Frequently asked questions

For many years, our Adviser Office software was the first choice for hundreds of UK advice businesses like yours. But there’s no hiding from the fact the software was first designed more than 30 years ago. In that time the advice industry - and the technology available to support it - has changed dramatically.

We want to make sure we’re supporting your business with technology that keeps your data secure, helps your business perform and is compatible with other software you might be using. After talking to many of the advisers we work with, we have concluded our Adviser Office software is no longer the best we can offer, and Xplan is the best software in the market to drive your business forward.

We’ll be retiring Adviser Office on 31 March 2023. We have introduced an extensive program to help all of our Adviser Office clients upgrade to our cloud-based advice software Xplan, and we invite you to take part. This does mean that Adviser Office will no longer be supported by the end of March 2023.

There will be a period of time where Adviser Office will run alongside Xplan to ensure you have migrated everything you need; but this will be with read-only functionality.

The sooner the better! Not only will it mean you can benefit from Xplan sooner but it will also help avoid any last minute rush to migrate data and allow your team to become familiar with the new software. We expect all clients to have completed the move, and be using the software, by March 2023.

The most important task is getting your data cleansed. We have the fantastic Data Cleansing module in Adviser Office that guides you through this process. There are also a series of other tasks you can start to work through to prepare for your move which your account manager will provide guidance on how to approach.

For more information on Xplan, please visit our dedicated Be Brilliant hub page.

To watch the Xplan on-demand demo video in your own time, please visit our dedicated Be Brilliant hub page.

We expect the majority of our Adviser Office users will start on our Xplan Essentials package. You can find a high level summary of each package on the Be Brilliant hub page. Speak to your Account Manager who can provide you with further detail.

Once you’ve worked through all the content on our Be Brilliant hub page, the next step is to contact your dedicated UK-based account manager who will assist you through the process.

For more information about the process check out our article What happens when you upgrade to Xplan?

Generally, the implementation takes around 8 weeks to complete, followed by 2 months of hypercare support. However this can vary depending on different requirements. Your account manager can provide you with a sample timeline.

There are logistical benefits to moving from one Iress product to another. Not only is it our responsibility to ensure your data is secure during the transfer, we know both sets of data really well and it’s our job to make the process as smooth as possible.

Moving the data you’ve captured in Adviser Office is one of the most important elements to you. Our data migration incorporates two fantastic tools that help you cleanse, prepare and map your data. This takes away the need for manual spreadsheet mapping exercises and ensures your data arrives in Xplan in the best possible way.

By knowing both Adviser Office and Xplan, we have the skills and expertise to make this as data rich, secure and straightforward as possible.

Iress will work with you throughout the process to understand your needs and ensure it’s a smooth transition. We have specialist teams supporting you through the different stages of the process.

We’ll also help you make the move with a suite of support that includes:

• Learning Pathways - role-based elearning that you can follow in your own time
• Online e-learning videos and microlearns focussed on key topics and areas
• Virtual Classroom - live online weekly training sessions on best practice topics
• Iress Community - an online hub for best practice, product updates, Q&A and forums
• Xplan check-ins - structured consultancy sessions and an opportunity for Q&A with Xplan experts
• Account management - a dedicated Adviser Office to Xplan support team

Each of our packages comes with a host of best practice content; including advice workflows, templates for client communication, letters and commonly-used emails. These are automatically updated when guidance around best practice changes.

As you’ve used Adviser Office for such a long time, you may need some time to get used to a new way of doing things.

It is important to understand that any change can take time, so our advice is to start with the out-of-box functionality. Once you are familiar with that, you can start to build new processes and explore new functionality that you never had in Adviser Office.

Our implementation and account management team will guide you through this transition so you can benefit from the extra security and efficiency Xplan offers as soon as possible.

Xplan is 100% web based, cloud hosted and delivered through Software as a Service (Saas). Iress possesses a complete Information Security Management System (ISMS), this is underpinned by the Iress Information Security Policy. Iress is globally certified by BSI to ISO/IEC ISO 27001:2013. Our Certificate Number is IS615380. 

Yes, similar to Adviser Office, Xplan has provider feeds that are known as Datafeeds. The underlying fund prices are supplied by MorningStar. As part of your implementation to Xplan, we will help set up your main provider feeds; we'll then train and guide you on how to set up more. You’ll find a list of the available providers here.

Whilst the Xplan valuation reports are not exactly the same as Adviser Office reports, we have spent time researching and designing reports that meet the current needs of the UK market.

There are a selection of reports available which can be amended. As part of your implementation, we can personalise them with your colours and logos so they are branded to your business.

We have a list of standard integrations through Iress Open integrations. There is no additional cost to use these integrations other than the existing license you already pay to the third parties. You can find a list of all our integrations here.

No. Just like Business Management in Adviser Office, the revenue element (known as Commpay) is part of your Xplan package at no extra cost. As well as matching and processing statements, Commpay has far superior Reporting and Searching functionality.

To watch the revenue on-demand demo video, please visit our dedicated Be Brilliant hub page landing page.