Much more than a mere competitive edge, the move toward tech-enhanced operational efficiency is fast becoming understood as a core investment strategy benchmark. As Mann sees it, operational alpha effectively keeps investors on the right path—especially during downturns—while also creating products with lower volatility to match investor tolerance. Stauffer agrees that investors and firms are beginning to understand how to make smarter investment management choices as a core outcome of improved operations. “Previously, operations focused just on cost and risk management, but now firms are using operational data to better inform investment decisionmaking and portfolio management.”The potential results are both significant and measurable. Firms looking to fix disjointed data management systems will need to invest in integrated architecture that unifies data storage and management with business processes, says Stauffer.