Frontier

Security Management
Although Frontier is extremely flexible it does not do so at the expense of security. You can create various user groups with different security levels and add operators to any group or groups that you like. At the same time tasks are assigned to groups for execution and these tasks can then only be performed by users assigned to these groups. Confidential tasks can therefore be assigned to the relevant users.

Application Processing
Every application type is assigned to a business process of your choice.
The application will be processed based on your business processes and the actual business process will be stored with the application for later review.
Various tasks in the application processing of different applications can be automated. These are normally tasks that are mundane, i.e. producing a letter - thereby improving productivity and staff morale, or sensitive in nature, i.e. a credit bureau search – thereby minimising risk to you. Various work queues – yes, you may create your own – manage the work assignments for each user. Applications can also be sent to a specific user and comments, linked to actions if required, are also available throughout each step of the workflow. The application-processing feature makes use of all the functionality available in Frontier. Frontier processes multiple applicants per application, caters for consumers and businesses and can handle any product that you want to create.

Workflow Engine
Frontier allows you to change the workflow of any product type, or create new workflow for a new or
changed business process. The workflow engine does not only empower you by providing flexibility that can be easily changed, but leaves you with control of your credit risk strategy. The workflow engine enables you to select tasks that must be mandatory, which tasks are prerequisites of other tasks and which steps must be included. In addition to the construction of a series of steps to determine the logical sequence of tasks you can decide which ones are to be fully automated, if possible of course, and which require operator interaction. The condition of some tasks, like completed or pending before processing a next task can also be configured for your environment.

Image Processing
Frontier acknowledges that it is pointless having the application captured and then still work with paperwork relating to identity documents, payslips, business financial statement or any other documents you require. Frontier will allow you to load and link images from file or scan new images into the system. Why print faxes with applications if you can capture from the screen after we interface into your fax server? Even better why not allow third party products¹ with OCR capability to even further automate this step in the application processing cycle? Frontier caters for them all.

Document Management
Automated credit application processing does not mean that no documentation will be prepared. A range of documentation for the applicants needs to be produced from contracts to letters of decline.
Additional documents are normally also required, i.e. a letter to the landlord for asset ownership information, to compete a transaction. This documentation forms part of the processes supported by Frontier.

Application Validation Engine
Frontier limits unnecessary processing by validating the applications and applicants through sets of rules.
This enables the client to pre-validate applications before processing the information and incurring costs by eliminating unnecessary credit bureau enquiries, deed searches and scoring through third party score cards.

Business Rules Engine
Business rules in credit application processing that define the credit strategies for clients and different products can easily be implemented with Frontier. The Business Rules Engine allows you the client to introduce a wide range of rules in a easy and flexible manner. These business rules govern a wide range of criteria from validation rules, decision trees and scorecards for a wide range of combinations around client types and product types.

 External Data Source Engine
Don’t want to capture the details again to access the credit bureaus or other data sources like the deeds offices? Frontier allows you to automate this step with seamless integration to all the credit bureaus, all the deeds offices, online bank code requests, online cheque verification and online address verification². Frontier enables you to switch to any or all credit bureaus based on your set of rules. If the client is not on one credit bureau, switch to the other, if the bureau is not available switch to the other, go to both bureaus (as I need all the information) are some of the selections that you can make.
Intelligence can also drive this process; only go to a deeds office if the applicant claims to be an owner of the property. All external data is returned and stored on your system for a comprehensive audit trail of what enquiries you did and what information you received.

Escalation Manager
Client service is of utmost importance in Frontier. The workflow engine drives the tasks in Frontier.
When configuring the steps of the workflow, you will be required to assign a time limit to each step. In the event that any of the steps in the workflow is not completed within the allocated time limit the Escalation Manager kicks in. The Escalation Manager escalates the need to give attention to this step in a particular application through the ranks as defined by you. Various escalation levels can be created and an urgency level can be assigned to each level assigned to a particular step.

Notification Engine
The Notification Engine in Frontier is designed to notify users of the system of any task that requires their attention. Suffice to say that this component integrates into the escalation manager. The notification engine is also used to communicate with applicants, in the event that you need to
communicate with the applicant, some examples include; a request for missing documentation like a payslip; inform the applicant of the fact that the house has been transferred onto his name, to name but two. How do you get notified? Various methods are available including e-mail, SMS, fax, or a task in your Inbox, even all of the above if you are hard to find and the notification is important.

Deal Tracking
Deal tracking in the system is easily accessible in Frontier. Powerful filters and sorting capabilities allow you to look at deals in the system or zoom into any grouping of deals. If numerous deals are selected you can sort the deals with various sorting parameters.                                                                                                                    

Decision Tree Engine
Decision trees can easily be created on various pieces of information that range from application data, bureau data or other internal or external data. The data is accessed by routines that allow you to interrogate the data and test different logical formulas against the data.
Scorecards can also be included in the decision tree. These trees can branch into various nodes that include acceptance, referrals, declines and other branches of the tree. You can create as many trees as you like with as many branches as you like.

Once you have created these trees they are assigned to a business rule, (using the Business Rules Engine) which allow you to create a credit strategy.

Credit Scoring Engine
In today’s competitive credit risk management market any business without a credit risk model that includes a credit scorecard is not on par with its competitors. Having a judgemental decision tree that addresses some of the negative aspects of credit risk is one component in a credit risk strategy. An application scorecard that assesses the credit risk is a must for any business that grants credit. This is normally used in conjunction withthe bureau score on the applicant. Frontier has a powerful score engine that allows you to build as many score cards as you want. These cards are made up of Criteria with Attributes assigned to them. For the client that does not work with raw scores but uses weightings as well, Frontier caters for both schools. The Criteria used are easy to configure and assigned to a card. The logic around the attributes is easy to configure with drop down lists to choose from, even for complex sets of logic.

 Champion Challenger Engine
Using the champion challenger functionality of Frontier the customer can challenge the credit strategy in place with carefully designed challengers. By channelling every n th application through a different decision tree or score card, Frontier allows you to try new credit strategies with small samples of your client base. This enable you to first test the waters before you adopt a higher risk that will hopefully bring you higher returns.

Affordability Matrix
Understanding the credit risk of a client is one thing, but the ultimate question is still what can he actually afford. Based on where the client is positioned in the Joint Odds Matrix, the Affordability Matrix is consulted by Frontier. Frontier allows you to assign an affordability factor to each matrix that is used to calculate credit limits.
One of the reasons for using the affordability matrix is to determine if the client is about to over commit himself in which case you will want to down sell him, minimising your risk, or the client might be under committing himself, in which case you want to up sell to him, maximising your reward.

 Up Sell Down Sell Engine
After you used the affordability matrix - to determine if the client must be down sold on his application or up sold on his application – Frontier prompts you with the assigned and qualified offering(s), clearly indicating whether it is a normal approved transaction or either an up- or down-sell transaction. In the event that the application from the client qualifies for more than one of you products, Frontier – based on your parameters – indicates in a priority sequence which product you must try and sell to the customer even although he qualifies for more than one option. This enables you to have a diverse offering, but in a sales cycle you will know which product will maximise your return.

Cross Selling Engine
Most companies retrospectively try to determine what other business opportunities they might have with the same client. Would you like to offer this at time of interaction with the client? Frontier allows you to assign cross-selling opportunities through the Cross Sell Engine to every cell of the Joint Odds Matrix. Use the power of Frontier to improve your return, in your customer base, using the Cross Sell Engine.

 Credit Decision Panels
All of the functionality is wonderful, but what about some larger transaction where a credit committee must make a decision? Even better how about a panel from different disciplines in your business that must approve deals? Not a problem for Frontier! Frontier allows you to set up mandate panels that must approve transactions, with specific groups or individuals that must form part of these panels.

Accounting System Plug-In
If Frontier does not interface into your accounting system it will lead to a couple of problems. The most obvious one is that the client will have to be created manually in your accounting system. Some of the other not so obvious, but more important implications are, you will have to manually determine things like group exposures, payment patterns of existing clients that wants to increase their credit limits. Interfacing into your accounting system is therefore crucial. Frontier already interfaces into some of the popular (and some not so common) systems.

Management Reporting
Although Frontier has all the necessary management reports, that are normally required, customers have their own unique requirements. In addition to these unique requirements from the clients they also tend to have their own management reporting system deployed. Addressing these diverse reporting requirements and diverse management tool requirements, access to Frontier’s data is given through data models. This enables you to write reports to your hearts content without incurring extra costs with your own favourite reporting tool.

CRM Plug-In
CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is one of the hot buttons of industry today and Frontier is taking cognisance of that fact. Start good customer relations with your prospective clients. Interfacing into your CRM solution and call centre gives you the seamless capability to service your clients enquiring about their recent application. Frontier already interfaces into some of the popular (and some not so common) CRM solutions available.

Audit Trail
A comprehensive audit trail is kept of all changes to data, system functionality and workflow. The audit trail allows you to keep track of changes within your system and control of changes made to any data in the system. In addition to this normal audit trail mechanism, Frontier also keeps track of the workflow used with every application and any scoring, validation and decisioning used. This feature allows you to build a comprehensive database of credit decisions and processes used to get to these decisions for scorecard building.

"Frontier is setting the standard for credit application processing solutions"

¹Products like Eyes and Hands will interface into Frontier with this functionality
²You will require a link to SPOC (Secure Point of Contact) for this functionality