Eastern Shore Capital Management leverages Bipsync as business continuity platform

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Eastern Shore relied on Bipsync’s Research Management Software (RMS) as part of its business continuity platform. Bipsync was founded in 2012 by experienced Silicon Valley investors and software developers. The purpose-built RMS brings research productivity and compliance together to drive strategic decision-making for investors.

The Opportunity

Unwieldy tool lacks rigor and efficiency required for disciplined research management

Prior to connecting with Bipsync, Eastern Shore relied on an older internally-built system to capture knowledge and share information. Over time, Eastern Shore found client demands increasing regarding information and the level of detail desired. The team’s internal system did not provide the capability to meet these demands efficiently. Sarah Westwood, Partner and Portfolio Manager, explains the deficiencies of the team’s older system, “The platform was not easy to search, and a lot of the information was opaque. Because it was not cloud-based, we could not access it from mobile devices. We wanted to bring more discipline and rigor to the research management approach.”

Additionally, the team wanted a platform to serve as a single source of truth for research and client interactions. Eastern Shore needed a robust source to rely on when colleagues were out of the office, andtheir clients had questions. Having this data captured in an accessible location would further allow the team to present examples of portfolio additions in a more comprehensive fashion to clients.

The Solution

Bipsync brings scale, value, and robust research capabilities to Eastern Shore

In selecting a new solution, Eastern Shore prioritized value, scalability, integrations, and intuitiveness. They wanted a solution that had robust research, compliance, and note-taking features but was not encumbered with irrelevant capabilities.

Having a solution that would allow the team to hit the ground running was also an important factor. During the selection process, Eastern Shore sat in on demos from several potential solution providers. Around this time, the team also came across Bipsync’s RMS technology through a Google search.

Sarah shares that this stage in the process emphasized the importance of a short learning curve: “some of the systems we demoed seemed overly complex, and it felt as though the learning curve would be pretty steep. Bipsync just seemed so user-friendly that we could hit the ground running, and it would meet all of our needs.”

After experiencing the product first-hand, the Eastern Shore team found Bipsync to be tailor-made for their needs due to its industry focus, research automation, streamlined interface, and accessibility. Currently, several departments leverage the RMS platform, including the organization’s Chief Compliance Officer, traders, Head of Business Development, and portfolio managers.

“Some of the systems we demoed seemed overly complex, and it felt as though the learning curve would be pretty steep. Bipsync just seemed so user-friendly that we could hit the ground running, and it would meet all of our needs.”

The Results

Bipsync provides tailor-made experience for research and compliance

The Bipsync research platform was an important resource for a seamless switch to remote work during the pandemic for Eastern Shore. In the past, team members relied primarily on in-person collaboration and communication. Sarah describes Bipsync as absolutely critical, “Having the web-based platform allowed us to continue to work seamlessly. We really came to lean on the platform heavily to share insights from calls with company management teams.”

During this time, Eastern Shore also brought their traders onto the platform to create a richer repository of information. The platform houses real-time trading information, including the timing of adjustment to positions as well as notes on companies, industries, and themes.

Bipsync’s ability to capture a wealth of information provided Eastern Shore with the depth and dimension they needed for remote client and internal calls. The team was able to share stories of additions to the portfolio in greater detail. “There were quite a few client calls during the early days of lockdown. Being able to walk through the story of our holdings in detail brought the nuances of our process to life and allowed us to provide more depth than we had in the past,” notes Sarah.

On the research and business development side, Eastern Shore also maintains a strong repository of companies to review in the future as potential portfolio additions. This feature prevents the duplication of research efforts and breaks down knowledge silos. The firm leverages Bipsync to keep track of rationales for adding companies to the portfolio, generating ideas, and storing detailed contacts regarding company management and sell-side interactions.

“Being able to walk through the story of our holdings in detail brought the nuances of our process to life and allowed us to provide more depth than we had in the past.”

“In the past, we would have put this information in our notes as part of our preparation for client meetings. Given that we were now meeting over Zoom, it was wonderful to be able to pull the system up and see trading data integrated with our notes on any holding in real-time.”