STAR Family of Process
Automation
Streamlining Operational Efficiencies
5 minutes read
Straight Through Architecture (STAR)
Our suite of straight through processing solutions carry the prefix STAR. It an acronym derived from the term “Straight through Architecture”. STP has always been our methodology we adopt whenever implementing any solutions for our Clients.
Businesses can become more efficient and effective in achieving operational efficiencies, while improving the experience of their customers and employees through STP.
Businesses all working on different parts of the puzzle: re-engineering processes, making it easier for customers to reach them through digital channels, and updating systems so they can be part of a services-oriented architecture.
So why is straight-through processing such a hard-to-reach goal?
What makes it hard?
Straight through processing occurs whenever a transaction processing or customer interaction is completed quickly, accurately, and automatically, without manual intervention.
When this is achieved, customer are delighted with service levels, processing costs are down, and valuable people resources can concentrate on managing exceptions, with their expertise applied where it is most important.
Our clients opt for automation mostly with the following common complaints:
Many touch-points that need to be baby-sat
Depending on the processing type, touch points can involve internal and external systems with differing authority levels.
When working against the clock, missing a touchpoint can be disastrous.
Makes my operations volume sensitive
Scalability of volume is difficult to achieve with manually performed operations. The amount of available resources is proportional to the total volume.
There is a direct correlation between the quantity of resources used and the cost of each transaction.
Specific skills hamper staff mobility
Some system skills are hard to learn, which locks employees within their current employment.
Staffers’ specific skills expose the organization to operational risk if they depart.
Risk of Attendant Risk is high and costly
Manual data entries or monitoring exposes the risk of failed transactions or processes. Depending on the type of transactions handled, such errors or omissions can lead to financial risks
What are the pillars of STP?
STP imposes pressure on organizations to make their operations less personal-dependent and more technology-reliant. In doing so, they must be guided on pillars of STP they need to focus for their desired outcomes.
Electronic Processing of Transactions
Focuses on automatic exchange of information between system or users to complete a transaction, eliminating the need for physical interactions or data analyzing
Real-time Processing
STP necessitates the automatic entry of data rather than manual data entry. This facilitates concurrent exchange of information for faster turnarounds.
Facilitate Better Decision Making
STP coupled with reengineering and robotic automations must endeavor to not just processing data quickly, but also to support analyzing data to better support automated or manual decision making
System of Records
STP cannot forego the importance of keeping record of information exchanged across various STP components. This is critical for auditability and quicker troubleshooting if and when a break in the communications is encountered.
System of Security
Any exchange of data across systems or users must be securely transmitted. Data automatically traversing across many touch points and on real-time basis must be safe from unauthorized augmentation.
Lowering the Cost of Operations
Due to being very hands-off, transactions or processes save money for companies due to the fewer use of staffers. STP also has fewer errors due to a lack of manual entry, leading to fewer disputes and a more reliable system overall.
Our Strengths in STP Implementations
We have been helping our Clients in bringing STP-capabilities for more than 20 years. Our solutions have won awards for our Clients for efficient system and process implementation. We are able to do this because we bring a unique set of skills and experience gathered through many years of STP-solutions to our Clients. We help our clients in their automation through:
Flexible Integrations
Whatever integration methods that they prefer. When it comes to STP integrations, we always ask our Clients, “What method do you prefer?” Our experience has enabled us to offer various integrations methods:
- Via proprietary messages
- Industry specifications or standards, e.g. SWIFT
- Databases
- Intermediary tables
- Message Queues
We aim to deliver our solutions through whatever methods that makes sense for the Client to implement, support and maintain.
No compromise on regulations
Strict compliance to our Clients, regulatory or industry’s regulations. We do not compromise on these regulations.
Our engagements with the Client always involves having to obtain proper clearance on our revolutionary approaches from the respective internal parties.
Data consistency & quality
Data flowing through the various system touch points must be kept consistent. This can be achieved by implementing series of checks, controls or data translations to prevent data corruption.
STP automation must never be at the expense of data quality.
STP efficiencies for regulators and industries
We’ve always been an advocate for STP to ensure our clients benefit from the efficiencies it offers.
With new technologies, and the industries and markets maturing to recognize this, we see STP being a layer towards significant improvements.
Ensuring full automation
It is not just about automating a manual process, we make sure that the solutions are sensible and bring the desired outcomes to the organization.
Our solutions also serve as a good starting point for BPR and better automation outcomes for the organization
Proven track record
With over two decades of experience, we have a wealth of knowledge in STP efficiencies gained through:
- Integration with Bursa Malaysia’s Trade settlement systems
- Integration with Bursa Malaysia’s trading systems
- Integrations with Bank Negara Payment Systems
- Integration with a wide range of due diligence systems, e.g. CCRIS, Thomson Reuters
- Integrations with Futures systems
- Integrations with telephony systems
Proof of Concept
Our Star*CDS® solution has been serving the Custodian and Investment Banks for more than two decades. It remains the first, if not the only straight through solution with Bursa Malaysia’s systems. Having started with integration to Bursa’s Central Depository System, it has over the years expanded to include trade settlements and share borrowing and lending capabilities.
Star*CDS® has locked stepped with Bursa Malaysia and have implemented capabilities that allows our Clients to be efficient in working with Bursa Malaysia systems.
Why Star*CDS® made sense to our Clients?
The benefit of implementing Star*CDS is immediate! The time savings & reduced attendant risks compared to doing things manually is gained in every single transaction that is initiated.
How our clients benefitted from Star*CDS®?
STAR*CDS has been settling billions of ringgit worth of transactions through Bursa Malaysia since 1998. Most of our Clients have benefitted through Star*CDS in the following manner:
Small Teams – Big Cost Savings
Through Star*CDS®, our Clients have been able to operate smaller operations teams consistently over the years. This translated to big cost savings over time.
Volume Insensitive
Fluctuations in transaction volumes does not impact our Clients. The same number of staffers are able to handle time-sensitive transactions through Star*CDS® efficiencies capabilities
Protected From External System Changes
Depending on the type of maintenance coverage, our Clients are also protected from any external system changes to their systems. Star*CDS® shields these changes by absorbing the changes and translating them to existing formatted messages.
Contact us today and explore with us how we can help your organization