The challenge

Experienced financiers Chris Connor and Rob O’Connor saw a gap in the market for a new brand of independent financial advisors with a focus on providing straightforward advice without the jargon and complicated terminology that is so often prevalent in the industry. Working from home in the planning stage, they were able to apply for a licence from the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority and once this was issued, they were keen to start trading as soon as they could.

Along with the computer systems needed to operate a financial services business, the other major critical requirement was a reliable telecoms system that would allow for all calls to be recorded and that would also allow for the flexibility in working that the pandemic dictated. The situation was made more difficult by what Chris describes as “an 11th hour” change of premises with the team opting at short notice for offices at Exchange House in Athol Street and urgently in need of a working telephone number.

The solution

From a technical perspective, Manx Telecom’s Intelligent Voice virtual switchboard system answered Chancery Advisors’ needs, supported by fibre broadband for fast and reliable connectivity. As a VOIP system, Intelligent Voice offers all the functionality of a switchboard without the costs of investing in the hardware. This includes the ability to record calls – and the potential to use inbuilt AI to create reports around call content. Intelligent Voice also supports remote working and can be scaled and easily reconfigured to adapt to the requirements of a growing business.

“The telephony system does everything we want it to do and is very simple and straightforward to use. The voice recording function was very important to us and came in a very affordable package while the plug and play feature means that we can easily work from home with all the same functionality if needed.”

The outcome

The result was that the company was up and running within just a few weeks from the time its licence was granted. 

“We were very happy we weren’t being given anything too sophisticated or overcomplicated, it gave us a lot of confidence that Manx Telecom had understood and responded to our needs. This included thinking about our plans for the future – the system is flexible and modular so can easily be scaled as we grow in size. 

“It’s great for the Island to have a provider who has that knowledge and understanding, and who continues to invest in the future, like we are currently seeing with the rollout of super-quick fibre broadband. The importance of that cannot be over-stated and we are lucky to have a home-grown company that is such a vital cog for the growth and future attraction of business to the Island.”