Letter from the Editor Longs & Shorts Pension Corner: Patriot State The Good Guys: College Connection Interview: Currency of Change Cover Story: Comeback Kid Strategies: Masters of Art Research Center: Alpha Awards: Top Technology Providers Top Analysts Alpha Bytes: Critical Choice Unhedged: Commentary: Banking on a Bubble

Institutional Investor's Alpha Magazine - November 2007

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