Engagement Options
Five engagement structures, sized to the work. Diagnostics start at $7.5K. Full implementation delivery starts at $50K. Every engagement has explicit scope, defined deliverables, and a process you can explain to your COO.
Which path fits?
If you already know which problem is driving the spend, start there. If you do not, begin with the readiness diagnostic and let the scope widen only where the evidence supports it.
For a narrow concern, boardroom pressure, or an early signal that needs a quick executive read.
Default entry OMS Readiness DiagnosticFor broad scope questions spanning workflow, data, compliance, integration, UAT, and cutover.
Focused control review Compliance Rule Mapping AuditFor noisy rule libraries, override sprawl, stale mandate translation, and weak audit evidence.
Platform decision TCO & Vendor Selection SprintFor steering-committee decisions where AIM vs CRD, budget, and operating-model fit must be defended.
OMS readiness diagnostic
Before committing to a full implementation, know where you stand. PBW's diagnostic engagements give institutional asset managers a clear picture of readiness across infrastructure, compliance, integration, and post-trade operations — delivered by a Bloomberg AIM and Charles River consultant who has done this before.
The starting point for any implementation conversation.
5–10 business days
For buy-side firms evaluating a Bloomberg AIM or Charles River IMS implementation — or preparing for board-level scope approval.
Decision support for AIM vs CRD selection, budget defensibility, and steering committee approval.
2-4 weeks
For firms selecting between Bloomberg AIM and Charles River where the board needs a defensible platform and budget recommendation.
Focused audit of mandate translation, rule reliability, exception workflow, and evidence.
Scoped audit
For firms already on Charles River IMS or Bloomberg AIM where compliance rules are noisy, hard to defend, or detached from written mandates.
Fix what's broken after a live cutover.
5–10 business days
For firms that went live on Bloomberg AIM or Charles River IMS and are experiencing parallel run pain, trading desk complaints, or performance drift on T+1 settlement.
Diagnostic engagements are scoped and priced before work begins. You receive a written statement of work with explicit deliverables — no surprises. These are not proposals; they are active consulting engagements with a defined output.
The cost of getting it wrong
A botched Bloomberg AIM or Charles River rollout doesn't show up as a clean write-off. It shows up as months of parallel operations — paying for two systems while migrating data by hand. It shows up as missed trades on day one because FIX sessions weren't certified. It shows up as compliance false positives that your traders disable, creating real regulatory exposure. It shows up as a migration team that overshoots scope by 40% with nothing to show for it.
Failed implementations in this space cost $500K to $5M when you account for performance drag, regulatory penalties, extended vendor contracts, and the opportunity cost of your team being distracted for 12–18 months.
PBW's fees are a fraction of that. The engagement structures below are sized to the work — not inflated to impress in a sales deck. Whether you come in through a diagnostic engagement or go straight to a full implementation partnership, you're working with a senior Bloomberg AIM and Charles River IMS consultant who has done this end-to-end before.
Recommended starting point
The clean on-ramp between a free assessment and a full advisory engagement. In 10 business days, you get a complete picture of where you stand — before committing to a six-figure implementation.
| Workstream | Output |
|---|---|
| Intake & discovery | Current-state profile, stakeholder map, scope assumptions |
| Workflow review | Trading, compliance, data, settlement, and integration friction points |
| Platform readiness | AIM/CRD readiness scorecard and implementation risk matrix |
| Gap analysis | Prioritized severity-ranked findings |
| Roadmap | 30/60/90-day remediation plan with rough timeline and budget bands |
| Executive readout | 60-minute leadership debrief and written recommendation memo |
Diagnostic fee credited against an Advisory Sprint if engaged within 60 days. Makes it a smart first move, not a sunk cost.
Diagnostic variants
Same structured approach, scoped to your specific challenge. Each variant follows the flagship format — deliverables table, executive readout, 60-day credit toward an Advisory Sprint.
For firms with an existing OMS deployment needing mandate translation, rule-library reliability, exception workflow, testing evidence, or audit-trail review.
| Rule inventory | Complete audit of existing compliance rules vs. mandate requirements |
| Gap matrix | T+1, IBOR, FIX, and regulatory rule gaps ranked by exposure severity |
| Workflow map | As-is and to-be workflow diagrams for compliance and settlement flows |
| Automation readiness | Assessment of rules eligible for automated enforcement vs. manual review |
| Remediation roadmap | Prioritized fix sequence with implementation complexity estimates |
| Executive readout | 60-minute debrief with written compliance risk memo |
For firms 3–12 months post-OMS deployment experiencing operational friction. Focuses on performance gaps, integration failures, compliance rule drift, and user adoption issues that surface after go-live.
| Performance audit | Latency, throughput, and exception rate benchmarks vs. expected baselines |
| Integration health check | FIX session stability, custodian feed reliability, break rate analysis |
| Compliance drift review | Rules modified or disabled post-go-live; exposure impact assessment |
| Adoption gaps | Workflow deviations and manual workarounds your team has built around the OMS |
| Fix priority list | Ranked remediation backlog with effort estimates and quick-win callouts |
| Executive readout | 60-minute debrief and written optimization memo |
What's included
Every tier builds on the last. The Diagnostic is your foundation — it makes later work faster and better-scoped.
| Capability |
Diagnostic
$7.5K–$25K
|
Advisory Sprint
$25K–$50K
|
Implementation Partner
$50K–$150K
|
Retainer
$5K–$15K/mo
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Discovery calls | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Document review | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Workflow review | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Readiness scorecard | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Gap analysis & roadmap | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | — |
| Executive debrief | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Implementation support | — | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Ongoing email access | — | — | ✓ | ✓ |
| Retainer availability | — | — | — | ✓ |
| Start Scoping | Start a Conversation | Start a Conversation | View Retainer Options |
Advisory engagements
Free 30-min scoping call · No commitment required
Free 30-min scoping call · No commitment required
All engagements include a written scoping document, defined deliverables, and explicit sign-off points. No surprises at week 10. The person who scopes the engagement delivers it.
Looking for ongoing support instead of a one-time project?
View Retainer Options →Platform expertise
Trade lifecycle, compliance rules, FIX connectivity, custodian integration, performance optimization. Full scope from requirements through post-go-live for Bloomberg AIM consultants and their clients.
View Bloomberg AIM Services →End-to-end Charles River IMS delivery — order management, portfolio rebalancing, compliance rule mapping, FIX connectivity, IBOR integration, and multi-custodian feeds for buy-side firms.
View Charles River Services →A 30-minute call establishes the right engagement structure. We ask about your current state, your timeline, and what a successful implementation looks like for your firm — then we recommend the right tier. No sales process.