Waters Rankings 2014: Best Mobile Solutions Provider — Morningstar

 Mike Lebrun, product manager of mobile solutions at Morningstar, says that users are looking for quick access to the most vital information, although they’re not typically conducting in-depth analysis on the go. “Given this, we have steered our efforts away from heavy-handed tools like screeners and focused our attention on improving the investor’s ability to monitor the markets and their portfolios in a way that is personalized and meaningful to them,” he says. “Morningstar.com is focused on becoming a more mobile-responsive website that will allow users who do want to perform such research through their mobile devices the opportunity to do so.”

Morningstar is currently in the process of enhancing its iPad app, as a result of the changing mobile environment described by Lebrun. In the coming months, the company is set to add Morningstar’s editorial content, Gainers/Losers/Most Actives lists for an array of global indexes, and redesigned charts to help users visualize performance and volatility across a range of time periods.

“Our iPad app is smartly designed, both on the front-end to offer an intuitive user experience, and also on the back-end to allow for quick response times and avoid outages,” he says. “In addition, Morningstar has an army of analysts who create and integrate credible, independent content into our application, which is a true point of differentiation.”

Additionally, while Morningstar is currently focusing on the iPad as the tablet of choice, based on what the firm’s users most want right now, Lebrun adds that the firm is keeping an eye on Android, as the operating system is gaining more attention in the capital markets.

“Morningstar’s mobile team looks to serve investors with the best user experience, so we are thrilled to get such positive reinforcement through this award.” —Mike Barad, program director, Morningstar