SEI announced results from an executive survey conducted at its recent Private Banking Asset Management Symposium. Fifty-three percent of respondents identified client service as their bank's "most significant point of competitive differentiation in the future."

While twenty-seven percent of respondents said that "advice" would be their bank's biggest differentiator in the future. Ten percent said the products they offered would enable them to stand out from the competition. Regardless of their response, nearly half (47%) of the wealth managers polled said they currently do not have the right people in place to deliver on their future competitive differentiator. Relationship managers and portfolio managers were most often listed as the most-needed positions with regard to new talent.

SEI polled 40 bank wealth managers at its first Private Banking Asset Management Symposium, held in Chicago, Il, on May 9 and 10. The symposium was the first in a series of regional asset management events planned for this year. Participants in the symposium included the heads of wealth management from over 20 bank and trust institutions. The series is the latest development in a broader program to communicate SEI's recent innovations in their investment strategies with the bank wealth market.

Open architecture was also a topic covered by the survey. Of those who have deployed open architecture investment solutions, a combined 70 percent of respondents said they have seen increased revenue growth from open architecture, with 24 percent indicating the revenue growth has exceeded expectations.

"The survey findings show that bank wealth managers fully understand that today's clients are seeking personalized service and advice, not just new products" said David Campbell, Senior Vice President for SEI's Private Banking Group. "At SEI, we believe the adoption of open architecture solutions is key in enabling wealth managers to meet these client needs. Wealth managers who deploy open architecture solutions will be positioned as product-agnostic and seen as more objective and innovative in their advice and service capability."