CTRM / CM as an Architecture A ComTechAdvisory Whitepaper
In essence , Commodity Management isn ’ t a single homogenous software category at all , but rather a grouping of related but nonetheless functionally different classes of software that relate to the trading , movement , and management of commodities . It is a truly heterogeneous software category addressed by over 100 different vendors serving one or more commodities , geographic markets and / or industry segments - and its why new vendors and products continue to emerge in what would otherwise appear to be a crowded market .
A CONTINUING EVOLUTION
The evolution of this already complex software class has been , and continues to be , impacted by rapidly shifting requirements . Factors such as regulatory changes , shifting economic / trade patterns , industrial technology advances and geo-political conflict have led to rapid changes to the very nature of the commodity markets – with new markets , new companies and new ways of doing business seemingly emerging almost daily . With each change , new functional requirements are established and new demands are thrust upon existing vendors and their products - providing an opportunity for new vendors to enter the markets with the “ latest and greatest ” products . Software technology innovation has also heavily impacted the category , such as the earlier migration to client / server architectures - and now to web-enabled , cloud delivered solutions being two primary examples .
Beyond the changes in functional requirements , today ’ s evolving markets are generating huge amounts of data , which seems to grow and change exponentially on an almost daily basis . While capturing , managing , and reporting this data is an increasingly daunting task , the usage of that data and the information it contains will vary tremendously between market segments , companies , and even individuals within those companies . For instance :
/ Different types of users will require different views of the same data , even down to singular users – this requirement has necessitated the development of customizable dashboards for individuals in oversight roles such as managers , executives , and compliance personnel ; personalisable screens and reports for traders / deal makers , logistics personnel , etc ; and the use of complex reporting tools and integration frameworks for consolidated reporting and analytics at a parent company level .
/ Regulatory reporting where different trades and transactions must be classified and reported in different formats to different jurisdictions .
/ Risk management where different views on different types of risk need to be presented with varying
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