How to Build a Customizable Financial Advisor Dashboard

Simple Summary

A customizable dashboard for financial advisors that streamlines client management, portfolio analysis, and financial planning in one intuitive interface.

Product Requirements Document (PRD)

Goals:

• Develop a highly customizable dashboard for financial advisors
• Improve efficiency and decision-making for financial professionals
• Provide real-time insights and analytics on client portfolios

Target Audience:

• Financial advisors and wealth management professionals

Key Features:

1. Customizable widget-based dashboard
2. Client portfolio overview and performance tracking
3. Market data integration and visualization
4. Financial planning tools and calculators
5. Client communication and task management
6. Document storage and sharing
7. Compliance and reporting features

User Requirements:

• Intuitive drag-and-drop interface for dashboard customization
• Secure login and data protection
• Mobile-responsive design for on-the-go access
• Integration with popular financial data providers
• Ability to generate custom reports and presentations

User Flows

1. Dashboard Customization:

   • User logs in
   • Navigates to dashboard settings
   • Adds, removes, or rearranges widgets
   • Saves custom layout

2. Client Portfolio Analysis:

   • User selects a client from the client list
   • Views portfolio summary and performance metrics
   • Drills down into specific investments or asset classes
   • Generates a performance report

3. Financial Planning:

   • User creates a new financial plan for a client
   • Inputs client goals and current financial situation
   • Uses built-in calculators and tools to project outcomes
   • Saves and shares the plan with the client

Technical Specifications

• Frontend: React with TypeScript
• Backend: Node.js with Express
• Database: PostgreSQL
• API: RESTful architecture
• Authentication: JWT with refresh tokens
• Data Visualization: D3.js or Chart.js
• State Management: Redux
• CSS Framework: Tailwind CSS
• Testing: Jest for unit tests, Cypress for E2E tests
• Containerization: Docker
• CI/CD: GitHub Actions

API Endpoints

• /api/auth/login
• /api/auth/refresh
• /api/users
• /api/clients
• /api/portfolios
• /api/market-data
• /api/financial-plans
• /api/reports
• /api/documents
• /api/tasks

Database Schema

Users:

• id (PK)
• email
• password_hash
• name
• role

Clients:

• id (PK)
• advisor_id (FK to Users)
• name
• email
• phone

Portfolios:

• id (PK)
• client_id (FK to Clients)
• name
• creation_date

Investments:

• id (PK)
• portfolio_id (FK to Portfolios)
• type
• symbol
• quantity
• purchase_price

FinancialPlans:

• id (PK)
• client_id (FK to Clients)
• name
• creation_date
• data (JSON)

File Structure

Implementation Plan

1. Project Setup (1-2 days)

   • Initialize React project with TypeScript
   • Set up Node.js backend with Express
   • Configure PostgreSQL database
   • Set up Docker containers

2. Authentication and User Management (3-4 days)

   • Implement JWT authentication
   • Create user registration and login flows
   • Set up role-based access control

3. Dashboard Framework (5-7 days)

   • Create basic layout components
   • Implement widget system
   • Develop drag-and-drop functionality

4. Client Management (4-5 days)

   • Create CRUD operations for clients
   • Implement client search and filtering
   • Develop client profile views

5. Portfolio Analysis (7-10 days)

   • Integrate with financial data providers
   • Implement portfolio tracking and performance calculations
   • Create data visualization components

6. Financial Planning Tools (7-10 days)

   • Develop financial calculators and projection tools
   • Create goal-setting and tracking features
   • Implement plan generation and export functionality

7. Reporting and Document Management (5-7 days)

   • Create report generation system
   • Implement document upload and storage
   • Develop sharing and permission controls

8. Testing and QA (5-7 days)

   • Write and run unit tests
   • Perform integration testing
   • Conduct end-to-end testing

9. Deployment and DevOps (3-4 days)

   • Set up CI/CD pipeline
   • Configure production environment
   • Perform security audits

10. Final Testing and Launch (2-3 days)

    • Conduct final QA
    • Prepare documentation
    • Launch MVP

Deployment Strategy

1. Use containerization with Docker for consistent environments
2. Deploy backend to a scalable cloud platform (e.g., AWS ECS or Google Cloud Run)
3. Use a managed PostgreSQL service (e.g., AWS RDS or Google Cloud SQL)
4. Deploy frontend to a CDN-enabled static hosting service (e.g., AWS S3 + CloudFront or Netlify)
5. Implement blue-green deployment for zero-downtime updates
6. Set up automated backups for the database
7. Use a secrets management service for sensitive information
8. Implement logging and monitoring (e.g., ELK stack or Datadog)
9. Set up alerting for critical errors and performance issues
10. Conduct regular security audits and penetration testing

Design Rationale

• Chose React for its component-based architecture and large ecosystem
• Selected Node.js for backend to maintain a JavaScript stack, improving developer productivity
• Opted for PostgreSQL for its robustness in handling financial data and support for JSON fields
• Implemented a widget-based system for maximum dashboard customizability
• Used TypeScript to enhance code quality and catch errors early in development
• Chose Tailwind CSS for rapid UI development and easy customization
• Implemented JWT authentication for secure, stateless authentication
• Utilized Docker for consistency across development and production environments
• Designed the API with RESTful principles for clarity and ease of use