There is a big change just starting to impact the way the Internet, and its related apps, are used: they are moving away from a silo approach to one of interoperability.

Essentially, instead of having to go to one particular website or application to make use of the functionality and service it offers, you will instead be able “call” the functionality or service you need from another website or application. For instance, you will be able to book an Uber ride from other applications—such as, say, Google Maps—without ever opening the Uber app itself. This new capability is sometimes called the “programmable web.” In the case of Uber, they are making nearly all of their application functionality accessible via the API they have released, which is an unusual step at this time, but one we may soon see mimicked widely. The outcome, of course, is that the use of Uber services by other applications becomes ubiquitous because it is so easy to access.

The model of the Internet will move to one that is based upon the consumption of functionality and services through a single endpoint. It is a move away from a single-purpose approach to one where applications have the ability to “collaborate” to provide a desired outcome. In the future Internet world, making your application or service available, via an API, to participate and collaborate in the new “network” of consolidated and aggregated user needs is what will define success. It will be like going to buy a car, not liking the wheels, and then changing them to suit your particular wants and needs—only instead of cars, you will able to customize your web-based applications and solutions.

So, how will this affect how a family office operates?

Soon, there will be a need for an “endpoint” application within the office that consolidates and aggregates the services and functionality of all the applications used internally, outsourced, or Cloud based. Even your desktop applications found in Microsoft Office are on this path. In the not too distant future, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc., will only be accessible as Cloud based applications accessed via Office 365. An “endpoint” application would access the functionality within these applications as you needed them to complete the task you are working on.

A family office can work now to adopt an approach internally to meet this challenge. The small to medium family office needs to implement a system framework that provides all the specific tools they need—data security, business continuity, communications, etc.—through one “endpoint” cloud-based IT solution. This personalized base platform will then allow a family office to be flexible and able to adopt this game-changing approach to financial services technology.