In the fast-paced, hyper-competitive environment of capital fundraising, placement agent firms need access to reliable, actionable data to help them manage complex relationships, reporting, and deals throughout the pipeline. It’s crucial for placement agents to have clear visibility into fundraising and capital allocation, emerging markets, and the latest industry developments, as these insights give them a key advantage against their competitors.
However, many placement agents still rely on outdated workflows that keep critical data sets siloed. For example, a firm may store internal data in one system and external data in another. Team members end up wasting valuable time switching between the two systems, and the firm runs the risk of falling behind the competition.
To avoid data silos and better manage its day-to-day processes, Briarcliffe Credit Partners, a private credit placement agent, uses Intapp DealCloud as its centralized database. By leveraging DealCloud’s technology and data integrations, the firm successfully manages complex relationships and improves decision-making.
Why placement agents are relying on centralized databases
A centralized database is a transformative solution for firms that lets them house, audit, analyze, and share data. The database offers a single source of truth that can streamline operations for placement agents by systemizing limited partner (LP) and general partner (GP) relationship management, transaction, and fundraising data.
In 2021, Briarcliffe Credit Partners selected DealCloud as its single source of truth for relationship management and investor tracking. A major selling point for Briarcliffe was DealCloud’s integrated data solution, DataCortex, which allows placement agent firms to manage proprietary and third-party data in one unified platform. With DataCortex, placement agents can quickly access data regarding private and public companies, deals, industry contacts, and new developments.
Briarcliffe leverages DataCortex’s integration capabilities to populate DealCloud with existing data from Preqin — one of the top databases the firm uses to capture LPs and GPs relevant to the private credit industry. DataCortex works seamlessly with Preqin to integrate the data on Briarcliffe’s investor profiles, contact details, and investment allocations. This integration capability allows Briarcliffe staff to easily find all the information they need within a single source of truth.
“What’s really important is for us to have all that information and the data set in one centralized system, so we can tap into it when we need to,” said Jess Larsen, Founder and CEO of Briarcliffe. “We have one centralized system where we can manage all our communications, as well as all our updates on the LPs [and] GPs in the industry. That’s worked really well so far.”
How your placement agent can benefit from a centralized database
Leveraging integrated data within a single system can give your firm a competitive edge in the increasingly complex private credit market. Here are just some of the benefits of having a centralized database.
Increased data security
Placement agents handle highly confidential data, and it’s their responsibility to keep the data secure. Every firm needs a controlled, transparent way to share relevant data with their teams without compromising security.
The best centralized technology systems provide robust security features that protect sensitive data throughout its lifecycle. DealCloud offers advanced data controls and permission settings, so every user has access only to the data they need for their specific role.
By centralizing data within a single platform, placement agents can reduce the risk of unauthorized access, maintain compliance with industry regulations, and enhance trust among clients, investors, and regulators.
Improved data reliability
Clean, accurate data is the key to placement agents’ success. With a centralized dataset, firms can eliminate the inconsistencies, duplication, and discrepancies associated with managing fragmented data across multiple systems and sources.
With a centralized repository, placement agents can ensure that all data consumed is sourced from a single, reliable database, promoting more informed and timely decisions. Storing data in one unified place can help accelerate the speed at which the gathered data can be turned into the actionable insights needed to identify investment opportunities.
Having a single source of truth allows placement agents to establish best practices for data governance, ensuring their data is consistent, trustworthy, and properly used.
Democratized data across your team
Siloed data leads to information gaps, inefficiencies, and overdependence on a placement agent firm’s select data experts. Data centralization breaks down these barriers and democratizes data access and analysis, empowering team members with self-service access to relevant data.
Data democratization fosters a sense of ownership among team members and enables them to answer their own questions, make smarter decisions, and contribute to the overall growth and success of the firm. With data centralization, placement agents can unleash the collective intelligence of their teams, leveraging a broader range of expertise and insights.
Close deals faster with a secure, reliable, and centralized data solution
In the race to raise capital, the most forward-thinking placement agent firms are abandoning outdated, limited data sources and embracing centralized technology systems. By consolidating data within a secure and comprehensive platform, placement agents can enhance their decision-making capabilities and streamline collaboration.
DealCloud is a purpose-built platform for placement agents, designed with the particular demands of private placements in mind. Intapp DealCloud software provides placement agents with third-party data integrations, strengthened data security, data reliability, and increased data democratization — so firms can close deals with greater confidence.
Schedule a demo of Intapp’s placement agent software to see it in action.